JAGS or City of London Girls?

[diadiadia]

Hello,

I would like to know which school is better? JAGS or City of London Girls? And do they have entry for 9+?

Thank you x

You need to ask the admissions dept, it depends how many dd have left / given notice.

@tennissquare ok, I will ask! Do you know these schools? Any experience or idea which one is better?

They're very different schools.

Depends entirely on the child and their interests, strengths, personality.

What did you and your DD think when you looked round them both?

I work in education, they are both good, city of London prep is going through a change as from Sept 22 it's a joint prep with the boys in year 3 so in sept 2023 the year 4 group will be mixed and Sept 2025 it will be year 5.

It depends where you work/ live, which has space and which offers to your dd,

@OhCrumbsWhereNow why they are different? Academic results are similar? Do you mean the location? I didnt visit the schools yet. I just searched in the Good School Guide x

City school is in the Barbican in the centre of the city of London surrounded by office blocks - limited grass. JAGS is in Dulwich, an area in SE London which has good transport links if you work in the city.

You need to find out if they have space before doing anything else, a place in Year 5 is dependent on another child leaving.

Both are for academically minded girls, but I wouldn't say one is 'better' than the other. One might be better for your DD but you won't know that till you go and look at them and get a feel for it.

One is right in the centre of the City on a housing estate with no green space. One is on the outskirts of London and much greener.

You also need to factor in things like how you will get there. They're in completely different geographic areas.

I looked at 5 primaries for my DD and over 12 secondaries. Once I'd looked round it was obvious which ones were the right ones and which were the 'not if it was the last school on earth'. Yet loads of parents and children would hate my picks and love my rejects, and if I'd just gone on what I could find in terms of statistics and reports online I'd have had a very different list.

I know girls at both schools - all seem very happy with their choice.

Do you even know if either has a place? 9+ is not a normal point of entry.

Btw, you say you don't want a pushy school for your DD in another thread.

JAGS and City are two of the most academic and highly fought for schools in Britain.

@OhCrumbsWhereNow hi, this tread is for my older daughter - I mentioned above that it is for 9+ application. We will apply 7+ for my DD2 in 2024 but I want her to stay local for now as she is too young. And also I heard that when you join JAGS before 7+ you can not move to senior automatically is that right?

@OhCrumbsWhereNow but I believe if my DD1 join JAGS in 9+ - she doesnt need to take 11+ assesment to move JAGS senior? Maybe I am wrong, I couldn’t find any info for this actually but one od my friend told me that its like that x

As far as I am aware all the prep school kids have to sit the same 11+ exam for the senior school at JAGS

That is possible - 9 is an unusual entry point.

Have your daughter's been prepped for London selective school exams?

@OhCrumbsWhereNow oh no.. whats the point to move her in year 5 than:/

Because you like the school and would like your child to be educated there?

Maybe I have misunderstood the question?

These schools have no shortage of applicants - applying in Y5 would be because you want your child to benefit from the place (should they have one available and should your child pass the entrance exams).

I would assume that the scores needed to be accepted in Y5 would probably be similar to those needed for the 11+ in Y6

@OhCrumbsWhereNow yea she is bright, self motivated girl who wants to go to best school. She loves learning, reading, sport and science.. I believe if she sit on the exam she will pass it because in Atom learning she competed her year topcs and started working on 1 year above topics and her scores are about 125. Reading, Atom learning and practising with books her daily routine, she loves it.

But @diadiadia , you don't seem to understand that for a place in year 5 (if there is 1) your dd is competing against the other dd sitting the exam for 1 or 2 places, she may be up against a dd with grade 8 piano etc or the dd of a new teacher who has just joined the school ( which I've seen happen), it's up to the admissions person who they give the place to. 11plus is a much clearer process.

@OhCrumbsWhereNow Jags is on the border of zones 2/3 its not the outskirts of London.

@diadiadia City Prep is now co-ed and doesn't come with a guaranteed place in the senior girls school. Technically JAGs usually automatic entry into the senior school but historically if they didn't think it was the right school for a girl, she'd be encouraged to leave. This might be different under the new head.

The schools are both academic but have different facilities and will suit different children for different reasons. Neither is 'best' and no one can really advise you on which might be a better fit without know what you are looking for in a school and what specific things are important to your DD.

@MusicMum80s "City Prep is now co-ed and doesn't come with a guaranteed place in the senior girls school."

Don't think this is correct, city junior runs a very similar policy as Jags on transfer to senior schools.

https://cityjuniorschool.org.uk/admissions/

"We expect pupils who join us at Year 3 will transfer to the relevant senior school in Year 7 to continue their education. Both City of London School for Girls (CLSG) and City of London School (CLS) have plans to increase the size of their intake at Year 7, so the intake of children from City Junior School does not reduce the number of spaces available at 11+.

Our pupils do not sit competitive 11+ exams for the senior schools. This allows our Year 5 and 6 curricula to be broad in its scope, and teachers are able to focus more on study skills and learning dispositions, allowing the children to start Year 7 confident, relaxed and ready for their next challenge. Assessments, both summative and formative, are carried out regularly by the teachers so we have a very clear sense of how each child is progressing ".

Unless it has changed recently, JAGS has automatic transfer for their Prep pupils.
I have not known anyone to be managed out in the past 5 years or more but if your DD gets a chance vacancy place in y5/6 then she will definitely be fine.
Schools that I know that do manage out tend to do so in y5-ish so the pupils are still within the application window for other schools.