School suggestions for an academically ‘lazy’ girl

[ASHANDOAK]

Daughter currently at prep school. Sporty/arty/enjoys singing but can be lazy when it comes to academics. Can easily give up if not enjoying it/finding it easy. Confident, sociable, good boarder. Prep school is co-ed and she seems to favour the boys company as they are more ‘fun/mischievous’. Starting to look at options for 13. Looking at full boarding or a school where a large number stay at weekends. Can’t decide if the all girl route would be best for her as I worry that she may get distracted in a co-ed senior school. Haven’t done full research yet but think schools like DH/WA/CLC may be too academic for her. Have considered Tudor Hall but don’t get the feeling that their sport is competitive enough.

Co-Ed schools up for consideration are:
Uppingham - is the bullying as bad as was recently reported?
Stowe - is the pastoral care strong? Would a girl lacking academic drive fall by the wayside and end up messing around?
Teddies - does it empty out at weekends?
Marlborough - possibly too academic..?

would welcome comments on my thoughts above and any other suggestions. Thank you

Sherborne Girls? Over 90% boarding (according to ISI), not overly academic and seems to have struck a good balance of having close ties to Sherborne School but still being an all-girls school.

Family chose St. Swithun’s. All girls but some events with WinCol.

I would switch out Stowe and add in Haileybury instead. Stowe sport is fabulous, but the vibe academically is quite relaxed. Not that many go-getters. I do think that their academics have improved dramatically in the last few years though and like the fact they offer BTECs as well as A-levels. It’s hard to describe - you get the feeling that students work hard but not the impression that they are maxing out IYSWIM. For the subjects my DD was looking at for sixth form (all STEM), class sizes were tiny and mostly dominated by international boys.

Haileybury is day or weekly boarding in Y7 and Y8, with full boarding available from Y9. There’s Saturday morning school followed by sport so a lot stay in - I’d say between 50-60% of the school stay over the weekend. Academically rigorous but not uber selective and not a hot house. Offers the IB as well as A-levels. Sport exceptional. Great reputation for music and the arts too.

Woldingham.

Where is ‘home’. Woldingham is about 20mins from Gatwick if she would need to fly in holidays.

what is her appetite ia it everything at the moment?

Thank you all so much for the comments and suggestions. I really do appreciate them.

@tachetastic thanks for the suggestions of Sherborne girls, a few have mentioned it. I will pop it on my list 😊

@BreakingBroken does St Swithun’s empty out at weekends? I recall friends children being there but recall there were a lot of weekly boarders, I may well be wrong though.

@RatherBeOnVacation thanks so much for your thoughts on Stowe. That was very much the impression I had. The sport really looks appealing but do worry she will be more interested in that, than working. I also like the idea of BTEC’s

@boulevardofbrokendreamss home is north west area. At the moment, aside from sport/music/drama she enjoys History and TPR. She is not keen on geography but very good at it.

her current prep-school has not been that focused on academics which I think could have rubbed off on her. It’s hard to know if she is ‘lazy’ or whether it’s the environment, and in a more academically focused school whether she would rise to the challenge…..

A word of caution on Stowe if you are looking for traditional full boarding where children are required to stay in most weekends. It does rather empty out on Saturday afternoons after matches. I know one ‘full boarder’ who even spends a night at home mid week. It is disruptive for those who do need to stay but find themselves one of only a handful in the boarding house each weekend.

Definitely consider Rugby School. Full boarding, great sport/academics/music etc and good transport link (train) to the north-west.

First off, choose a full boarding school or one that is not exclusively full. The former will have busy weekends. The latter will not.
stowe empties out. Teddies, Haileybury etc all have significant numbers clear out because they can! So if you want weekend activities, choose a school where full is the only type of boarding.
Uppingham is a good option. Moderately academic but not horrendous. Oundle possibly too academic - well, I wouldn’t say it’s academic more diligent. My dc (at Oundle) say it’s cool to work hard and people who try and mess around end up on the fringes and get disassociated with to a degree.
rugby a good option. Similar vibe to Oundle and Uppingham. Marlborough a good option too.
If your dd likes boys and gets on with them then don’t park her in an all girls school as she will feel like part of her is missing and may well rebel. Choose a boarding school that is driven and she will get swept along with the tide.
if you want her to come home at weekends then choose a boarding school where full is not comply. Plenty of those around. Much wider choice than bonafide full boarding schools (only a handful of those around these days).

Teddies about half go home at any given weekend

Re: Tudor Hall. I've heard it's quite a girly/girl school (trips to nail bars at the weekend etc) which might not suit her if she itsn't that way inclined, and agree - sport isn't top notch. I would also highly recommend asking detailed questions about the school's financial sustainability and its long-term strategy. It's always wise to be thorough with these important decisions.

I went to the Mount in York and it was perfect. I worked hard and they did make a point of trying hard academically but it wasn't so massively sporty etc. - in other words not many distractions but not a hot house either. Not a Quaker but enjoyed the ethos. Probably changed a lot since I was there though.

Oundle or Rugby?

Sherbourne definitely worth a look - a friends daughter is there and loves it. Another sent her DD to St Swithins and almost everyone goes home every weekend which your DD wouldn't be able to do. Christs Hospital might fit the brief - sporty, v v good music and really is full boarding - she'd have to put up with the uniform though....