Private school recommendations for son with CAT scores approx 109-116 - Shiplake/Teddies/others?

We have received offers from Teddies and Shiplake so are now trying to decide between the two - which is very tricky as they are so different! I'm curious to know if anyone knows what the SEN support is like at Teddies. We hear it's super at Shiplake but don't know of any families currently at Teddies to ask. We are pleased to have an offer from both but son's profile is a bit spiky - he knuckled down and qualified for a grammar school place but we don't feel it's for him. We don't know what the demand is for places at Teddies but he's chuffed to have been offered one. Any thoughts about the SEN for a kid that does have some working memory issues would be super (obviously we are conscious he got extra time in his various tests).

Hi mumsnetters out there!
I am looking for someone that can share their experience on Shiplake College!
Any advice, comments, private messages ... all welcome!
Thanks in advance

My son is at Shiplake and weekly boards. He’s in Year 11 now. We love it 😊

Lots of schools have children with a range of CAT scores, including the high achieving ones. I think many look for above 115 but if they perform really well in the entrance exam may not really look much at CATs....often something to look at if someone is borderline or performs very differently in 2 areas of entrance exam.

I have known children score less than 110 in CATs in Prep school tests but ace very selective school entrance exams and go onto be tested again via CAT or Midyis and have sores of over 125/130.

I guess the specific needs you mention are those that need to be met by a specific school, but getting CATs of around 115 wouldn't categorically rule out many schools in my experience.

Look at Teddies, moved dyslexic son from Bloxham, he has flown since , teachers a different league to Bloxham and he is now loving school and doing so much better than we ever imagined he could.

Also look at Aldenham given where you are

Since you live in Amersham and would consider day school, have you thought about John Lyon in Harrow ? Easy to reach in the Chiltern Line, there are always boys coming from your way. There's always a lot going on there, plenty of drama and sport. Learning support is good, my own son has not needed it, but I know several boys who do. Your son's needs ought to be well-catered for from what I have heard....

@Zodlebud can you PM your school too?

@Meer1 year 9 entry - although I have wondered that if it were a school were the entry is only at year 7, with no significant year 9 entry, if it would be better to move ds at that point to help socially. Hard to say though as I don't want to rock the boat earlier than necessary.
The only places I have managed to visit so far are Kingham Hill and Sibford (we did those on the same day about a week before Covid hit), plus Abingdon which ds got a place at for the pre-prep but then we ended up choosing a house which meant a different school was a better logistical choice. Abingdon is now going to be way too hot housy for consideration. Kingham Hill we found a bit strange and too religious and ruled it out, Sibford is a lovely little school but didn't seem to have many British boarders and ds would need to at least flexiboard to go there. Not ruled out though.

At the moment I'm thinking the list will include D'overbroecks (only day so probably not an option for you), Bloxham, maybe Teddies, maybe Bradfield, need to further investigate Shiplake/Pangbourne (put off latter by Naval stuff) plus anywhere else that crops up. It is probably going to depend a bit on what ds' performance/ anxiety/general coping is like going back to school this coming term as I'm finding it hard to judge what level of school he might actually have a hope of getting in to!

Sending out good luck to all who are looking for schools for dc who do not seem to be high flying in all regards...feels here like everyone else we know is sure to get their dc into academic Oxford based schools, so no one else is looking beyond that.

@Meer1 Have sent you a PM

I have two daughters so not quite the same - the eldest will do well wherever she goes. The youngest is extremely bright but needs some extra support due to a hearing problem. Nothing that should make schools “scared” to take her on, but I am amazed at the negativity around even a hint of needing extra support.

One school in particular blew us away with their knowledge of the issues she faces and even fed back further after the open day (we left our email address). What’s even more brilliant is it’s also the school we feel is 100% right for our eldest too. It’s not a school that traditionally our prep has sent many girls too. Some poo pooed it. I knew from the moment we walked in the door that it was just “right”. It takes guts to break from the norm though.

Schools that treat students as individuals, support their weaknesses and nourish their strengths are, IMO worth far more than a top 20 place in the academic league tables. If a child is happy then I think they will 100% do their best.

@Meer1 Yes total nightmare. My ds has aspergers' and dyslexia and we were hoping to see quite a few schools, narrow it down and then take him to see a couple. At the moment I can see us having to spend a fortune on registering him at multiple schools just in case we like them when we can visit.
We want somewhere with accepting ethos, good pastoral care, reasonable range of subjects/activities/options, high achievement for the individual in terms of helping people achieve their potential, but without the hot-house pressure. Similarly somewhere which can provide some extra support, but we don't need a special school.
Everywhere SAYS they do all these things/are that school - except the hot houses - but I really wanted to go to each, visit, meet some of the staff etc to get a feel myself.

Kingham Hill

Worth co side ting Sibford on the pastoral side too?

V helpful thread as I am looking in the same area for ds. Not being able to visit anywhere is really tricky.

Few people have said Teddies is full of more socially confident, well off social climber types. No idea if that is reality or not.

A friend with a son with a similar profile is very pleased with Claires Court too.

Pangbourne is a bit above Shiplake but well below Teddies in terms of exam results. But friends with children there absolutely love it and it seems to attract very down to earth, friendly and relaxed families. It’s a bit tatty round the edges and the drama won’t be as good as Teddies, but has flexi boarding I think, really lovely grounds and the bands and parades that go with the military connection are a unique aspect.

Teddies is a league above Shiplake if he can get in (it’s becoming a touch more selective). Also well above Bloxham. In the same area you could also consider Pangbourne College