Independent secondary school 13+

[MrPickles73]

Dd1 is currently yr6 at a prep school. Very academic and enjoys team sports. Generally outgoing and sociable.

We have looked at 10 senior schools including 2 suggested by the prep school. Most we have dismissed on proximity (lack of) and cost. We have been to visit 8 schools. It leaves us with 3 schools which we intend to tour with our daughter in the autumn. All of the schools have their own entrance exam.

1. International co-ed college. Day pupil. Majority board.

Pros. Consistently high GCSE and A level results (top 20 of league tables). Amazing facilities. International flavour. Very friendly but studious atmosphere. Cons. Predominantly SE Asian students. Lack of team sports. 30 per cent of students asked to leave after GCSEs as don't meet required grades to stay for 6th form. 40 min drive each way..

1. Co-ed Day school.

Pros. More 'normal' school with team sports etc. New HT this September. Cons Recently academic performance has been slipping and apparently the standards of student attitude etc has also been slipping. Facilities ok but nowhere near school #1. 25mins public transport plus 20 min walk through city centre.

1. Boarding girls school

Pros. Nice atmosphere. Not academically selective but recently surprisingly successful with Oxbridge entry. Lots of sports and activities. Cons. Just over an hour away so would need to weekly board. DD not against boarding but we would miss her but accept they can participate in so many more things at school when they board. Facilities not as good as school #1 but better than school #2.

Should we worry about school #1 and that she might have to leave school ore Alevels or will everyone be doing this anyway and doing state sixth form to get into university?

Are there other criteria I've overlooked?

Are there really no closer day options? Iirc your dd has not long been at the prep school. What are her strengths and weaknesses? Are there any cocurricular activities or subjects offered which may be of interest but has not yet had an opportunity to try. If she is sporty could lack of team sports , from skills, discipline, team representation and social aspect, be an issue. Does she prefer coed or single sex?

If you're looking at residential possibilities, surely your choice is quite wide?

LIZS we live in the sticks so distance is always an issue. There are two very small coed all through schools nearer (think 30-35 mins) but both are academically poor and small so opportunities would be limited.
DD says she doesn't mind if its co-ed or single sex. Our feeling is that co-ed is better for her. The lack of team sports is an issue but we could seek to do these outside of school (she is a county player in her favourite sport so we could keep this up). None of the schools support her chosen sport all that well..
Strengths and weaknesses? Academically pretty rounded (less keen on MFL), enjoys drama, sport, music - joins in everything really.

Terhou our preference is for a day school for family and cost reasons. However the all girls school potentially offers a hefty scholarship which covers the cost issue, its only just over 1 hour and they are much more flexible on the boarding than the big traditional co-ed boarding schools. We have looked at 3 other boarding schools but dismissed them for various reasons (cost, lack of academics, emphasis on areas which don't interest her etc.).

Universities look at the school where you sat your GCSEs, not your A levels so nobody moves to state sixth form just for university entrance.

I wouldn’t chose option 1. Firstly being a day girl in a predominantly boarding environment can be tough. Secondly these international colleges get amazing results but there’s not much “fun” which you have picked up on with the lack of sports. They are very much head down and crack on with the academics. Also schools where your child is a minority can be tough. Like it or not, when not in the classroom the children will talk to each other in their native language. It’s not deliberate social segregation but it does happen - we are all drawn to the familiar, particularly when away from home. Don’t be wowed by facilities and results alone.

I would focus on options 2 and 3. Which environment would make your daughter happiest? I honestly believe that is one of the main drivers of academic success.

1 sounds a bit miserable - 40% get asked to leave!! Unheard of in most academic schools. Which school is it- top 20 in league tables doesn’t sound right.

I would rank these 2, 3, 1 (and hope it didn't come to 1)

You want her to be a day pupil at a co-ed school, so 2 seems easily the best fit. Sounds as if her friends there might be local, and the normal teen hanging out together after school should easily be possible. You'll need her to be living at home if you are going to continue in non school based sports pathways

The girls boarding school sounds fine

The first school doesn't sound like a good fit. Being a local day girl in school with a high proportion of international (full) boarders is not easy socially.

Bit confused about school 1 - if the GCSE results are so good why are they asking so many to leave? This school sounds like the worst option for several reasons.

It maybe that they use two exam centre numbers, so the headline is not a reflection of the whole year group. 40% is a large number to leave.

Lizs 30per cent leave post GCSEs. They are top say 50 for GCSEs and then top 20 for a levels. There is a massive influx of international students at a levels.

30% then, still a large number. Is the sixth form mainly boarding and day pupils leave, or a mixture? Does it also offer IB? Uni destinations?

anothernewt I think you are right. Our initial thoughts were school #2 would be perfect but now it seems it's reputation is heading downhill and we're not confident she'd be stretched academically. The good news is we should get to see early signs of whether the new head can pull things round before she's mid year 8 which is when these schools would look for commitment.

Is it Queen Ethelburgas?

lizs 6th form is mainly international boarders. All a level no IB. Unis are Oxbridge, LSE, medical schools, engineering etc. No Greek classicists! But I think that would suit her interests tbh.

I wouldn't be swayed by the academic results of a school that forces out 30% of pupils. This strongly suggests the results are a result of selection rather than any value-add from the teaching. When you then consider limited extra curricular opportunities I'm not sure what you'd be paying for really.

I definitely wouldn't send a child to a school which chucks 30% out after GCSE – if that's their attitude to developing teenagers I dread to think what their pastoral care might look like.

Your DD might want to change schools for A levels, lots do, but it should be her choice not one imposed on her by a frankly uncaring school.