Best Schools in London (girls)

No, I don't think it is,there are lots of parents like this where we live, all vying to get their children into the aforementioned schools and not necessarily realistically. It's a rather sad part of London life. I have seen children tutored to within an inch of their lives to get into schools like KCJS and Colette Court (not so much with the the girls) only to struggle miserably once they get there. There are also those who continue to be tutored and scheduled with a parent sitting with them throughout school holidays to assist with revision who end up with spectacularly high results and then who leave at 18 for uni and don't know where to begin.

This is a wind up is n't it? . Rather an unimaginative one though.

you do know the Oxbridge isn't the be all and end all, don't you? Depending on subject, other unis will actually be better. And your DD may not want to go to Oxbridge anyway. Broaden your horizons!

do you have a peer group who have children at these schools that you can ask?

For instance, a few of the ones near me are mentioned on the thread -
one is popularly thought full of over-stressed/over-pressured borderline anorexics
another has a 'nice but dim posh girls' rep despite having very good results (they are more nurturing than the other local options so perhaps this is why)
and another is thought better for 'spirited/independent' types

Our DD is at the preprep of one but we may well move her if it seems she would be more at home elsewhere. Some days I think she is destined for the stage which is a bit of a shocker for her v staid academic parents who barely have a creative bone in either of their bodies but this is part of the joy of parenting IMHO. AFAIC she has yet to declare her colours personally and academically and I will support her whatever.

A better option might be to look for a match for the individual nature and aptitude for your child/children as what will suit one may be an intolerable hothouse for another. There is plenty of evidence around that putting some children in an agressively academic environment at too young an age can break them.

"confiding your child to a life of mediocracy" Normally I would not draw attention to something like this on mumsnet. We all tend to be firing off on less than all cylinders but for someone who holds up meritocracy as such a great ideal but fail to understand the true measure it says it all really. Please use a dictionary. Unless this is a grand wind up........

This, from nearthewindmill, being also a mother of 18+ year olds, is really worth repeating

"You can facilitate OP, you can provide the best but ultimately I'm afraid you can't decide. You can decide about your life but you are in for a very rough ride if you think at 18 you can decide about theirs.

They need boundaries, they need advice, they need love, but most of all they need support to make the choices that are right for them not for you. The most wonderful DS's house master and tutor said to me was "my life would be so much easier if the other parents let their boys take the lead a little more". As your DC get older OP I hope you will begin to understand that the best thing you can do for your child is to make sure they are happy."

What is your child like? What are they good at? What type of school are they coming from?

One person's mediocrity is another person's happy life.

No I don't agree

Your child might want to be mediocre. That is fine if your child has rejected other choices and if it makes your child happy. What happens if your children decide they want to become academics, or teachers, or even hear a calling for ministry. Would you hold them back from that?

I went to a London gdst school. I found the pressure really tough, and pretty much fell apart by a levels, although I did well enough to get into the university I wanted. I'm not thick, did well at graduate and postgrad level, but that environment is not for everyone (there were lots of others similarly struggling), and it's not something I'd want for my DDs. Sounds like you should be asking your daughters what they want, OP, and visiting a range of schools to find out what they think.

If you need a back-up. A true back up, and your main aim is Cambridge Medicine, then I think you should consider Bancrofts in Woodford Green, London.

It's good value, the math and science is academically as good as any school in the country, though the humanities/arts are not as strong. The sporting facilities are top notch and it absolutely specialises into preparing kids for medical school. About 10% of the graduating class last year went to Cambridge.

It's coed.

It's truly a step down from SPGS, unlike the other schools discussed such as NLC, HABS, City, etc.

Bancrofts is academic (strong in science and maths) and sporty, but it won't give you the social cache of some of the other schools discussed, I don't think.

Picking endlessly over the relative merits of schools which are regulars in that national Top 50 will probably drive you mad.

Francis Holland Sloane Square isn't very sporty, and is reputed to be easier to get into than JAGS or PHS.

Do hope your children aren't thick and lazy.

OP, my DC are older teenagers. They are both successful. They both have different personalities but more importantly they are their own people with their own personalities and their own wishes. What gives you the right to decide your DC must read medicine at Oxbridge? At 15 they might decide they don't want to.

My DS is having a gap year - he is going to Oxford next year. He is going because he decided he wants to; initially he wanted to go to Durham and at the very last minute changed his mind and he and his father went and begged an audience with the dean whose college had offered him an unconditional place. He friends who have been force fed for the last 14/15 years - they are mostly the boys who are a teeny bit off the rails and one has already dropped out. Think best London Days Schools and very driven parents not necessarily driving in the direction their children want to go.

