Sixth form acceptance deadlines

[Pipandmum]

My daughter is only just going to be starting GCSEs but we know she wants to go to an all girl sixth form in SW London. I’ve been looking at the application process and see our second choice (private) requires acceptance of their offer months before our first choice (state) even makes an offer! I know it is all conditional on the results, but is it the form that one accepts the offer initially then withdraws it if they then subsequently get into their first choice? Do private schools require a deposit to prevent parents hedging their bets like this or is it down to individual schools?
Also does proximity to school count with state sixth form? I see a lot about it for entry to Y7 but no mention of it for sixth form admissions (they just mention GCSE results).

[WanderingAimlessly]

Most independent schools, including sixth forms, will ask for an enrolment/acceptance fee to be paid to reserve the place. This may be combined with a deposit which is different. You usually get that bit back at the end of the course less any charges.

Individual schools charge different amounts anything from £500 to £4000 usually.

If you get an offer from the private school read the t&c carefully before accepting, signing paperwork and paying the acceptance fee. You may find that once a place is accepted if you then decide you don’t want it, you’re liable to pay the first terms fees plus you loose your acceptance fee. You’d probably get any deposit payment back.

Read the offer letter and t&c’s. very carefully is my advice!!

[confusedduck]

Hi my daughter had the same issue! She got an offer from state sixth form a few months before even getting assessed by private. She had a week to accept the state place so had to decline it.

It's very inconvenient because it isn't standardised and there's no guarantee you'll get a place at the other if you decline the first one!

Our private needed a deposit, so people don't just hold a state and private place. But it depends on schools so i'd ask the ones you're interested in.

[Pipandmum]

Yikes it's the other way around - private offers well before state! I want her to go to the state as it’s just as good and where we will be living. But as it’s state no guarantee she’ll get in (it’s a c of e and she won’t qualify for a church place, though not sure how much that counts in sixth form, but intake is lower and I’d imagine competition fierce). If she got in we’d take it no problem. The problem is the two other schools we’re considering are both private and require acceptance three months before the state school - I don’t want to pay a terms fees! A few hundred I would be ok with. Wish they’d coordinate it a bit better.

[Changemyname18]

Surely every offer, state or private is a conditional offer, based on GCSE grades this August?? So how can you decide and decline an offer? Why on earth isn't a state school leaving offers open until results day?. Unless these are incredibly oversubscribed sixth forms, surely it's all about bums on seats, so to get a student to decline a state school offer before results day seems strange to me in respect of schools gaining funding for next year. Unless I'm missing something, happy to be corrected

[TheFirstOHN]

My experience fits in with what Changemyname18 said.

Y11 pupils in our area accept and hold several conditional offers from state sixth forms and FE colleges. On results day, when they know their grades, they contact their preferred choice to confirm they've met the offer.

[clary]

yy, ds2 is in yr 11 and most of his mates seem to be holding several offers, depending on results in some cases (eg one A levels, one college for BTEC) or just depending on what they fancy - some are holding multiple similar offers from state schools to do A levels. ds2 actually is only Ho,ding one offer but that's because none of the others we looked at offered his choice of subjects.

Don't understand why the pp had to reject the early state offer - surely just hold it until you get results, they can't MAKE you go if you decided on the private place?

Op I do see your dilemma re advance fees, but if you prefer the state place just go for that, I've never heard of anyone being refused a place at sixth form except because of too-low grades (and not even then, always). They want bums on seats.

Disclaimer: this may not apply in places very different from my small city, in London for example.

[TheFirstOHN]

Also does proximity to school count with state sixth form?

It can do, yes. Check the admissions policy for the sixth form you're looking at, which should be available on their website.

[Pipandmum]

It is London, and I know in the state school for Y7 they have 7 applicants for every place. I can’t find figures for sixth form. The application deadline is November, but they don’t put out offers til March. And if predicted grades not met can withdraw offer.
The private school puts offers out early December of y11 and you have 10 days to accept. If you consequently don’t get the predicted grades they can withdraw their offer too.
I’m not worried about her grades. It’s just the timings and what is the normal accepted way if doing this. If the fine for not taking up an accepted place is a terms fees - that’s over £7,000!

[Pipandmum]

@TheFirstOHN
I have looked it doesn’t mention proximity for sixth form entry but very clearly does for Y7. I’m just at the looking stage - I know I could ring the schools and get more definitive answers I guess. We will be going to open houses in the Autumn. Some of the private schools want to start the application process in summer term of y10.

[TheFirstOHN]

I do think it's odd that there's such a range in the timescale of applications. I remember a previous thread on here where people were talking about sixth form open days. Some were in July and others were in December.

[MarchingFrogs]

Don't understand why the pp had to reject the early state offer - surely just hold it until you get results, they can't MAKE you go if you decided on the private place?

Not only is it perfectly normal to accept the provisional offer of a state sixth form whilst also intending to look at / apply for a place at an indie, it's also normal to apply for places at and accept provisional offers at more than one state sixth form or college, e.g. with different entry requirements . Absolutely no need to decline a state school offer because the deadline for acceptance is earlier than you will hear from another establishment. Everywhere over-offers - to allow for having to turn down on results day those who haven't achieved the required grades, but also factoring in that some / many / most will be holding at least one other offer.

[confusedduck]

We had to decline as ours was a place for state boarding, so there was a deposit to pay if we accepted!

[Perunatop]

I wonder what would happen if DD just applied for state SF, and then if she was unsuccessful applied to private school at a very late stage. My guess is that if she is a good student she might well be accepted.

[Pipandmum]

Just an update: we've been to a few open days now and sad to say the state one was poorly run: timed it just as the kids were getting out of school, 100s were there, many straight from their own school (we had travelled three hours) and not even a glass of water offered, the current y12 were there too which seemed silly as surely they could have the sixth form talk at another time; it was so crowded there was no chance to speak to any subject teachers and the girl showing us and another family around had only one subject in common out of seven our girls were considering. On top the inevitable comparison between our own current private campus and big city state. It is the only one that doesn't require an interview or exam so we will still apply, but I dont think they will have a problem putting 'bums on seats'!
I have now got to grips with things - seems a gamble but will just have to accept a private place (assuming she gets offered) and pay the half term fees, and if she gets offered the state place several month later decide. At least all the private schools seem to make their decisions around the same time.
I know everyone will say 'it's always been this way' but the conditional offer system seems crazy (of course for uni places too, I now a few kids not even applying to university until they have their results.

[Pipandmum]

Y11 I meant, obviously not y12!