13+ do any schools just sit an exam in year 8 any more

[funnypotato]

Just despairing and quite confused. Am in the middle of some turbulent life changes right now albeit fairly positive ones for me , the disruption to my dd is worrying me a bit.

It looks like I will be abroad until end of year 6 for work now. Dc is now in year 5. Not quite sure how to manage the whole situation.
Most likely will move out of the U.K. this term and would like to come back to same prep in year 7 if they allow it.

Are there any girls/coed schools still sitting 13+ in year 8? I keep reading about a pretest in year 6 but we won't be in the U.K. everything is up in the air atm, I don't even know what school dd will go to abroad so having to sort out U.K. school applications plus think about year 6 pretests alongside foreign schools for right now is just too much for me!!

I think a year 8 test would allow dd to settle back in and then sit her exams.

You may be able to arrange for her to sit pretests overseas (they are usually online) or they may have alternative assessment routes for overseas candidates. Could you arrange to visit uk short-term to sit them? You need to ask prospective schools when you visit,

@LIZS thanks, it's the disruption for dd leaving school now then having to sit tests either at new school or having to come back to the U.K. that's the biggest problem. I am not sure I could easily come back and there's time zones to consider with that too. Especially as they'll miss out on this years prep and the distress of moving (which has already been expressed!)

Annoyingly I've already visited some schools and registered before the work proposal was put to me. I will ask them as well but wondered if I could save the bother and find a school which sits a later exam which would probably be a lot simpler, or at least find one as a back up plan if the above goes badly.

13+ has never been a big entry point for girls. I can't think of any girls day school which has a 13+ entry. If you're back in the UK for year 7 then I'd bring her back to sit the 11+ (or arrange to sit it overseas).

Hi there. A different situation to you but hopefully still relevant- we were living overseas from before my ds was born to when we unexpectedly moved back at end of his year 6. He is now at a prep school where he will stay until the end of year 8. He sat the ISEB pretests for a Year 9 place at 3 schools at the British Council in the city where we were living although there were several other private tuition centres that would also have facilitated. He was offered a place following that and a zoom interview and now just had to pass common entrance in Year 8 or the schools own scholarship papers if his prep school seems him scholarship material at end of year 7. It’s a very common situation and schools will be able to advise. Common entrance as a selection test is really dying out and mainly just used now to stop them slacking off and for setting purposes

Ps these were Co-Ed schools. However I also have a dd who is targeting 13+ places at a couple of girls’ schools and sitting ISEB or CATS remotely would have been fine with them as well.

13+ entry is becoming less common, I think.

her current prep should know which of your targets might accept at 13+

It is less common but some schools do have a 13+ entry. Although I admit it's not looking so easy to achieve what I'm hoping to.
Boarding schools are fine as well. In case that makes a difference!

I think if you are willing to include boarding schools (even if your dd would be day) then they will be set up to manage admissions from abroad.

ISEB is an online test which kids usually sit at their current school in yr6 or yr7, so can be done anywhere. I’m sure others are similar. Schools routinely do zoom / teams interviews for international students these days.

one of my colleagues moved back to the UK a while back and her dd did the admissions process for Headington school (we are Oxford based) from Canada - started in yr8 I think and did the tests etc remotely in yr7 rather than the ‘norm’ of yr6.

I would say you should be fine, although I would try and be a bit more flexible about the schools you apply for to have plenty of options.

If you're in London most of the day schools will have occasional places at y9 even if their main entry point is y7. There will always be families coming from and going abroad or girls leaving for boarding schools.

Thanks for the information. That's what I was hoping to hear that it may be a case of looking for schools that have places as well as thinking about options surrounding 13+/11+ issues.

We're not even abroad yet but I will have to get ringing the schools. Worried they'll tell me to hold on here for exams but I can't. Would be a massive pain to fly back to the U.K. for exams if most like moving in March this year.