You can facilitate OP, you can provide the best but ultimately I'm afraid you can't decide. You can decide about your life but you are in for a very rough ride if you think at 18 you can decide about theirs.

They need boundaries, they need advice, they need love, but most of all they need support to make the choices that are right for them not for you. The most wonderful DS's house master and tutor said to me was "my life would be so much easier if the other parents let their boys take the lead a little more". As your DC get older OP I hope you will begin to understand that the best thing you can do for your child is to make sure they are happy.

7?!?!?!

Good grief, OP!

The South London grammars are just a different playing field entirely.

Some parents who want a grammar will sit the selective independents as a back up. However it is uncommon to sit the grammars as a back up to the selective independents. The pool of bright motivated girls who want a grammar school place is very large indeed. When you then look at those who can afford £25k per dd per annum to cover fees, trips etc, then the pool shrinks dramatically.

It is really not a matter of trying to rank the South London grammar schools, as their admissions is all down to increasingly rigorous entrance exams. Your dd could be "top" in the country but if she has a slow day (and speed really is quite essential here) then she won't get a place. The girls schools also seem to have frequent changes to their entrance exams (eg sometimes going for NVR, and not bothering with maths), so it is possible that the relative GCSE/A level ranking for any particular year has been skewed by how they selected in that year. But Tiffin, Nonsuch and Newstead have been consistently amongst the top state schools, Wally Girls sometimes below, but sometimes on a par.

Have you looked round any schools yet? A lot of the independent schools rund courses so that your dd has a chance to try some sport or other activity there, and it gives you a feel for the school. Have a look through for details of Christmas Fairs and performances - again you may find that the ethos of the schools shine forth a bit more clearly.

As an aside I always got the impression that Oxbridge medicine wasn't seen as the best if you wanted to practise medicine rather than go into research. But 7 is quite young to have determined a career path.

Any more comments on Francis Holland Sloane Square? Apparently only 8% oxbridge stats, but perhaps I am missing something?

Perhaps those who genuinely want to be doctors study medicine elsewhere.

The problem may not that girls rejected by SPGS are stupid, but that girls accepted by SPGS often think they are cleverer. This attitude seems to filter down from the sort of parents who badly want their child to go to the "best" school, are prepared to tutor to achieve this, and then have to believe that they have made the right decision.

At times this can be quite toxic. DD was a sports activity in East London where one girl was obnoxious to the extent that the coach asked me if DD was OK. My reply was along the lines of, the other girls was at SPGS so what could you expect. The coach had never heard of SPGS and tried to get his head round why being at a certain school was an excuse for arrogant and superior behaviour. And thinking about it, why should it be.

The grapevine has it that a reasonable proportion of parents are now rejecting both SPGS and SPS, boys for Kings Wimbledon, girls for LEH, NCLS, G&L, PHS etc and both for Latymer Upper, on the basis that good students will thrive at any of these schools and that in Real Life having a rounded personality and an ability to work with people from a (slightly) wider range of backgrounds is a good thing. None of those schools will preclude Westminster at sixth form. Indeed, and anecdotally, a number of SPGS pupils were surprised not to get through to interview stage this year, when some of their "reject" contemporaries did. DS is at Westminster and I would hope that part of the selection process would be to identify girls who can adapt quickly, work well with the boys and hit the ground running.

Having long term ambitions for a child - medicine at Cambridge - gives them a lot to live up to. Even if your DDs get there, they may find it is not what they themselves really want. Choosing a school that represents a slightly wider academic pathway can enable options that will suit them better in the long run.

Happymum77 - Marlborough is not on the list because it is not a top academic boarding school! It's a lovely all round boarding school. However, it is posh and Kate Middleton went there so that might be an attraction. If you consider schools like Marlborough, Wellington their entry point is 13 not 11 so you need a plan for those 2 years. They also have entry generally via 13+ common entrance (which is very different to 11+)

FHS - perfect for the right girl. I understand you are having difficulty with this concept - basically most people I know choose a school that suits their child rather than shoehorning them into one that is unsuitable.

BTW - I think it can be lonely at the top...there's no one to be friends with....

Have your daughters already made their mind up to be doctors and study at Cambridge? Although I admire their or your singlemindedness, too rigid a lifeplan from such an early age is unlikely to develop the personality and qualities required for a successful application and certainly not for longer term happiness and success.

hmmm Cambridge medic from a state school

FWIW, I now do interviews for preclinical for one of the colleges there and SPSG is not one of the overrepresented schools at the interview stage.

Also, I can't help but agree with Mintyy.