Leaving private school for state 6th form - experiences?

I think if you let us all know where in the country you are then we can also suggest lots of musical opportunities for your DS.
If the school are being horrible, devise a plan that works for you and him. Do not go into Year 11 letting him feel anxious about it!

Specialist music schools are really for people who want to music all the time and be professional. Music takes up a lot of your day. People can do well academically nonetheless but I think he’d be better off in a normal school with those A levels. Equally it very much depends on his standard of playing.

Yes I agree. Find an excellent local teacher and do music A level outside school,

Have a look at Cranbrook as it is a grammar with a boarding section. They offer music A level. You would have to pay boarding fees but not tuition.

Another one to consider would be Christ’s Hospital which is private but it’s means-tested with very generous provision. (Potentially 100% if necessary). It offers boarding. And it also offers music A level.

Why don’t you get in touch with one of the rich top boarding schools that have massive bursary funds if he is that talented? They may happily scoop him up.

Alternately, there are also high achieving grammars that offer boarding in Sixth Form or Sixth Form colleges dotted around the country. You will have to pay a bit. But if he is a high achiever it will be worth it if you have nothing great locally.

Another alternative is trying for a scholarship at a specialist music school, boarding if necessary. DC study A levels and often do very well. I can think of a recent BBC Young Musician winner who achieved very good grades in A levels similar to your DS’s from a specialist music school. He would be expected to spend a lot of time on music though, which might not suit him, it does tend to be pretty full on in that kind of environment. And competition for scholarships can be tough.

But in 2024 Edinburgh still had intake 31% of students from private schools.

You must live in a particularly poor place for state provision if there’s no state A level music option in commutable distance from your home. Roughly where in the country are you? Do you have family who live nearer to a decent 6th form who’d be happy to have DS move in for term time? Could you move? It’s very unusual to not offer music A level in this county (for those offering A levels, not all do).

If you can’t afford private you can’t afford it, but don’t give up on music A level if that’s his strongest subject.

Sounds like a really tough situation. As others have said, can you absolutely not cobble together the money for two years? I’m not suggesting anything irresponsible but if you can manage a bank loan or similar I would do that in this situation.

The only other suggestions I would have are applying to other private schools for scholarships - if he’s that musically gifted he surely has a lot to offer? Or applying to any local organisations like the Masons - I’m sure I’ve heard that they help out people in situations like this.

Come back to say that one of the key decisions your DS has to make is ‘is what is most important the Music A-level or the performance opportunities?’

If it is the A level, then it sounds like that will restrict your local 6th form options, so your effort will need to go into exploring wider options (boarding; specialist; long distances; remote etc).

If it is mainly performance, and your DS could consider doing the STEM A-levels alongside high-level performance/ instrumental teaching, then you should choose the best academic 6th form option available to you locally, and put your energy into finding all the highest quality performance opportunities, auditioning for JD etc.

It's hard but it's part of growing up and being an adult: knowing that you can have it / do it all, and that you need to prioritise.
Ooops. That should read can't have it all.

Incidentally- the people who move their kids from private to state to try to game the system? Morally questionaable-and Universities are on to you. @WomensRightsRenegade are you still around? If so-would you be prepared to say where in the country you are? There are state schools that tick your boxes, but no use naming them if they are a million miles away
from you.

He is academic too, and wants to do maths, further maths and physics alongside music
What is the long-term plan? I get that he loves his music but if his career is going to be the maths/physics route then he needs to major on that.
It's hard but it's part of growing up and being an adult: knowing that you can have it / do it all, and that you need to prioritise.

Music can be very time-consuming. In sixth form will it be time well-spent, or should he be concentrating on his academics and making new friends in his new setting?

Have you had meetings with the head teacher and bursar and been told 100% that they will not continue to support him? That seems off if he really is so exceptional and pivotal to the music for.

He could do his A level choices at our state school in South Wales, however it’s a Welsh medium comp! I really don’t think it’s unusual for these courses to be offered. Have you looked into all of your local options? Some of my friends’ kids are leaving private at sixth form simply because the private school is too small to offer the range of courses that local
schools and colleges do. Many places need applications in fairly early (before Christmas) so you really do need to get onto this. For alternative music, especially high level ensembles, have a look at what your local county music service offer. You might be surprised - there are plenty of talented musicians who your DS won’t have had the opportunity to play with if he’s just been in school ensembles so far.

What @JustMarriedBecca says about universities isn’t quite right. Many, but definitely not all, offer contextual offers but they’re certainly not just based on where pupils have taken their A levels.