I know it's easy for me to say, but don't let this be a point of stress. With the exception of the absolute top tier schools (whether by ability or current popularity), most schools have more places than they let on. They may offer all the places in Year 6/7 but some DC will hold multiple offers and only decide when it comes to paying the big deposit in Year 8, so places become available and waitlists move. A reasonably bright and well rounded DC will get a boarding place in Year 8 at a v good school, especially if you're flexible on location. There are only so many parents with that sort of money and the co-eds always need more girls.

Honestly, I was so stressed about DS as we were stuck in a country with closed borders (covid) so he had to do all his tests and interviews remotely and without ever having seen these schools/ been to any open days or taster days. The school he was at (international school) didn't do anything to support bar a reference. He'd done 2 years of mostly online learning during which his engagement was mediocre at best. He still got one firm offer for Year 9 from our preferred school and one waitlist (likely to move off that during year 7).

I would just drop an email to admissions, let them know where you're moving to and ask for advice on admissions process.

Rugby only pre-test in y7 for y9 entry so that would fit in with you i think?

Sevenoaks school (co-ed) have places for Y9 entry but along similar lines to a number of other public schools. The only state school I know thst still has Y9 entry is in Kent, Cranbrook grammar.

Sevenoaks tests in Year 7 not Year 6, so a bit later than some. I know Caterham has Year 8 tests for international students, but you might still need to be living overseas at the time, so maybe won't work if you're moving back first.

Thanks for the suggestions. Very helpful.

Several Co-ed 13+ boarding schools near us test in Year 8 - either school exam or common entrance rather than Year 6. Probably depends where you live and which schools you are considering.

@MrPickles73 we are in south east but will consider anywhere if we can make it work! If you could name the schools or pm them that would be very helpful thank you.

Loads of schools outside London do have 13plus entry without pretest. Scholarship entry is usually autumn term of year 8, and common entrance is spring term. Some schools have their own test and dates. Where do you want to move back to? Your prep school head should know about schools locally, but if you are happy for dd to board, there are loads of options like Downe House or Beneden, or co ed Blundell's and pretty much all co ed boarding schools in the South West. All these schools are fairly non-selective, but that's probably a good thing after all the disruption your dd's education. Just because a school is less selective it doesn't mean that their teaching and pastoral care is any worse, in fact it might be even better, as it is not very difficult getting stellar results if you filter out any less than brilliant pupil over a 2 year application process.

Have you looked at Dauntseys in Wiltshire? It has a 13+ entrance for boarders only.

Scholarship routes are often open at every school without pre registration and pre test, even at Radley, Eton, Winchester etc. Not that this is applicable as you have a dd. But it might be a route to entry if you have your heart set on a school that pretest for Common Entrance. Many schools will offer a normal place to a child that has missed scholarship level in the scholarship exam but has done well enough to warrant a place.

Benenden claim on their website that they assess in Y6 for Y9 entry.

Yes, Protector, Benenden now uses the Pretest, too. Sounds like they are worried to lose out, as most parents seem to choose school/accept conditional offers from other schools in year 6. So op has to move to the SouthWest or let dd board here. Noone I know around here has ever mentioned ISEB.
It's probably because most schools in the SW are all through schools with most pupils coming from their own nurseries. The boarding schools here are, among others, Blundell's (probably largest non-Devonian intake at 13), West Buckland, Mount Kelly, Wells Cathedral, Taunton School, Bruton Kings.

Downe House now also uses pretest and offers 13+ in Year 6 ( ie at same time as 11+).

FWIW I’ve seen a number of parents at our coed North London prep deliberately delaying their DD leaving for secondary at 11 to 13. Their advice was to do the London Consortium test or whatever 11+ procedure is required and then you have them ready for picking up a 13 + place which definitely will come up. We are currently swinging through a phase of boys leaving at 11 as places like UCS drop 13+ entry. I wonder if we might see the girls start to fill those spots as parents consider the value of holding off moving them.