Where do I start?

[laremi]

My son is in Year 4. He is a bright chap and we would like him to go to a grammar school but to be honest, I don't know where to start.

First I would like to know what schools can we apply counting that we live in Barking.
Secondly, it would be useful to have a checklist, to know the steps. So, he is in Year 4. Is there anything we can do to prepare him? When should we start the applications?

I hope I'm not getting you dizzy. I know I am.

[kenyancowgirl]

Does your local council have a website with a schools admissions page? If they do, I'd start there...there is usually lots of information on the websites, written by the people in charge of the admissions for your area.

Then you could have a read of the various threads in the Essex section of this forum - if you then have specific questions for which you have not found the answers, having carried out some of your own research, I am sure people would be more than happy to help.

[ToadMum]

My son is in Year 4. He is a bright chap and we would like him to go to a grammar school but to be honest, I don't know where to start.

First I would like to know what schools can we apply counting that we live in Barking.
Secondly, it would be useful to have a checklist, to know the steps. So, he is in Year 4. Is there anything we can do to prepare him? When should we start the applications?

I hope I'm not getting you dizzy. I know I am.

Hi

On the question of where you can apply, unless you live within the Common Catchment Area for the Redbridge grammar schools, one place it is probably not worth even sitting the exam for is Ilford County High School. There is a map on the Redbridge website.

On the other hand, there are places available for OOC applicants at all the CSSE grammar schools ( for boys: KEGS in Chelmsford, Colchester Royal Grammar School, Westcliff High School for Boys and Southend High School for Boys), plus St Thomas More in Westcliff - RC bilateral comprehensive school in Westcliff; Shoeburyness High School - mixed, semi-selective comprehensive.

If you are near the station in Barking, Shoeburyness High is probably the nearest to a C2C station (Thorpe Bay just under a mile), but I can't imagine anyone making their child travel all that way for a comprehensive, popular as it is locally. WHSB and Tommy More's are about a 25 minute walk from Chalkwell station, SHSB a bit further from Westcliff station or a similar walk or a bus from Southend Central. WHSB is nowhere at all near Westcliff station, btw, except in the sense of both of them being in the Borough of Southend on Sea.

KEGS is nearer to Chelmsford station, but obviously Barking - Chelmsford isn't the easiest of train journeys. CRGS is quite a long way from Colchester station (slightly easier from Colchester Town), but again, a pig of a journey to get there in the first place.

Discounted rail tickets are available for travel to taj the CSSE grammar schools (see the sticky at the top of the Essex section of the forum).

Of course, if your DS is only in year 4, you have plenty of time to move to somewhere a bit more convenient for one or more of the CSSE schools, or into catchment for ICHS if you aren't at the moment.