No need to regret ever taking the bursary - he’s had all the benefits of £££££ secondary education and sounds like he’s thrived on it. Changing at sixth form isn’t unusual - my (state) DS had to hunt around for a sixth form with the subject he needed due to lack of teachers. He ended up going somewhere he knew no one and it doesn’t have a good rep but in fact it’s been good and not an issue. A-levels are so full on and fly by so fast, he just needs a place that does his subjects and it’s no bad thing to adjust from the private bubble and find that he’s fine without all those advantages. Although it sounds like there’s lots of private/boarding possibilities to try too. I get that it’s a shock but that doesn’t diminish the good fortune he’s had so far and all the doors it will open in his future.

There are plenty of threads addressing that point. This one is, I am assuming, simply about the options available to the OP’s son.

It is a nightmare for Bursary students in secondary as the means testing is done periodically in some of the top schools. The parents go through a lot of anxious moments throughout the schooling period. I would recommend in the first instance to apply to more private schools, alternatively try going to grammar, although in your case it might be late in case you have missed the grammar application timeline.

After 5 years of private school for free, you could find a way to pay for the final two! The school aren’t being ‘nasty’ if they can’t afford bursaries any more

This makes me so angry. Labour are vandalising children’s educations for no reason, spiteful bunch.

My son moved from a private school to a state FE college as his school did not have a 6th form. For him it was very successful - he was quite quiet and shy, and whilst the school had suited him when he was younger the FE college provided the ideal bridge to university by getting him used to a larger environment and working with a more mixed group of his peers.

Have you double checked the terms and conditions attached to the bursary to see if it allows the school to reduce and withdraw it arbitrarily like this? I suspect if other parents knew a school might withdraw or reduce a bursary half way through GCSEs they would opt for alternatives that don't carry that risk. They certainly ought to publicise that fact so that parents know the risk they run.

Music A level is definitely doable privately, if he really wants that. But he might be better off prioritising his STEM A levels and doing music for fun as A level is not the most exciting musical experience ime. Not sure where you are in the country but there are excellent bands, orchestras and choirs all over the place, including semi-pro standard if he is good enough. It will be a bit different from having it all organised in school and doing everything with his friends and being pivotal in that familiar community, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing at his age. If he chooses this option then that presumably makes the choice of 6th form easier, just down to preference from those where he has a chance of a place.

Could you get a job in the private school to get chalet fees?

A state boarding school that offers music? Does somewhere like Christ hospital offer it?

I have a musician who came up through the state route, with county ensembles and then junior conservatoire to extend his opportunities.

You should definitely explore your closest Conservatoire to see if he can join their JD - will usually be weekly on a Saturday and will offer a combination of individual teaching and ensembles.

Also research the various national youth ensembles, which typically meet for residentials in holidays. Can be expensive but iirc there are bursary schemes.

County youth setups are a bit hit and miss but again, unless you are extremely remote, there will be something within travelling distance.

Finally, good adult ensembles will often welcome 6th formers, especially in in-demand instruments. Scan adverts for concerts to find out what ensembles exist and contact them. They may meet weekly / fortnightly and are usually very very cheap.

If he sings, there is the option of finding the best cathedral / church choir locally - the best offer subsidised singing lessons.

It can be a shock to the system for those used to the ‘all inclusive’ nature of private school music - and it can be upsetting if eg a much-beloved teacher does not also teach privately (though JD often asks young people to only have lessons with their staff) - but it is possible to assemble a very satisfying musical life that prepares the young person either for studying music as a performer or finding the ‘recreational music tribe’ at uni and beyond.

Not the main point of the thread but why can’t he let anyone know he’s leaving until April? That seems particularly odd and will hardly help him process the move as a positive.

You say you have posted about this before. I guess I can see why you have not fully explored other options until now (have you in fact exhausted the meetings with current head and bursar? Still seems tiny chance in your OP which actually will not be helping at all as it’s the hope that kills you and stops you from contingency planning) but when you have found some attractive choices he will begin the all-important mental pivot. Bit like having to move from a much loved family home. It’s always grim until you slightly fall for the next place and then everything seems totally ok after all.

My DCs have had to move schools and countries a few times - forces families often do. It is glib to pretend that every child will react in the same way but it’s a basic human instinct for most decently balanced NT people to adapt pretty quickly to new surroundings and crack on. I was always amazed by how fast the waters closed over the last place we had been.