St Pauls School for Girls first round computer test results

[nylon14]

Yes it's uniform free, but the girls have sports three times a week and must wear their sports uniform on those days. However....the sports kit is pricey...£400. Do not buy the sports bag, no one ends up using it and try and get the Lacrosse stick and as much as you can at the second hand sale which is held at the first tea.

[loobylou]

....the sports kit is pricey...£400.

I've not spent that much on my dd's entire uniform in 4 years!

[Elky]

£ 1,000... in SPGS? That much would be spent on new wardrobe and shoes in the first few weeks, I reckon. It’s unifirm free school.

But yes depends on the child’s maturity.

So many people seem to fundamentally misunderstand the ideas and ethos behind not having a uniform. It absolutely won't be necessary to buy a whole new wardrobe at a vastly inflated price. The lovely thing about non-uniform schools is that they concentrate very much on what is going on inside your head and not what shoes you are wearing (unlike those with uniform, which usually do seem to have a whole raft of pointless restrictions about what can and cannot be worn).

[tiffinboys]

Does SPGS has monopoly on what goes in head?

I still think SPGS has edge over other girls' schools, but others are not so behind that only shoes matter there.

[Guest55]

So many people seem to fundamentally misunderstand the ideas and ethos behind not having a uniform. It absolutely won't be necessary to buy a whole new wardrobe at a vastly inflated price. The lovely thing about non-uniform schools is that they concentrate very much on what is going on inside your head and not what shoes you are wearing (unlike those with uniform, which usually do seem to have a whole raft of pointless restrictions about what can and cannot be worn).

That might be the aim but, in my experience, no uniform means more money spent and 'labels' being important. How do bursary studnets feel when they can't afford flashy clothes? WHy isn't sports equipment included? Lacrosse sticks!!

By the way, Sixth form progress is only 'average' according to DfE.

[tiffinboys]

By the way, Sixth form progress is only 'average' according to DfE.

May be the SPGS girls are so much advanced by the end of GSCE that there is little room to show further high progress.

[Sla212]

£ 1,000... in SPGS? That much would be spent on new wardrobe and shoes in the first few weeks, I reckon. It’s unifirm free school.

But yes depends on the child’s maturity.

So many people seem to fundamentally misunderstand the ideas and ethos behind not having a uniform. It absolutely won't be necessary to buy a whole new wardrobe at a vastly inflated price. The lovely thing about non-uniform schools is that they concentrate very much on what is going on inside your head and not what shoes you are wearing (unlike those with uniform, which usually do seem to have a whole raft of pointless restrictions about what can and cannot be worn).

I couldn't disagree more!

One of my children goes to a non-uniform school & what you wear - particularly in Yrs7-9 when I think peer pressure really kicks in - is of great importance & it appears to be a topic of great discussion & also worry...having the right trainers etc. My child didn't know what labels were until secondary school started!

The non-uniform school also has huge long lists of what you can & can't wear, most of which is ignored - causing extra admin for the school writing home to parents & causing teachers a lot of wasted doing lunchtime "clothing checks".

I think that non uniform has cost me more than uniform, I really do.

I am a great fan of uniform, no worry about what to wear, it's a great leveller.

[Elky]

OK, well, I guess everyone goes for where they think their child will be most comfortable/challenged/happy in whatever combination they think will be right for their child.

No school has a monopoly on good things going on inside people's heads. What a strange comment. However, the mere fact of having a uniform unfortunately places a significantly higher value on how you look, which is very much a bad thing, IMO, particularly in this day and age.

I find uniform/non-uniform discussions really interesting. So many people seem to go off how mufti days work out and assume that non-uniform is like an endless round of high stakes mufti days. It is not.

In my experience of no uniform at St Paul's specifically, I did not find that there was a crazy emphasis on clothes and did find that no uniform led to a much freer environment and in particular to a better relationship between staff and pupils. I have heard from current parents that this seems unchanged. I have friends who were on assisted places there and friends who were the daughters of people who were/are seriously rich. We are all still friends some decades on (I was somewhere in the middle).

Not sure what is so weird about lacrosse sticks. Would you say the same about hockey sticks which seem to be necessary for quite a number of other schools? It's just inverted snobbery to think that lacrosse sticks are inherently ridiculous in some way.

For any other bursary holders, I understand that the uniform sale at the MIV tea is a good source of cheap games kit including lacrosse sticks and I plan to be in there at the first opportunity!

As for progress/attainment scores on the DfE website, I find that these are generally a bit weird for independent schools generally. Plus, if you get A* or A at GCSE and A or A* at A Level, that is indeed expected progress. What higher grade could a child achieve, I wonder?

[Elky]

Sla212, that has not been my experience of non-uniform at all! However, there wasn't a mad list of what you could and couldn't wear. Children were always given responsibility to make their own decisions (apart from health and safety things like closed toe shoes in science labs and no dangly earrings for sport).

[Guest55]

No school has a monopoly on good things going on inside people's heads. What a strange comment. However, the mere fact of having a uniform unfortunately places a significantly higher value on how you look, which is very much a bad thing, IMO, particularly in this day and age.

It is the very opposite - when there's uniform everyone looks the same so there's NO focus on what someone is wearing.

Any sports equipment should be provided by the school when you are paying fees.