To let DD leave 6th form to work in a pub!

How did she get a scholarship for 6th form without maths GCSE?

Let her choose - she can always go back to education later.

Generally, I've found people I've recruited that have worked between school and college or uni far more motivated, switched on, pragmatic & tons better employees compared to those that have done a levels/uni & in some case post grad on a treadmill because their parents expected it and not gained any real life experience on the way.

Including the twatty idiot on a grad scheme who couldn't address an envelope.

Drama schools / performing arts schools still have their pupils learn maths, English, science, other subjects at that age. The Brit school is a good example. There’s a higher focus on the performing subject however pupils still have to do the other subjects too.

Perhaps point out she us on £7.55 an hour (presuming NMW) and when she's 18 £10.00 per hour, at which point the pub will give a lot of tge hours available to the next 16/17 year old.
Additionally she will, I'm guessing, not be paying tax. If she carries on earning 1200 per month she will start to pay some tax, likely from April.

I think it’s a real shame as she’s clearly brilliant at the drama to have been given that scholarship. Is there no way she can drop everything else at school and focus only on the drama?

I would say she can choose but if she makes the choice to work rather than study she will have to pay her way for food/utilities - she needs to know the reality of what she is choosing.

This is a good book (the adult version was recommended to me by an EAP counsellor):

www.amazon.co.uk/Smart-but-Scattered-Teens-Executive-ebook/dp/B00AYI838E/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?adgrpid=53983449580&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.DPnsK5UKCuyzvPcBN-OM-8Korrh00XMzUxgGjfXmrMTn-0Ac1almY7tBMlA4UJX8FdciMbeT82LW5xRQU_2Gpk3LQIrK_l4bndBVEkOgW3-lIyvUfGJ2VZLX8oy3XTXWfWMDwd3JsWPNkrsGMu60bWaRKfPHqDO5h8U4aAcvqxXcnQPgWKkvwiJYZW9u5JHPjovtvjLwxwKXpLWT033GIw.ZUa5p0v46r_LBbwAjNiYcgGQPrg9rms8Awwec2X0b5Y&dib_tag=se&gad_source=1&hvadid=606338293136&hvdev=m&hvexpln=0&hvlocphy=9190959&hvnetw=g&hvocijid=13577443754998128330--&hvqmt=e&hvrand=13577443754998128330&hvtargid=kwd-300069010040&hydadcr=21611_2291911&keywords=smart+but+scattered+teens&mcid=20219bebaf743973af67ac4a0a787ade&qid=1748898460&sr=8-1

That seems like an awful lot of money when you are a teen living with mum and dad at their expense. Maybe sit down with her and ask her to use this figure to imagine she was moving out in a few years and living in her own/ with friend / boyfriend. Get her to look up rental prices / mortgage and deposit requirements, utilities. Having said that, she’s young, motivated in this job, working and earning. That’s something, it’s good life experience and she may learn a lot about people, make connections etc

I’d give her the choice but make the terms clear

choice 1 - stay at sixth form and actually apply herself with the intention of working hard and doing as well as she possibly can in these subjects. In turn she remains supported by you and carries on the job at x number of hours per week (you pick a low ish number you think suitable). She must abide by this

choice 2 - she chooses to leave school. At which point you make clear she has chosen to be an adult. Therefore she needs to work full time and pay 1/4 of ALL the mortgage and bills (if there were 4 in the household, not some low nominal board, but actually proportionate costs), for her own place on the family holiday, nails, phone, hair, clothes or anywhere else she goes and has to support herself. You must not fund things or let her pay less etc. she needs to realise life on minimum wage isn’t glamorous or easy.

choice 1 would hopefully be a short term push to gain higher qualifications and she can make further choices later. Option 2 must be allowed to happen if she wants it but she must live by her decisions as she may then reflect that gain more qualifications will be helpful.

i thought about leaving uni to work in a factory as I’d had such a great time there during a summer holidays job. I was being youthfully foolish and short sighted. My dad gave me a reality check and showed me how much I earnt a month against what the bills would be, how much a holiday cost etc. I was back to uni in September as planned! I quickly realised when (what I can now see was) an actually proper adult showed me how expensive life was rather than my childlike ideas

This. When she has matured a bit and lived a few more years she may discover something that really interests her and she can return to college if she needs qualifications. That may be in hospitality or something totally unrelated. My brother pratted about all through school. When he was 21 he did 3 A levels in 9 months and went to University.

This isn’t the law though, kids can leave school at sixteen.

This isn’t the law though, kids can leave school at sixteen.

Crossposted @Fearfulsaints
Great minds...😂

Hospitality Apprenticeship with Functional Skills Maths?

Can you find an apprentiship in hospitality and her do functional skills maths alongside it?

I think the reality of full time pub work might be hard, but then I have seen quite a few people graduate recently and basically doing this type of work anyway. I'm not saying they will always but it's not a given and someine struggling to focus isn't going to find that easy either.

If she wants to do a degree as a mature student there are access courses or the apprentiship might qualify.

Sometimes people are much happier in their life when doing work that they love and enjoy. We do want what's best for our children , if they don't want to continue on with education and prefer to go out into the workplace that's ok, millions of people do it.

I think what you need to do is have a good discussion about it, agree to listen to each others concerns and also look at all the negatives and positives and make sure that it's kept calm and not end in arguments. You all may bring up something that the other person never considered.

It's important to let her know that now she'll be in full time employment that she'll be contributing to the home.

It's ok, further education isn't for everyone and it sounds like she has tried. Once she's aware that there'll be many jobs she won't be able to apply for in the future, however there are options to study later in life and lots of people do better then as they are more mature and really want it and are more interested so study hard.

On the olden days it was possible to leave school at 16. Many pupils did and in many cases it didn’t do them any harm. They worked hard, climbed the ladders and did all right thank you!

A qualification in hospitality might be something to aim for? Learning on the job, thence onto bigger things, more corporate environments with opportunities to train? Don’t worry Mum, it often turns out okay.

If she might be struggling with ADHD that will make it hard. I'd look at getting a diagnosis. My nephew has ADHD and crashed out of his A levels. He has an apprenticeship now which he's really enjoying but he is on medication and he still struggles with sleep and getting up for work in the morning.

It wouldn't be the end of the world if she did decide to work instead. She could pick up studies again at a later date.

My own DS, 22, has no qualifications to speak of, HATED school, could not cope with secondary. Has been with his employer for over a year and gets good feedback and has had a promotion. Is now contemplating getting his Maths and English GCSE as his employer will help to fund it.

There are many paths in life, we don't all tread the same ones.

Could you look for a diagnosis and medication to help her focus? Not saying she shouldn't also explore vocational training. If she got a scholarship for drama could she look at vocational drama training instead?