Returning to W London in 2014 with DD year 10.

[notforeverexpat]

Hello. This is my first time on this discussion board and I am looking for candid advice. DD is currently attending an excellent school abroad and we would like to apply for Notting Hill and LEH. DD is top of class and has a musical talent. Would anyone know if these schools would consider our application? I have heard that coming from a 5 year posting abroad, DD might be placed at the very bottom of long waiting lists and, in our experience, schools do not give good information on the status of UK candidates returning from post. Would anyone have any relevant tips?

[Leafmould]

They are independent schools, are they not?

[WineOhWhy]

My DDs go to a similar selective independent. I think you would be relying on there being a casual vacancy. If there is such a vacancy, they would test and would allocate the place based on performance in the test/interview rather than place on waiting list. There are rarely vacancies at that stage at my DD's school.

[Eastpoint]

Going in at year 10 is probably easier than at year 8 as fewer families would want to move their child unless they had to.

I think you'd be more likely to get a place at NHEHS than LEH as people travel from Kensington etc. I think the LEH families are less likely to move abroad, which is generally why places become available. Sometimes pupils also move to full time music schools at this age as they realise the heavy academic load would be too much with 4-6 hours practice a day. St Augustine's & St Benedict's in Ealing might also have spaces, St B's might be keen to increase the proportion of girls.

Depending on where you will live there may also be places at G&L or Latymer Upper (both Hammersmith).

I know that in the past candidates have won places at G&L and SPGS starting in year 10.

[notforeverexpat]

Thank you for your answers! To Leafmould: we are looking at fairly academic schools for a hard working student. WineOhWhy, thank you for reminding us not to count to much on an occasional vacancy...this is exactly the kind of warnings we are looking for. To Easpoint: thank you for reminding us about Hammersmith, however, let me share an incident that we watched last spring during a visit. A group of boys from Latymer (all in full uniform) displayed atrocious behaviour at the Mac Donalds close to the tube station and later on, they were watching pornographic videos on the bus (we were sitting just behind them). I know they could have been from any school and we could have been in any city on the planet, but since then, I keep thinking that something must be really wrong with that school, everything about those boys was out of order: behaviour, langage, attitude, manners, I have been totally put off! My DD is looking for an environment where her academic abilities would be supported, she is also looking at being accepted for who she is -bilingual, musical, well travelled and mature, and she has no patience for the disruption that boys often cause in her class! I will look at SPGS and Godolphin, and the other schools in Ealing, but we are secular.

[outtolunchagain]

Have you considered applying for a year 9 place in 2013 and your daughter boarding for a year . Year 9 is a natural entry point and you may have more choice that way , plus music scholarships may be available.

Year 10 is a difficult entry point both socially and academically in the UK education system .

[notforeverexpat]

Yes, we have considered year 9 as well, but it looks very unlikely from a work/life balance point of view. We are always somewhat 'outsiders' and our DD always somewhat of an 'eccentric'...at least from the viewpoint of well established families in schools! Also, I think I would be out of time for September 2013...

[Needmoresleep]

You need to contact Registrars and ask about registering for an occasional place. They will be able to tell you how likely they are to have something, and how much demand there will be. You will then be able to gauge their enthusiasm and also get a sense of the process. Yr 9 would be much easier than Y10 (and here if you are talking about an occasional place the normal deadline does not apply). Many girls take at least one or two GCSE's early and so, depending on the educational system you are coming from, schools may be less willing to take a child late.

You probably need to spread your net reasonably wide. It may be a matter of luck whether the place comes up in the school you really want.

Depending on where you plan to live you might try the other GDST schools: Putney, Wimbledon, Surbiton, SHHS. All nice and purposeful schools

[Copthallresident]

Hi

I was also an expat. DD1s class at LEH didn't have any vacancies at all until sixth form, a very happy year and more or less the norm. However DD2s had quite a few as a result of a dysfunctional year group and quite a few defections (this years dip in GCSE results a symptom) and a couple who went overseas . One girl joined DD2s class in Year 10 and that seemed to work well. I think the current Year 9 may be another year with some "strong characters". There is obviously an entrance exam but they do like expat students and appreciate what they bring to the school community. I think that is true of all the schools except SPGS who make no allowances come what may.

