Latymer Upper or Dulwich College?

@Charlotte2022, it seems you are promoting your own new website that borders on copyright infringement of the long established www.londonpreprep.com, I have reported your post.

Hi Fenna, we are in the same dilemma and thought we would be able to decide by the deadline, but still struggling. Having not visited Latymer due to the pandemic makes it particularly difficult. Could I PM you please and possibly speak with you?

"Other friend mum’s son is happy about LU but she is concerned about GCSE and A level because they don’t push study much for Y7&8."

That is an issue with the mum and not with the school, she'll be one of those types who'd find fault everywhere. The results are there for all to see

OP, which does your DS prefer? Pretty much everything ChnandlerBong says, for example, re sixth form stretching courses is also true of LU and pretty much every school at this level. One journey must be easier/more straightforward than the other. Does he like the idea of all boys, all the way through? I know it's hard this year when visits didn't happen

OP I really wouldn’t make the decision based on league tables. The difference in performance among these schools is minuscule and is probably just due to fact Latymer has girls.

The focus on league tables drives a culture that incentivises schools to kick out struggling pupils. Neither Latymer nor Dulwich have a reputation for this which I can think speaks positively for both.

If the journey, pastoral care and ethos are really all equal then go for facilities / infrastructure. For me pastoral care and ethos though would be much more important along with the co-Ed versus single sex consideration.

yes I do. so an eye witness but not an unbiased one!

Yeah DC starts out with 6 classes in Y7 but is 10 classes from Y9 and a bit bigger again for 6th form.

Personally I reckon if your ds gets into both schools, then there can only be a very marginal difference in terms of the results he would receive? The difference is simply the ethos of the 2 schools - and very few people will ever have a kid at both so can only describe one?

For me, DC is a school big enough to allow every kind of boy to find his own tribe. Sports from fencing to rowing to badminton to rugby. Something for everyone.

The house system also allows kids to mix with other classes right from joining.

DC is very big on the extra curricular stuff - not just as in out of school clubs but also as in off curriculum weeks where they focus on science or languages or whatever it may be. This becomes evn more marked at 6th form where boys get to choose non examined courses which broaden their horizons in the run up to leaving the school.

DC may not reach the dizzy heights of some in the league tables, but its leavers lists are always varied and impressive.

215 in a year group

I just had a quick look at DC results- didn't realise it was so big! 215 in a year!

One friend mum’s son is very happy about DC- his mum too, especially their future results are also good.
Other friend mum’s son is happy about LU but she is concerned about GCSE and A level because they don’t push study much for Y7&8.
So it depends on what you and your DS focus- in addition to coed/boys and distance.

Good luck.

You need to be sure whether or not the better exam results are the consequence of being coed (hence my comments at length about how the Foundation schools feature in tables)

The differences between A level grades are not large, so I tend to see it as a result of being coed. You may know differently.

The next factors, to me are reliability/convenience of journey and where the potential pupil most 'sees' himself.

Infrastructure matters less once you are happy that the school has everything you want, and that not much is on satellite sites (Dulwich is clearly further to its boathouse, for example)

I don’t think there’s a right answer! Have you been able to visit either? Gut feel?
We turned down another school with a big campus but LU felt a better fit for DS.
Where do you live, which is the easiest journey etc?

I have a DS at LU. Very happy there - in Year 7 so all a bit of a strange first year!
Know happy boys at Dulwich as well.
But very different schools in terms of campus, location, DC has acres of land, location of most families, public transport v school buses etc. As well as the co-Ed, single sex.

LU is very similar in the league tables to Alleyns, the co-ed one of the Foundation schools. Aim off for the presence of girls being the thing that makes the difference to overall school performance - JAGS is always higher than Alleyns, which is always higher than Dulwich College.

But the top sets at Dulwich Collge come out with strings of A*/A, and there's no reason to think a boy would not reach his full academic potential there.

Aside from the big question of co-ed or single sex, you are looking at small,differences between two very good schools. And are in the very lucky position that there is no wrong answer.

So I'd now be looking at convenience/reliability of journey (not just time required) - also whether there's a school coach service for either from where you are, as that's useful if public transport doesn't link up well.

And, crucially, where your boy 'sees' himself