11 Plus Exams Forum

Hi ,
I was looking at their web site and is it true that they have school on Saturdays? On the web site it says they have lessons on Saturday morning and games/ sport on a Saturday afternoon. Can someone please clarify this for me. The deadline for applications is the beginning of September and if it is school 6 days a week then I think it rules it out for us.
Regards,
Novice mum

It certainly states that on the FAQ. Lots of Indies used to have lessons but the number has reduced now, though many still have sport

Yes, a friend who is considering the school, says they definitely have Saturday school then sports fixtures after.

Yes they have school on Saturday as they have a lot of boarders. About twice a term they have an exeat with no Saturday school.

Yes - I have a friend with a son at the school and there is definitely Saturday school. He is a day boy and he is very happy with Saturday school - I guess it has become his 'normal'. However it does restrict family activities / weekends away particularly as his siblings don't have Saturday school.

Yes school lessons every Saturday - but exceptionally long summer holidays - they get all of July and August!

Quite a few independent schools have (virtually) compulsory sports fixtures on a Saturday morning anyway..... Came as quite a shock to our non sporty ds!

Yes they do have Saturday school.

Also remember that many schools both Indie and State play sports fixtures on Saturdays, so if you have a sporty dc you will need to take this into consideration.

DS is starting at Sevenoaks in September, and yes they have Saturday morning lessons (though no compulsory afternoon sport until Year 9 - except presumably unless you're in a team). Interesting that you see the Saturdays as a deal breaker. I guess everyone's different, but it doesn't feel like a big deal for us (or DS). I'm sure it will take a bit of adjustment and I'm sure he'll find it tiring at first, but it's never actually more than about three Saturdays in a row (because of the exeats), and they get long holidays to make up for it. And as others have said, if it's not Saturday lessons it might well still have been Saturday sports matches at another school. To be honest, I'm quite looking forward to a bit of peace and quiet on a Saturday morning!! Obviously it would be different if we had specific commitments on a Saturday or went away for the weekend very regularly. But if you don't, it seems like a fairly minor reason to discount a school.