DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

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StevieL
Posts: 30
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2018 2:53 pm

DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by StevieL »

Okay, so I know this is an old chestnut! After two years of very hard work by DC and a great deal of angst and sacrifice all round, DC has been blessed with two definite offers of places from DAO and Latymer.

We love Latymer but DAO is a relative unknown to us despite a visit. Distance same to both, so not a factor.

We would really appreciate thoughts from parents in same boat currently or in very recent past. Am aware this is an enviable dilemma and is not meant to antagonise those without choice. Am genuinely only wondering about thoughts of others in identical position.

Our slight concern with DAO is the local admissions and whether this compromises the academic side, but does this enhance in other ways?

For us the only real concrete difference seems to be sibling policy. I am not sure that free pass for DC2 is good enough reason alone to chose DAO (DC2 is more hungry, competitive than DC1...so slight concern about how to keep focussed without 11+ challenge). Or perhaps we have lost the plot, need to relax and put whole 11+ behind us, seek new challenges etc.
ToadMum
Posts: 11944
Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:41 pm
Location: Essex

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by ToadMum »

StevieL wrote:Okay, so I know this is an old chestnut! After two years of very hard work by DC and a great deal of angst and sacrifice all round, DC has been blessed with two definite offers of places from DAO and Latymer.

We love Latymer but DAO is a relative unknown to us despite a visit. Distance same to both, so not a factor.

We would really appreciate thoughts from parents in same boat currently or in very recent past. Am aware this is an enviable dilemma and is not meant to antagonise those without choice. Am genuinely only wondering about thoughts of others in identical position.

Our slight concern with DAO is the local admissions and whether this compromises the academic side, but does this enhance in other ways?

For us the only real concrete difference seems to be sibling policy. I am not sure that free pass for DC2 is good enough reason alone to chose DAO (DC2 is more hungry, competitive than DC1...so slight concern about how to keep focussed without 11+ challenge). Or perhaps we have lost the plot, need to relax and put whole 11+ behind us, seek new challenges etc.
DAO's official classification is as a comprehensive school, but if you look at statistics for prior attainment, you will find a very non-comprehensive school type profile, vis à vis the intake. I don't think you need to worry about your DC being dragged down, acadeically, by the thick locals, since apparently little if any of the local primary schools turn out anything other than the old level 5+ .

Eta, surely, you have to be resident in the catchment area even to sit the selection test? At least until someone is brave enough to challenge this policy with regard to the Admissions Code :) .
Last edited by ToadMum on Mon Oct 22, 2018 8:40 am, edited 1 time in total.
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copella
Posts: 1200
Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2010 3:51 pm

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by copella »

It's a long time ago since we were thinking this. However we put Latymer first as it felt the right fit for out son. We put Dao second but would still have been happy with it. Lots of people we know prefer dao due to the sibling criteria, the buildings are new and it has a lot of space and grounds. In reality there is little to chose between the schools academically. For us Latymer suited our son's style. It is liberal and there is a lot of opportunity for children to be individuals and excelling at music and drama is just as important as excelling academically bit I think this is true of Dao. You will have to think about which is best for your children and which environment will get the best from them.
loobylou
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Joined: Thu Nov 27, 2014 5:04 pm

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by loobylou »

We were in this position 5 years ago. We chose DAO because it felt by far the best fit for our dd. There was nothing that we could state we disliked about Latymer (and we had great friends whose children were there, and had chosen it over DAO) but it just didn't feel as though dd would be as happy there as she would at DAO.
You've already said that you love Latymer which might be your answer; we loved DAO hence choosing that.
To answer your specific questions, the "local" children do not dilute the academic nature of the school; the sibling policy definitely leads to a family feel about the school.
Music, sport, drama etc are all really important at DAO but, as Copella said, Latymer has the same.
I would go with your gut feel.
Albatross
Posts: 76
Joined: Wed Jan 29, 2014 10:42 pm

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by Albatross »

You should toss a coin. And then if the answer the coin toss gives causes you to think, “Hmmm. Best of three...” then you’ll know what you really wanted all along :D

(So, go with your gut feeling, as the others said above!)

