SW London boys, 11+ grammars and independents

Sorry @JustJuice187 , it’s not just DS that needs to work on his comprehension skills clearly

Sorry I just checked: I said ‘Tiffin result’ not score

@PitNicking - I don’t know his score - sorry where did I say that?
The 106 was an example based on @Sterou’s query - you are right we don’t know scores - which is part of the conundrum

@JustJuice187 When you say you found out his Tiffin score, do you mean the fact that he'd got through to the second round? Just curious as I don't think we found out what DS's score was (unless I missed it!)

@sterou - the 106 is a standardised score - how much counts from 1st stage and how much from 2nd stage depends on school.
When you say you have a temporary place for Wallington do you mean you ‘have met the standard’? Alas with all these things it will still depend on scores and distance from school.
Ditto Greenshaw - we have that option to but again there are very few places which will go on distance and score.
It’s such a minefield!

Yes that makes sense. We found out his tiffin result a few days before that so I think he may have gone in a bit over confident. I do think the format of Tiffin probably just worked in his favour - less multiple choice.
He found stage 2 tough whereas some came out saying maths was easy so who knows. It’s nice to be able to put it on the CAF.
Anyway I have realised that this whole process has been incredibly hard for him and my main focus now is really on getting through the next week without any melt downs! I don’t think they really understand why they have to do all these exams at this age.

@TeddyDidIt >> very insightful thanks.

My DS is in a prep school at the moment and we are trying to get him back into mainstream. He has now done Tiffin 2nd round as well as 2nd round WL/SGS and got a temporary place at Wallington and 60-able Greenshaw School... we aim for Tiffin as we are closest ( and DS only cares about Maths truthfully).

Also trying him for an academic scholarship at Hamptons ( but it will have to be substantial or else we wont go down the private sector again)...

Anyway, could not sleep last night :-( as we realised that we don't even understand the scoring for state schools. What is the top mark achievable for these exams? What are the pass rates for stage 1 to stage 2? I read previous posts about tiffin score of "106" getting a final place after round 2? is that the average of the 4 papers mark?

I know more about CATS and ISEB... lost for state scores. Please advise

@JustJuice187 The problem with tests being generally easier is that the gap between being well above the standardised score and falling short can be very small. So your DS didn't necessarily mess up - just that if the cohort found it easier on the whole, lots of DC get higher raw scores and they are still only going to take the top third (ish), if that makes sense? I'm not being very concise, I know!

@Fingerscrossed1234 - a surprising number of boys got through to stage 2 of Tiffin this year - from our primary - I’ve not checked re Sutton.
The numbers going to grammars had really gone up in recent years but I honestly think it’s that the parents are more competitive than they were in this area when we first moved here.

Hi, would love to join. DS is only sitting for independents as Grammar schools always felt like too much of a mountain especially with Tiffin being the closest. Out of interest how many from your primary school (approximately) get grammar places?

Hi and thanks for staring this thread!
I’m at on DS2 - he has a 10 plus offer from Hampton and also passed 10 plus for trinity.
We kept the former but he’s sitting T again.
Got to stage 2 with Tiffin but not SET weirdly - so opposite to you @GrammarHopeful - everyone was expecting him to pas as Tiffin was apparently harder but he clearly messed up on the day. I have got over the trauma as he’s really had a good run and I guess a fall was due
We are going to give Graveney a bash and ISEB is next weekend - my only prob is he’s pretty much running on empty(ish) now so was actually good to get a break after stage 2 for Tiffin.

@Spacemen yes, exactly. If above the pass mark, you get told your DS is eligible for a place but no guarantee of an offer. If they don't reach the pass mark, you'll be told what the pass mark was and your DS's score.
Some boys will pass one and not the other (SGS pass more boys so it's usually this way round, but it could happen the other way too because of how the schools weight the exams differently). I have known boys each year who pass SGS but not Wilson’s who still get an offer on offer day, so it's not necessarily bad news to not pass both.

We are nearer to SGS so I did seriously compare the two. We chose Wilson’s for a few reasons, but would obviously have been happy with SGS or Wallington. A couple of DS's main interests (music and chess) are major strengths of the school. We also know teachers at Wilson's well, so while both are great schools, we had more first-hand evidence and inside perspective of this for Wilson's. I really liked the old feel of SGS but DS preferred Wilson's more open feel with the sports fields on site, etc.

