Sevenoaks School or Twggs

@OrangeandGold1, Sevenoaks is a private school so not impacted by the DfE decision to withdraw funding in state schools for IB, but the head of Sevenoaks part of the movement to reverse the cuts as it’s not in anyone’s interest to restrict a qualification to only those who can afford to pay.

Bump in case anyone is still awake?

hi, DD is currently in Year 5 and we’re starting to plan ahead. Our target is TGS but we’re also looking at Sevenoaks School and Walthamstow Hall as independent routes. If anyone has experience or insight with any of these schools, I’d love your thoughts.

Also any knowledge about Sevenoaks’ IB programmes, and how the government funding change from 2027 might affect things going forward (heard TGs are moving to A levels) in terms of uni applications would be gratefully received. thanks so much.

TWGGs is a very good school. I’d be tempted to accept the place. If school fees are fairly doable for you, why not pay each term’s fees into a high interest account for dd? Over 7 years, that would give her a great deposit for her first property. Win-win.

Apologies, maybe this advice is too late but my15yrs dd, having spent a day Sevenoaks school returned disappointed; staff hadn't answered her questions on Maths, Further Maths at the level she'd asked. Also when another teacher prompted 'So, your mum's a dr. & your dad's a surgeon .." and my d. quitely replied 'I have no interest in studying medicine, I'm hoping and planning to study the Cambridge Maths Tripos" - both teachers looked taken aback as if knowing your intellectual direction at 15 is odd. I explained to her things might be a little different here since we/she moved recently from SPGS to this area.
I wouldn't recommend paying for a private school where the staff aren't super-excellent/confident in every area of the A-level curriculum. - Pleasant, nice people, just not in our experience, the right fit.

Had a far superior experience at TOGS, which she now attends.

DD was at TGS a few years ago. Whilst she is intelligent, her confidence wasn’t great at the time of her being there. My only suggestion to you is to think carefully on this when deciding which school is best for your DD. TGS is very much about their results rather than nurturing the students and IB is very different to A’levels. I wish my DD had the possibility of attending another school but it wasn’t possible at the time as we were out of area and in the throes of moving.
Your DD’s happiness is paramount here. I hope she goes to the school best suited to her and wish her all the very best for her future.

nice ! good luck :)

Hi, I'm an actual sevenoaks student lurker on here, and I really like the school!! I think that to get the most out of being in this school, you have to make sure to do lots of extracurriculars, so that you actually get your money's worth, otherwise there's no point.

There is quite a bit of work, but it varies from week to week, one week you could have like 2 homeworks, and sometimes you could have like 10 and 3 tests. At one point I had 15 homeworks due! But you just have to stay on top of it. You should definitely consider if your kid is ok with that

I think that sounds like an excellent choice. As a parent I've have/have had DC at a mix of comprehensive, grammar and private schools and I'm a big proponent of not assuming private will be better. My best advice, particularly if tuition is a stretch, is that you should be able to identify specific needs and wants of your child that won't be met in their state options with parent-funded co-curriculars and enrichment/tutoring but would be met in the private school. Generic statements like "it's a better school" or "they get better test scores"[which is usually largely a result of selective intake and retention] don't count. If you're struggling to make a list for that question then private usually isn't a wise use of those family resources. It seems like you've come to that conclusion for your family/DD re sevenoaks.

Your DD is in a great position with no bad options, but I'll keep my fingers crossed that you get that exciting email from TOGS when the second round of offers are made.

Whichever you go for, hopefully you'll make a decision and give up the other one quickly, as presumably there'll be people very eagerly waiting for places at both schools.

Despite the VAT issue, our chances of receiving an offer from TGS are quite high. However, part of my dilemma is that once we pay the first term's fees at SS, we won’t be in a position to decline it in favour of an offer from TGS

If you're prepared to pay five full years of fees plus all the extras then you can afford to potentially lose one term of fees [less any deposit already placed - that's sunk cost] in order to keep that option open if TGS doesn't come through. Yes it will feel lousy to do but it is absolutely an option and one a lot of families take.

Your first paragraph was exactly what I was getting at. If the co-curriculars and extension are neutral or a potential downside to you (which it absolutely is for some students and families - Saturday school and very long days with required co-curricular engagement has some real downsides for many) then I would really consider whether private has much value. That full-on environment is a huge part of what you're paying for at a school like Sevenoaks so it should be something you and your DD really want for her.

If you don't plan to make use of the facilities and activities on offer at SS, definitely take up the grammar. SS will leave you no time to pursue activities outside the school. Its academics are at the same level as grammar schools in the area, so no point paying just for the academics really.

I can give you details of 8 children/ young adults (I knew more children going to the schools but have lost touch with what child is where for uni so going with my childrens close friends. )
The 2 I knew at SS went to Durham and Birmingham
The 2 at Twigs went to Bristol and Cambridge
1 I knew at TOGS is at a university in Australia I can't recall what one sorry.. I want to say Melbourne
1 is at Nottingham
1 is not at uni she has had a baby recently
They are similar age to dd3 who is in year 2 of Uni.
1 is currently on a football scholarship at Cardiff

My own went to schools in Tunbridge Wells so for a while there I had a large knowledge of schools but as mine now are mid university experience or in Masters I've not always got the up to date info. I can state the girls at Twigs behave nicely when they walk put of school and usually appear in a good mood.

We are from London and DS going to a superselective boys grammar closer to home next September. If you are close to
London Bridge station you can access a fair view grammars logistically speaking. Dartford or Judd were on our list but further down. I don’t want to say which one we went for because I post a lot and don’t want my DCs identified.

The highest performers at GCSE in local grammars can then go to Judd/St Olave’s at Sixth Form so you can’t trust the Oxbridge statistics. Both those are mixed in Sixth Form and seem to cream off some of the best grammar girls.

I think shining at extracurricular at school itself can really boost a shy child’s confidence and I would assume that a school like Sevenoaks would do just that.

However, the way you describe your DD really sounds like TOGs would be a really good fit for her. Fingers crossed you get an offer in due course. When I looked at the Kent test results for DS back when they were published, there seemed to be fewer top scorers the normal. I think maybe the test was harder this year. We counted how many above him and he got a lower score than his siblings years ago, but there were not many kids above him and he certainly would have qualified for Judd this year (although he is going to a London superselective instead because of logistics). So it may look like Judd/Toggs have lower scores this year for inner but I believe (subjectively) the test must have been harder this year.

OP I would call Admissions at TOGs and speak to them. Everyone says they are lovely and will be able to guide you, hopefully.

If you value academic grades above all else and Russell Group uni entrance, grammar school tends to be fine. TOGS is a fantastic school but obviously they do IB only, but then Judd does A levels for those who want to switch and do eg Medicine (taking 3 Sciences is not allowed at IB). Also Maths and Further Maths and Computer Science and Physics type A level combo means A levels sometimes do win out, although the IB is excellent prep for independent study and thriving at university and is great for linguists and all rounders. It is a lot of extra work though and the UK uni system DOES NOT recognise that extra work sufficiently (at least, in my opinion).