Schools Choice

[baleh0]

Am i missing something here? People are saying that they need to wait until the results are out to make their school choices. Why? I have been told by one of the Secondary schools that if I put the Grammer as my first choice and then make my second choice the secondary school then they have to keep him a place open. Is that not true?

My lad found the test ok, struggled with some of the Verbal but everything else was fine.

[Brum Mum]

You don't have to wait, but getting an idea of the exam results can give an indication of the likelihood of getting the grammar of your choice or not.

In our case, as I believe that we only have three choices, it would help us make a more informed decision.

[Okanagan]

You don't need to wait - but knowing the test outcome, in conjunction with information about what scores have historically been needed to gain places, can you help you to apply with some idea of the likely outcome. In Warwickshire we have enough choices on the application form for you not to be risking a place at one school by placing the grammars ahead of it on your application, even if you don't actually expect to get a place there. If you don't get a place at your first choice school then your application for the second choice will be considered just as if it had been your first choice, and so on until a place is allocated to you.

[baleh0]

OK, thanks.

Think we have pretty sorted his second choice anyway, so won't take me long to complete the online form after the 18th anyway.

[muminbrum]

You should put the schools in your order of preference i.e if there are three grammar schools you would prefer over the comp you must put those first on the form. If you listed
1. Grammar A
2. Comp
3. Grammar B
4. Grammar C

and failed to qualify for Grammar A but did qualify for Grammar B, you would get a place at the comp (assuming you met their criteria e.g. distance) because you ranked it above grammar B. With the equal preference system you lose nothing by putting the comp last as Okanagan said. In Birmingham where we have six choices many parents list four of five GS first followed by one or two comps.

[baleh0]

Thanks for the advice.

We only have 1 choice of 11+ school for my son as KES, so will be my first option with local secondary second

[ginx]

I don't know why, because I didn't think my dd2 was going to get a place, but I completed the form online before we got the results. I thought - how can it hurt? But then we only had three choices really:

GS
Grammar stream in comp
comp

I had to put why she wanted to go to each school. Anyway, I filled it in not long after the 11+ (and no, my dd did not say it was easy, she said she had no idea)

In retrospect, perhaps I should have waited for the results.