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Original poster

80% bursary at Godolphin & Latymer or Tiffins girls school?

82 replies

Piggy456 · 15/02/2018 21:32

Hi ... looking for some opinions and advice. My DD has got some great news from GL. She passed the exams and we have secured an 80% bursary for the duration of the school years.

If she manages to get into Tiffins girls school (free) Which would you send her too and why ?

We live about in between the two schools so travel either is not an issue ( I chose the schools based on realistic distance and travel ) and academics.

Any advice would be most welcome. My DD likes both and is a confident person, likes sport and music.

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Twochildrenandmoi · 17/02/2018 17:13

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Everydaybusy · 17/02/2018 16:25

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Original poster
Piggy456 · 17/02/2018 14:19

Thank you Backingvocals for your insight and kind words.

It is immensely helpful to understand the history and roots of a school. It will give me a better understanding of where and more importantly why, the school is directed in the present and the future.

Thank you for sharing.

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Original poster
Piggy456 · 17/02/2018 14:08

Thank you gillybeanz for your kind words.

One thing we decided very early on, was choosing schools of no more than 30 min actual travelling time. As we felt life was too short to be spent simply sitting on a bus at this stage of their lives. So both schools have a bus travelling time of 30 mins from door to door.

Thanks again.

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gillybeanz · 17/02/2018 13:15

Just wanted to say congratulations to your dd, I bet she's so pleased.
I don't know the schools at all, but my advice was to go for the one that's easiest and quickest to reach. She will no doubt have friends she'll want to visit, or after school activities and living closer will help with transport.

Original poster
Piggy456 · 17/02/2018 13:07

Thanks farangatang

Well we are still waiting for the results of Tiffins. So all of this may be a moot point if she doesn't get offered a place.

But if she does get a place, we only have 4 days to chose, which was why I thought I'd post first, to allow myself some time to reflect and make an informed choice.

Your question about where DD would like to go was the first question I asked her. Specifically I asked what her her thoughts on both of these schools.

She said she likes Tiffins as she currently has some friends there and her cousins went there.
She likes Godolphin as they gave her a dolphin toy after the entrance exams.

I never told her about the wall climbing section of the gym hall at Godolphin (as I never thought she have a realistic chance of going there, purely due to the finances and didn't want to get her hopes high). But as soon as I did, she said oh fine I'll go there then.

So if we get a place a Tiffins, she would be happy going to either.

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Original poster
Piggy456 · 17/02/2018 12:52

Thanks again nylon14

Your absolutely right, we can only commit to this if we have a real understanding of what will happen and what is required of us. To ignore it could have dire consequences for DD.

Thanks again for your thoughts.

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Original poster
Piggy456 · 17/02/2018 12:43

Many thanks Needmoresleep

Your descriptions of how the children will make friends is reassuringly normal and organic. Which is exactly what I would hope for in any school.

Thanks again

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LetBygones · 17/02/2018 12:25

Crikey, Everydaybusy.
Do you have evidence for this?
In which case the teaching at G&L must be excellent to get the results it does, with these 'not particularly bright' girls around.

Original poster
Piggy456 · 17/02/2018 12:24

Thanks LetBygones

I have read many reviews with the same message as yours, that the school is friendly, and provide opportunities, whilst remaining academic. And thank you for your insight of the school, its helpful to understand the mixture of people you will meet there.

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Everydaybusy · 17/02/2018 12:08

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Everydaybusy · 17/02/2018 12:06

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nylon14 · 17/02/2018 12:04

I think it's a lovely school and very supportive. I just wanted you to be aware that you will probably have to fill out those financial forms every year.

Original poster
Piggy456 · 17/02/2018 11:49

Thanks nylon14
We definitely will look very carefully at the small print and check with the school. That both our expectations and the schools expectations are aligned. And not just for one or two years but throughout the entire 7 years to ensure that it is feasible for both the school and ourselves, before committing, to ensure a stable and consistent school life for DD.

Thanks again.

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Trailedanderror · 17/02/2018 09:54

@User89556000
I'd check that. Every school I've known have funded bursaries from trusts and legacy funds, not income. And even if you're right, that resentment really isn't healthy. Don't pass it on to your dcs.

farangatang · 17/02/2018 09:43

Sounds like Tiffin will be a good choice if she gets a place. She already has a packed co-curricular timetable by the sounds of it, and the music at TGS is (or certainly used to be when I worked there) great!
Which does your DD prefer (assuming she gets a choice)?

Rudi44 · 16/02/2018 12:49

Bursaries are often funded by alumni donations and are not creamed off from the fees of full paying students. Our school collects an acceptance of place fee that at the end of their time at the school is either refunded or donated to the bursary fund.
My daughters scholarship is a percentage applicable for the duration of her schooling but the bursary is assessed annually.

nylon14 · 16/02/2018 12:20

Bursary funding come from a specific fund, fundraised separately.

flyingbytheseat · 16/02/2018 11:45

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User89556000 · 16/02/2018 11:36

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Needmoresleep · 16/02/2018 11:34

Go for G&L. Tiffin can be quite dour, and has less resources for extra curricular. G&L is perfectly academic, I am surprised at those who suggest it is not, and bright children will do well. Kids will find their own friends. Academic kids often hanging out together, and equally those commuting together. And some Oligarchs have nice children!

G&L will offer much greater breadth in the 11-16 years. Then you can have another look. Tiffin XIth form vs IB at G&L. Lots move at this point.

nylon14 · 16/02/2018 10:00

I could read the small print for your bursary.
Bursary awards are subject to review annually and the value of the award may vary from term to term, depending on parental circumstances. Awards are made on the basis of the family’s financial circumstances, taking into account income and realisable assets as well as any other pertinent circumstances.

Backingvocals · 16/02/2018 09:10

It really sounds like your daughter will do well anywhere. I didn’t know anyone at G&L with all that sporting and musical prowess at such a young age but I think things were different everywhere in the 80s!

When I was there it felt calm and quietly academic. No mad pressure - I was the academic one in my set of friends so I spent a lot of time in the library whilst they were hanging out in Coombes the bakers on King St ! My friends were ordinary like me. I came from a boring SW London suburb - before they were all swanky and so did my friends. All our parents has ordinary jobs - my mum was a social worker (I was on a bursary). Others were teachers, builders, worked for the council. There were rich girls but they were a different set to us and we didn’t have anything to do with them really but we knew they were clubbing on the Kings Road at the weekend while we were meeting up in Richmond and going to the cinema !

There wasn’t a lot of extra curricular then but I had a long school journey so I didnt want to do any of that. I think a lot of this is the fact that London in 2018 is unrecognisable compared to London 1984.

I loved it having come from a not great comp. But I heard Zoe Williams on the radio the other day who must be a similar age to me saying how she hated it because everyone had to excel all the time and so even these privileged girls were being set up to fail. That was utterly unfamiliar to me but I guess so much depends on the group you fall in with.

Good luck with your decision.

LetBygones · 16/02/2018 08:31

I knew G&L well in the 80s and now have a daughter there. It remains a terrific school with fantastic opportunities. It is incredibly friendly and the new Head seems approachable and sensible. 10% of girls have bursaries; 1/3 of my daughter's class were at state primaries.
One oligarch does not a summer make!

Original poster
Piggy456 · 16/02/2018 08:26

Thanks WestLondon2

You raise some very practical and important questions, which were addressed at the interview, that we (the parents) had with the school.

The bursary is not attainment dependant (within reason). We also discussed our current and future financial positions.

But I will check and reconfirm again just to make sure, we both have the correct understanding, before committing.

Many thanks again Smile .

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