Re your feelings about Latymer, I discounted it at 11 because I thought it would be racy but actually DD2s year is lovely, one of the LEH defections went there and loves it and has thrived. You can get bad eggs in any school as the different experiences of my DDs shows I would approach all the schools, including all the highs and Kingston Grammar School, Surbiton has a very good record of squeezing in extras. Also St Georges Weybridge runs a bus from Fulwell. This area is spoilt for good girls' and coed schools. Just because schools are further down the league tables doesn't mean your daughter won't do just as well, they all enable girls to get strings of A*s. Ideally you may get a choice and a chance to visit and pick the school that feels right for your DD.

[notforeverexpat]

Thanks needmoresleep and copthallresident! I will broaden my search, probably to the schools in Hammersmith . As far as contacting schools, I will start the process early in the new year, hoping to visit some schools in the spring (I have to go to London for work). I am really hoping that they will give us a fair idea of what our chances might be for year ten...our plan B would be to extend our posting abroad till 6th form.

[Honestyisbest]

I would go for the 13 plus entry to an academic boarding school and get her in at an entry point when others are joining too, especially from overseas. Good luck.

[Eastpoint]

LEH is probably the most traditional of the schools IMHO, great facilities & opportunities.

Re Latymer & behaviour: when there are 160 pupils in a year there are a lot of children. I wouldn't write off a whole school on one group's behaviour, the well behaved boys would have given them all a wide berth. Your DD would be v lucky to be offered a place at Latymer, should you do the tour etc & like it. Its a hard school to get into as it offers a good mixed education & is easily accessed from lots of areas . In my experience Latymer pupils are generally hard working & polite. The old head Mr Winter used to say that Latymer is an urban school, edgier than some of the other independent schools in that part of London. It is more media less banking than some of the other schools. Great range of external speakers for their 6th formers, Malcolm Rifkind & Zac Goldsmith have both spoken to politics groups this autumn, not sure who else.

[Eastpoint]

Honestyisbest - that means doing common entrance this year and the DD may be too late to apply at this stage, a lot of the academic schools have closed their lists by this point. Wycombe is the most academic girls' school I think, don't know which others are at the same level as LEH.

[Changeforthrday]

ClS girls? Not too tricky to get to from West (assuming you are looking at Holland Park/Notting Hill area?)

[ValentineWiggins]

Might also be worth investigating west London free school (not private) and kew house - both are very new schools (kew house opens in 2013 with year 7/8/9 intake I think) so may have places for year 10 in 2014

[Eastpoint]

West London Free School's oldest year is the 1999/2000 cohort so possible. Seems v traditional from website, however parents of that age group I know seem v happy.

[notforeverexpat]

We will be returning to our house in Ealing, and thanks for the West London Free School and Kew House ideas, I had not thought of them. We are looking at some good standards for music and a school orchestra, so possibly something that would be provided by more established schools. Has anyone heard anything about the International School of London in Gunnesbury Park? It's location would be very good for us!

[notforeverexpat]

'its'

[blackwattle]

A friend of mine in SW London runs a small company that helps with this sort of thing. Not sure if I'm allowed to post it here but PM me if you want the details.

[Eastpoint]

I'm sorry to be negative but I have only heard of children being pulled out of the International School of London, children were moved to Ibstock as seen as more academic, not sure who International School is aimed at.

[Needmoresleep]

G&L and Latymer Upper both have strong music departments and together have a very long established joint orchestra.

Both also have really nice new facilities for music/drama/performance.

[Katryn]

West London Free School only has year 7 and 8 at the moment.

[basildonbond]

Wow - That's great that the joint orchestra is still going - I was the joint leader (one from G&L, one from LU) when it first started and that was scarily more than 30 years ago!

[Copthallresident]

Notforever Your daughter would be just about the only girl travelling from Ealing to LEH. There is a bus from Chiswick but that takes an hour and getting your daughter to that bus would add more time. DD did have a friend travelling from Wandsworth and getting a bus to the school bus from Putney but she had a very early start and it was a strain. Given the availability of NHEH and the Hampstead schools nearby with a much more humane commute you would have to be pretty convinced that LEH had something special to offer your daughter. As quite a few of my DDs peers are at Godolphin (including another defector from LEH) I don't really see that the extra journey to LEH, and not having school friends who lived locally, would be justified. The schools are essentially very similar in terms of ethos, facilities etc. with perhaps a slightly more "Chelsea set" affluent cohort at Godolphin (LEH more Surrey set).

[SantasBitch]

Notforever - have you thought about Marymount in Kingston? I think ISL is "OK" but no more than that, from my research.