Being slightly more helpful - although only slightly because I only have DC at one of the schools and did not have to consider the particular choice you are making - I have DC at Latymer and they and we love the feel and the ethos of the place. (Although there are obviously going to be children and parents saying the same about DAO, of course.)
loobylou
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Joined: Thu Nov 27, 2014 5:04 pm

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by loobylou »

One other thing... I don't know many parents who love their child's secondary school. For most of my friends their choice of secondary (and being from London there is usually a good deal of choice) is a "head" decision rather than a "heart" one. There's nothing wrong with that and it works well for most people. However I feel lucky that I genuinely love my children's school and still feel very grateful that they got to go there.
If you genuinely love Latymer from going to visit it, then choose there
StevieL
Posts: 30
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2018 2:53 pm

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by StevieL »

Thanks all for comments, much appreciated
Sopra
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Oct 05, 2018 7:12 pm

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by Sopra »

We are in the same boat as you OP.
My DC got Latymer, music place at DAO and is also ranked in the top 5 at St.Michael. I am so proud of her and truly appreciate that she's got that choice now but being spoiled with the offers is not always great as you constantly question yourself because all of these schools are very special and have lots to offer for their students.
I am not saying I've found a solution (far from it) but I decided to let my DD to make the final decision on it as she is the one who will spend the next 7 years there.
She always liked Latymer (as her piano teacher went there) but when she visited DAO music department she fell in love with it too. On the other hand I really like the Catholic ethos of St.M and the shortest distance.
Knowing that we will never agree I thought I will let her make that decision, the end of the day she worked for it and should be allowed to decide.
Am I doing the right thing giving her that responsibility? I hope so :?
BTW she's chosen The Latymer.
Jean.Brodie
Posts: 451
Joined: Sat Jul 21, 2012 6:55 pm

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by Jean.Brodie »

Hi StevieL! Congratulations to your DC!

We had the choice of a number for schools for our daughter. She was at Henrietta Barnett for 7 years. She is now 19 and in her second year at University.

Looking back, she herself would now say:

-No school is perfect and anything can happen in a child's teens, but the most important thing is the cohort. Most pupils are driven forward by - or held back by - their peers, all the boys and girls in their year, not just the academically selected entrants. (This was our hunch when deciding in 2010 and so it has proven to be.)

-This applies to music and drama and life as much as to academics. There is an academic and general self esteem, an overall energy and positivity to the academically brightest, who are generally also used to being interested in lots of things and getting a lot done.

-At her University (Cambridge), those from DAO and Mill Hill County often find it harder than those from Latymer, QE Boys or Henrietta Barnett. She has heard the same from her friends at Medical Schools and at Imperial and LSE. Most get there, eventually, but those used to a higher standard across the board and to a greater intensity don't really have to adjust and are less bothered by the 'competition' at University.

-Our daughter plays a second musical intrument and has been on music performance tours to Germany and the Czech Republic, she plays a sport to a good level at University and she has two senior positions - one in her faculty and one in her college - all because of HBS. Doing all this came as natural progression and she felt at home academically straight away as an undergraduate.

DAO is a good school, especially as a partially selective school. But Latymer has the cohort across the board which will stimulate and support your DC going forward. All kids have their moments, but the behaviour will also be generally more consistently constructive at Latymer.

Congratulations to your DC, once again! Very well done!
Amber
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Joined: Thu Sep 24, 2009 11:59 am

Re: DAO vs Latymer: which to choose?

Post by Amber »

Jean.Brodie wrote:At her University (Cambridge), those from DAO and Mill Hill County often find it harder than those from Latymer, QE Boys or Henrietta Barnett. She has heard the same from her friends at Medical Schools and at Imperial and LSE. Most get there, eventually, but those used to a higher standard across the board and to a greater intensity don't really have to adjust and are less bothered by the 'competition' at University.
Goodness what an extraordinary assertion. I am surprised that your daughter is so familiar with the cohort and their learning needs, not only at her own university, but also that of several others, to be able to draw this comparison. For my part, my older two who are both also at 'prestigious' (sic) universities are not struggling in any way and do not find it hard to keep up with others - quite the contrary - but neither went to any of these schools. I cannot, however, say that they have quite the insight into the cohort as JB's daughter does - they don't seem to compare themselves in this kind of way or discuss it with their friends when they meet up. My daughter has a similar profile to your daughter and holds 2 positions of responsibility at her university too, but obviously this can't be 'all because of HBS' because she didn't go there.


FWIW I do not think you should select a school based on whether you child might not find it so easy to get by at Cambridge in 7+ years time - a lot can happen in that time and a happy and positive school experience is far more important in my humble opinion (as one who came from a comprehensive school in the Midlands and managed to succeed very well in academia despite it all!).
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