Non(or less)-selective independent secondaries or grammars?

[hermanmunster]

I agree with loobylou - what actually happens at the end is totally different from the year 5 gossip (particularly the scholarship side of things)

This has certainly been our experience too. The most talked about plans never materialised and many of the parents (hence their kids too) often had aspirations way beyond their ability or means. There are kids in our daughter’s current year 6, who are so sure they are going to bag selective state school places, that the only back-up plans they have, are independent scholarships.

After a "chat" with granny at Xmas no doubt

[hermanmunster]

Is there some reason why you are using two tutors and a study centre and you are in a private prep school?

If she actually needs all of that to prepare for the exams then it does seem that you need to be looking at a non selective school. DG

I suppose none of us know if she needs it, sometimes people just get swept up into the whole tutoring thing because everyone else is doing it.

[XelaM]

Thank you for all your helpful comments. Fortunately, we are out of catchment for Dame Alice Owen, so that's one less super-selective exam to worry about. Latymer and Henrietta Barnet are the two main state exams we are looking at.

The reason we have two tutors is slightly odd. I was initially looking for a tutor to come to our house to do 1-2-1 tuition, but could not find anyone except "online tutors". I was then recommended this tutor to whom apparently everyone in my daughter's school has been going (who knew!), but because she is so busy, her only time slots were 7:30am on a Saturday and Sunday(!). We tried it twice and not being particularly organised or morning people it didn't work. She then recommended another tutor (whom also everyone aside from me apparently knew). He is now coming to our house and my daughter loves him, but the first tutor also set up a tutoring group for 4 girls (one of them being my daughter's best friend) who meet at a more reasonable time after school. So she wants to go to the group session with her best friend (who is also getting an additional 4 hours of private tutoring per week from the same woman).

Thankfully, yesterday we agreed to at least cancel Explore Learning because it was impossible to keep up with everything plus additional homework from tutors (and insane amounts of homework from school)!

It's so difficult for me to judge whether (or how much) tutoring my daughter actually requires because I have never been through this process and can only go by all the horror stories I am being told by parents of older siblings in my daughter's class. I thought if I didn't get her tutoring when everyone else appears to have one - I wouldn't be giving her a fair shot at the exams at all.

I am feeling very sorry for her at the moment and am trying to tell her to take a break! At least it's half-term soon.

[Bazelle]

If you are willing to travel to Kew House, have you considered the 3 Ealing independent schools?

Notting Hill and Ealing is all girls and selective, but probably less so than the North London ones;

St Benedict's (co-ed) and St Augustine's (all girls) are non-selective.

However, I believe that an outstanding state school is likely to provide better education than a non-selective independent, but there are many factors to consider.

good luck

[Middlesexmum]

Have you considered Channing? I don't have personal experience but people say it's a good school and not as fiercely competitive as some.

[Daogroupie]

I agree. I know girls there who are really enjoying it.

There is just a single CEM exam and no English and Maths papers. DG

[XelaM]

Thank you to all the above advice. At this stage I am less prepared to compromise on the co-ed aspect (unless it's for Henrietta Barnett) which is why I didn't apply to Channing when I was looking at prep schools (in hindsight that may have been a mistake). Otherwise, City Girls is just 5 minutes from my office and we could commute together. I might re-consider about the co-ed thing closer to the exam dates.

[Daogroupie]

City Girls is very oversubscribed as girls can come in from all over the home counties.

Habs and Highgate are a lot easier to get into than City girls.

Are you co-ed at the moment? DG

[XelaM]

City Girls is very oversubscribed as girls can come in from all over the home counties.

Habs and Highgate are a lot easier to get into than City girls.

Are you co-ed at the moment? DG

Yes, we're at a co-ed prep ar the moment. I have heard that City Girls is very difficult to get into (I guess many people who work in the City have the same idea as me about the commute). Having said this, apparently a less academic boy in the year above ours was sufficiently "coached" to pass the exam. Not sure what they did though and at the moment my daughter has hours of various homework to do for school/tutors or actual tutor sessions, so I'm not going to add any extra studying.

[Daogroupie]

I was not suggesting that at all.

Your dd would benefit from more focused prep rather than any more prep.

I was just pointing out that if Highgate is your dream school then that should be your focus rather than Habs and City.

Highgate is in early December. DG