I'm not exaggerating when I say he has found his place. He comes home absolutely buzzing every day and has found many kindred spirits, not just in class but through the co-curricular activities. I suspect this is true at all of the schools in question but Wilson's is very serious about not tolerating unkindness among the boys, which DS finds really reassuring. After his first week there, he was asked how the school makes him feel in one word and he said 'safe'.
His best friend is at SGS and also very happy there.

Thanks for any help!

Also, how is Wilson’s going? Why did you decide against SGS?

Hi all. DS also did the Sutton Grammar exams last year and is now extremely happy at Wilson's. We also know a lot about SGS, for various reasons.

I was on maternity leave this time last year and I'm a bit of a stats fan nerd so it was difficult not to let the whole thing infiltrate my brain at this point!

Happy to answer any questions - well done for getting through it and good luck to any continuing with the indie journey!

May I join in as an onlooker? DS will be sitting the exams next year (currently in year 5). We are starting the process of preparing him for the exams. It’s hard to get a nine year old (or certainly this particular 9 year old) motivated by something that’s so far off in the future! I have an older DD but don’t know the boys’ schools so well, so will be reading with interest.

Not sure really- just a gut feel! HIs friends who went there are a bit more 'conformist'! Who knows, he would have probably been fine, but LU definitely feels a better fit.
We were possibly a bit unlucky with the boys who showed us around Kings - something to be said for virtual visits where you all get the same experience!

Meant to say, that’s amazing he did so well! I’m glad he’s happy where he is - it’s the main thing we want at the end of it all.

Thanks, it’s so useful to get the perspective of a veteran!

Can I ask why you thought Kings wouldn’t be a good fit? It’s hard to get a sense of the schools without having been able to visit any of them!

He's at Latymer Upper- very happy. He managed to get a 10plus Hsmpton place so we didn't sit many schools last year- just Tiffin, Kings and LU and he was lucky enough to get all 3. Kings totally the wrong school for him (realised as we went through the process) so was a choice between the others really. DD sat Emanuel, Ibstock, KGS a couple of years ago so have experience of that.
However, the IESB makes it all a bit different this year- but I do think they end up at the right schools. Can all be a bit random though- boys we know got offers from Kings and not Emanuel, Tiffin but not KGS etc etc.
State primary for us with a bit of tutoring in exam technique.
Good luck!

Apologies @allabit, the Whitgift reference was for @AveEldon!

Thank you @PitNicking - really useful info!

@allabitboring we are doing Whitgift too. Had email explaining they’d be in touch after they’ve processed all of the results (presumably after their Iseb deadline, which is 5 dec I think).

@GrammarHopeful just argh, isn’t it, especially when you know your son would benefit from being stretched... ps we have put down Hampton too (Iseb).

@allabitboring which schools did your DS apply for last year and do you have a way to speed up time so this bit is all over?

Is your DS happy with where he is now? I’ve read on the forum that the selection process is usually good at placing boys in the right school for them - did you find that to be the case for your DS?

@RueDeWakening, thank you, that's incredibly helpful. I have spoken to WCGS's Senco already, but not to the othe two, as I didn't want to appear presumptions before Stage 2 results.

We have EHCP mainly because that was the only way to secure ABA provision for my DS without going bankrupt. He still has ABA shadow in his mainstream primary, but we've been winding it down from the beginning of this year in anticipation of secondary transition.

I'll join, DS sat the 2nd stage Sutton test yesterday, and has qualified for WCGS after stage 1. We live in LB of Sutton, and aren't targeting any indies or out of borough grammars.

DS has ASD & ADHD and had access arrangements granted in the tests too @GrammarHopeful. I was quite surprised, I really didn't expect he'd get them as he's in mainstream with no EHCP or (apparent) support in class etc. Wilson's is our closest grammar, and is first on our CAF, but otherwise I would have preferred Sutton to be top of his list - I've visited all 3 of them, and it was my preferred choice from a pastoral POV, and also how open the staff were when I spoke to them about the % of boys they have who are on the spectrum and how they manage that. I was very impressed tbh.