Moving to London and can't find any independent school places

mummyinaus, we have moved with 2 ds and struggled as well. Over the years, we have worked with 2 consulting firms with excellent results - Bowker Consulting and Bonas Macfarlane. For us, it was money well spent both times!

Come to NW London / Herts way and look at Northwood / Rickmansworth area which is still just over an hour to Canary Wharf. Rickmansworth Masonic, St Margarets and Northwood College are all less academic but still good girls schools and may well have space for your daughter. You can then try for St Martin's, St John's, Orley Farm, Northwood Prep for your son. All go through to 13 and will prep for secondaries.

State schools in the area are good too.

I agree that looking for a traditional prep that goes to 13 wou,d be a good idea. Would get you a place, give time to settle, and have options off secondary transfer.

I also agree with looking at Kent/Surrey borders. Trains from eg Sevenoaks or Tonbridge are frequent and fast. Even Oxted is only 35minutes in.

Would you consider living in Reading or St Albans - fast trains into London although you would be at the mercy of the Tube thereafter

Guildford:
GHS and Tormead may not have any year 6 places, but they don't start testing until the Autumn for the senior schools. You could also look at Rydes Hill for a girls Prep.
Less academic schools which lots of Guildford girls go to include: St Theresa's, Priorsfield, Manor House, The Royal, Farnborough Hill, or Duke of Kent. Most of these also have a prep department.
The state schools in Guildford are also pretty good.
Then there are ACS Cobham and the International school north of Woking.

Do not panic.

Move to Swiss Cottage, Jubilee line to Canary Wharf, and look at North Bridge House

If you are applying to independent schools for Sept 2017 I don't see what the problem is? Entrance exams are in January 2017 normally. You can apply from overseas if necessary. For state secondaries the application deadline is sometime in Oct iirc so rent somewhere in a street next door to the school of choice and you'll go right to top of the list even if you come back after the application deadline.

schools haven't even started taking applications for September 2017 ?!?

Have sent you a pm. If your daughter goes into year five now then she will more like get into linked senior school. Pm me if you wish.

Head of the diamond school in Haselmere is lovely.
Old palace, steer very clear
Hurstpierpoint is good and selective with a very small s
Royal Russell is good
Croydon High for girls I highly recommend
Any GDST school for your daughter
Lingfield Notre Dame for both
Oxted school is very big but good state secondary
Ardingly College

"Alleyn's is going to be full, but there are actually a few schools around croydon that could work"

Something you might want to check: Alleyns Junior is going to be full in Sept 2016. But Alleyn's itself will not even have opened its applications window for Sept 2017. So no, nothing doing for this Sept for prep, but no reason either to rule it out for a secondary application.

But all the Dulwich Foundations Schools are academically selective, so it would be a case of arrive, apply and then exam in January. If you had seen any/all of them and knew they'd be a good fit, then this is worth a try.

Do you want to live in London itself, or would you prefer commuter town?

We had an educational consultant help us identify independent schools that had availability mid-year at the levels we needed. I have no idea whether she had any particular connections beyond a normal person (I got the feeling she did at some schools but not others), but she definitely did all the legwork of keeping in touch with schools and she managed to find places at 3 different independent schools that are otherwise oversubscribed. We toured all 3 and chose one. My DCs are younger than yours so it may have been easier, I don't know. My DH's company paid the consultant as part of our relo package so I don't know how much it cost. I'm sure she's not the only one who does this, but feel free to PM me if you want her info.

Good luck with the move!

Greenacre in Banstead? Train from Sutton is 30mins into Victoria.

I second the SE. Petts Wood is great community with easy commute to Canary Wharf (train to Lewisham or London Bridge then DLR or Jubilee line). Boys seem to go to Eltham or Dulwich and girls to Bromley High. Slightly less academic is Babington which is co-ed and even less academic is Farringtons (also co-ed) but there are some fab state schools nearby too including Bullers Wood for girls. You'd need to be in Bickley or Chislehurst for catchment for Bullers.

If you want co-ed and not overly academic but still sound, try Kent College Canterbury. Or try the three preps that act as feeders for Cranbrook School at 13+ (St Ronan's, Dulwicj, Markborough House). All very commutable to London.

There are many excellent state primaries in se london too. How about state primary, then the usual application process into secondary..

Look at lewisham/blackheath/greenwich/dulwich and out to bromley

Off the top of my head:
Colfes
St dunstans
Blackheath high
Eltham college
Bromley high
Sydenham high
Virgo fidelis
James allen
Alleyns
Dulwich college
Trinity
Whitgift.

Lots in se london, and very commutable to canary wharf.

Have you thought about Ealing in west London? Crossrail will be there in a couple of years. St Augustine's and Notting Hill and Ealing for girls, a bit more tricky for boys, St Benedicts will have places, and there are coaches from Ealing to John Lyon, merchant Taylor's, Hampton, or the tube to Latymer upper school and City of London.

And notice to leave an independent school at the end of summer term will only be due at beginning of next term, mid April, so places may well become available at that point.

So will your dd still be 10 on Sept 1st 2016? If so a prep to 13+ would be a good idea to give you more options for secondary and continuity or one with junior/senior school. Applications for 11+ independents often close later than October unless they take earlier registrations, which few outside greater London area do. Hurst in West Sussex might be worth a look.

Excuse terrible typing!

Although schools might not gevablebyp take anyone for Year 6, they haven't yet opened their books for 2017. That happens from May-June. You'll have to register for the entrance exams. Look up the North London Consortium Schools; in NW Lobdon they are popular.

Make sure you have an address close to a good secondary for 31st Oct as that is the closing date for secondary state schools. All good schools will be over Subscribed.
For primary (state) you will be dependant on where has space so find an area where/all the schools are good like Richmond borough to up your chances of a good school.