Anyone in the Kent/Bromley/Dartford borders who can explain the school application system to me?

[SoddingGrammarSystem]

We are on the borders of both areas (kent and bromley) so our choices are (for dd)

Togs
Weald
Dartford girls
Wilmington

Newstead woods (don't think this is likely)

We live equal distance from Dartford and Togs but live in Bromley borough.

Do we have to put all our choices on one form or are there separate Kent and Bromley ones?

If dd sits the 11+ at her school (which is a Kent (not Bromley) school) - will that cover her for Bexley too?



Thanks

[pippibluestocking]

Hi SGS
not a complete expert but do know that it's a separate test for Bexley schools and I think that you have to live quite beat to Dartford Girls to get in, catchment area for Wilmington is much bigger. HTH!

[pippibluestocking]

Er beat? I mean near!

[SoddingGrammarSystem]

Lol, beat! I thought dartford was a super selective like Togs or Judd and so it was score that got you on? Maybe I have that wrong. Clearly I am not clever enough to go as I couldn't find the info on their website when I looked a while ago I did email them to ask but didn't get a reply

[pippibluestocking]

No it's not. What's TOG?

[pippibluestocking]

Think score comes into it too somehow but definitely has some distance criteria as well

[prh47bridge]

As you live in Bromley you must apply to Bromley for all the schools you want. If you include any Kent schools as preferences they will forward your application to Kent.

[wineoclocktimeyet]

Dartford Grammar isnt superselective - its one of the Kent Grammar schools.
If you live in Bromley, you need to register your child to take the Kent 11+ and Bexley 11+ and also to Newstead. This year, this had to be done in about May.

The exams were last month and the results are due in the next few weeks. You know whether your child has passed before the Common Application Form has to be in by 31st Oct.

In Bromley, you put your choices on the Bromley form.

The relevant websites (Kent CC, Bexley Council etc) explain alot better than I have!

Good Luck!

[SoddingGrammarSystem]

i'm still a bit confused. So one form for Kent and Bromley schools and a different one for bexley schools. Is that right?

[LondonMother]

No, one form for the lot. Some schools ask you to complete an additional form if they want more information than they get from the common application form. You have to send that to them directly.

If your daughter is in year 6 now it sounds as if you've missed the boat for Newstead Woods and the Bexley schools.

Good luck!

[SoddingGrammarSystem]

LOL! no, she's year 5. We wanted to find out a bit of info now, because of where we are, we have a lot of schools to look around.
Can't believe we have to narrow it down to four in such a big area.
I think if dd does the newstead test we also find out her score for that before we fill out the form? It is a long shot though, we're not relying on it.

I really hate this system.

[pippibluestocking]

You don't need to join the system SGS, there are lots of good comps in Bromley!

[SoddingGrammarSystem]

Yes there are. Unfortunately we aren't in the catchment area for any of them

[SoddingGrammarSystem]

Yes, we are very unlikely to get dd a place in weald of kent as we are just outside their catchment area.

[OwedToAutumn]

Dartford Girls is not super selective. Dartford (boys) is.

This last year, apparently no out of area girls got places at Dartford. Even if they scored full marks on the test.

Newstead have now changed their system so that you find out the score, and what score you would've needed in the last 5 years to get in. But this is the first year that has happened.

The Newstead test is verbal and non verbal reasoning. Kent has these two, and also maths and English, but in practise, they only look at the English test if you are borderllne, and if you are out of area, borderline won't get you into a school, anyway.

Bexley have verbal and maths (I think it's just those two. DD1 didn't sit that, because we didn't want to her to go to any of the Bexley Grammars.)

Wilmington suffers from being close to the more popular Dartford, I think. It's much easier to get in to, apparently. In the year DD1 sat, the admissions person implied that as she had passed the Kent test, irrespective of score, she would get a place, although we are well out of area. That was a couple of years ago, it could be more oversubscribed now.

[pippibluestocking]

No Wilmington is not oversubscribed, they didn't fill all their spaces last year

[BurningBridges]

Second what someone said earlier up thread, last year no out of area girls got in, in fact, girls from "the parishes" didn't all get in (the parishes of Dartford). Wilmington Girls is much easier to get into, and they have girls from Bromley, Lewisham etc and even Essex.