Feeder Schools for Wilsons

[mrstina]

Hi:

My question is really detailed as above. It is (almost) time for our son to enter school and living in Sutton, there seems to be a great choice of selective state secondary schools that match up with the top independent schools.

However, with the independent schools it is easy to find out what schools they feed to, but I am just wondering about which schools feed to Wilson's. The obvious aim being to maximise chances at the 11 plus!

Many thanks for any advice

[doodles]

Welcome to the forum.

Your best starting point is the Wilson's admissions policy which is on their website (but do bear in mind that things could very well change before your son takes the test) and reading it quickly it would seem that there are no feeder schools for Wilson's.

Are you looking at private or state primary schools for your DS? Here in Kent entry to the latter is often based on catchment/faith qualification etc and you don't tend to have a huge choice and I can't imagine Surrey is very different. If you are considering the private route then you have a much greater choice but have to factor in the costs and often travelling time.

I'm sure somebody from Surrey will be along soon to give ups some more specific advice.

[ToadMum]

Isn't Wilson's a super-selective? If it is, it won't have feeder schools, entry will be according to rank in the entrance test.

[scary mum]

I don't think any grammar schools have feeder schools as anyone who goes there has to pass the 11 plus. In non super selective areas it us done on catchment but the primary schools aren't allowed to prepare children for the exam.

[PettswoodFiona]

In SE London we have a few prep schools that stop at eleven and their raisin d'etre is to get children into top independents and grammars and they achieve it too - not a feeder school as such but they get a higher proportion in than most (which you'd kind of hope for if you were paying for it - they also don't select at entrance which is all the more amazing). In Kent they release data by school as to how many children from that school were deemed selective which can influence parents when looking at primaries. So I understand why the question is asked but as others have already said - it isn't the school it is the child being tested and it is on their success in the test compared to their peers they get in. I saw somewhere that St Olaves which has 120 places had children from over 90 different schools in last year's intake.

[ToadMum]

Our grammar schools' priority admissions 'population' was, until a few years back, 'children attending schools in the Borough'. However, this was ruled unlawful for two reasons, 1) that you (apparently) could have 'feeder' schools, but they had to be specified, however 2) the schools included five independents, which could not be named as 'feeders'. They also couldn't change it to 'living within the Borough', so in the end, the priority area was changed to 'living within postcodes XX0 - XX9 inclusive', which includes the whole of the Borough and also the immediately surrounding parts of the County, so everyone is sort-of happy. Apart from some people living forty-odd miles away who think it's unfair that our local grammar schools only reserve a minimum of 140+ places for their offspring (personally, I would think it very bizarre if a school forty-odd miles away felt the need to reserve any places at all for mine, but there you go).

[PurpleDuck]

Wilsons's does not have a feeder school. The same applies to Sutton Grammar and Wallington boys'. The entry is based entirely on the results of the competitive 11+ exam, with both Wilsons's and SGS giving preference to boys from particular postcodes for a given number of places (see admissions policies on their websites for details). Even within those 'priority postcodes', places are awarded to the highest scoring candidates. It makes no difference which primary/prep school your DS attends - it does not give you any extra points.

[mrstina]

Many thanks for the responses.

I understand that no primary schools directly 'feeds' into Wilson's, but I was assuming that some primary schools, whether in the independent or state sector, would have a higher proportion going there than average.

I also get that no school directly prepares for the 11 plus (which is a bit odd if you think about it).

The postcode won't be an issue as we live within the borough of Sutton. In Kent, as has been mentioned, they seem to publish the data for schools incoming for the selective state schools.

At this state, whether it is state or independent doesn't bother me for primary schooling - I am just keen to ascertain whether there are schools which just 'happen' to get a lot into a school like Wilson's.

[mad?]

Hi Mrstina

Then I suggest you look for a primary that you think your DC will enjoy and that you can get into. I m not familiar with Sutton but here in West London post code means nothing, proximity is everything and realistically you only have a chance at one or two schools, good or not. If DC is capable then a decent primary will be fine with support from you if necessary. Numbers going to grammar schools will tend to reflect the aspirations of the parent cohort and maybe tutoring, rather than the school itself. Do not send DC to a school solely on this basis, they are primary kids and they deserve to enjoy their early years.

[PurpleDuck]

At this state, whether it is state or independent doesn't bother me for primary schooling - I am just keen to ascertain whether there are schools which just 'happen' to get a lot into a school like Wilson's.

Understood. There isn't an easy way to find out, other than asking Wilson's directly, although I doubt they would tell you. You could also try to enquire with Sutton LEA, but again, I don't think they will be willing to give you this information.

If you go to Wilson's open evening, ask the year 7 or 8 boys who take you on a tour, whether they think there is a particularly large number of boys from a given primary. Even if they do tell you, though, it will not be a reliable basis on which to choose your DS's primary school. As you know, state primaries don't help children prepare for 11+ and it is down to the parents choosing to do it. In our school, we had a significant number of successful 11+ entries this year, but next year may not be quite as high as fewer parent are inclined to go trough the 11+.

I vaguely (but only vaguely, so don't rely on it), remember that GoodSchoolsGuide may have the information you are interested in, so you could give them a ring (contact details are on their website). They will probably want to charge you, though.

I agree with what mad? said - choose a school you think your DS will be happy with.