Entering British school system after moving from abroad

[Galmik]

I am looking for some advice from anyone with suggestions or similar experience. We have been living abroad for a long time, and my daughter is currently in 6th grade (born in December 2013). We are planing to move back to UK in a few years (we are citizens). One option is to wait for her to finish "middle school" here (8th grade). I assume that in that case she would start 9th grade in the UK. Alternatively, we can move in two years time, after she finishes 7th grade here. In that case we can perhaps consider having her start from 7th grade in the UK. I think that might make the transfer easier on her, even though she would not be with her cohort. For work related reasons we cannot move before she finishes 7th grade. So I guess my questions is: Should she just start from grade 9 with her cohort, or should we consider moving earlier and have her start from grade 7, effectively loosing a year? How hard would be it to adapt if she starts at grade 9?

Her English is good, even though not native level: she might have a bit difficulty with English subject, but I am sure that other subjects would be fine.

Also, another thing to keep in mind is that since we will not have an address in UK until about 2-3 months before our arrival, we will not be able to apply to middle schools 11 months ahead. We are not considering private schools.

OK, so I would advise moving then (rather than a year later).

Personally I think it’s fine to move so she starts in Y9. It’s still a normal entry point for many private senior schools, and she will likely adjust just fine. Yes, the language may hold her back a bit at first, but I expect she will be fully fluent within a few weeks. The only thing (as others point out) is finding a school place. But if you’re renting and flexible on location and can move within easy commuting distance of where there’s space, you may be okay. Can’t worry too much about what you can’t control in the future. It’ll be a big change for her and might be even harder if she moves for Y8 knowing all of her old friends are still together. It’s not just academics, adapting emotionally to the change is important too.

I think ideally September Y9 would be latest I'd be aiming for.

https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/residents/children-and-families/schools-learning/apply-for-a-school-place/in-year-admissions

They have information for in-year application even from abroad they say you can apply 30 days before start date - and they seem to keep a list of spaces in schools.

This doesn’t apply to people moving from abroad

Move now. My friends from Turkey said it took 2 years minimum for their children to be able to exceed in English and their kids are extremely clever and were studying in English language schools (they both got admitted to superselective grammars). They took Kumon and did extra homework from year 3 (age 7-8). I would be incredibly worried by her starting in secondary but would want her to be settled by the time her GCSE options are chosen (year 9, age 13-14)

Cambridge schools are tricky.

If you are looking to go private then year 9 is a standard entry point but entrance is competitive (exam and interview).

There are a number of private schools in Cambridge - more for girls than boys.
St Mary's. https://www.stmaryscambridge.co.uk/?gadsource=1&gbraid=0AAAAADMCkvIC62Zp4x1UsuEPcN1d9Qgh1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMImOqcoe7JiAMV9JlQBh2bNhIpEAAYASAAEgJc9vDD_BwE

What was the Perse girls (but I think is now called the Stephen perse foundation)

https://www.stephenperse.com/opendays?gadsource=1&gbraid=0AAAAADIIlBdPj3nq-u44qbOXQ5SIx7bQW&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7aedu-7JiAMV9ZlQBh3JuhrSEAAYASAAEgJebfDBwE

There are others - I believe Perse boys is no co-Ed but still feels like a boys school.

If you are looking at state then again there is a shortage of state school places in Cambridge.

Many people choose to live just outside Cambridge and attend one of the village colleges such as Sawston or Comberton.

sawstonvc.org

www.combertonvc.org

Schools in the city itself vary massively. Impington and park side are known for being fairly international (mostly visiting academics) while others are less so.

However if you are looking for entry in year 9 this is not a normal entry point for state schools. It is quite possible the desirable schools will be full and you'll have to take what you are given.

There is a very similar thread from a couple of years ago, on here. She wasn't allowed to secure a school place until she physically moved to the UK and submitted an address she ended up moving here, and her child got their 4th preferred place. It was much further away, but it all worked out just fine.

I would definitely do it then. School will finish then for the summer, so she can start year 9 in the September.

If she's entered the UK system and done GCSE's, good universities will want her to have at least a grade 5/6 for English language and all the other essay based subjects have spelling and grammar marks, she'll be competing among native born English speakers, so the more time she has to practice her skills.

They also choose GCSEs mid-way through year 9 and often start them in the final term. She may have less choice, if you leave it later.

They do keep a list. But so many of the schools are oversubscribed that it's not easy to find a place.

If you’re applying from another country, contact the local council in the area where you’re going to live.
You may need to:
supply proof of your new address, for example a mortgage or rental agreement or deeds for the property
prove that you’ll live in the area before the start of the next school term
Gov.uk

It normally takes 5 years for EAL pupils to develop English to match their academic ability.

We moved away from England in December when DS was in year 6. So after six years and a term in the same school, mostly same classmates/friends, we left two terms before 'graduating' with his friends from primary school.
He missed out on some things that are usually done after Y6 SATS (end of primary national tests). Such as leavers' ball, school play, special assembly, special awards. 'Yearbook' type photo album, leavers' hoodies, Y6 residential trip. That did feel kind of a shame, after all that time in this school, then leaving just before the finish line.

OTOH he also avoided half a year of SATS prep - as we gathered from friends, most of that final year of primary school was 'teaching to the test' and everything was about optimising the school's exam results. Not the same at all schools, but definitely the case in this one, that Y6 was quite a wasted year, with no new learning, just tons of test preparation. We weren't sorry to have missed this!

By the time DS' mates were starting their new schools, DS was already well settled in his new school.
Over all, I don't think it was wrong to leave his primary school a little earlier than the rest of his cohort. It would have just delayed the inevitable - and he missed out on some fun stuff, sure, but also he avoided some less positive stuff.

In a new country, with school in a language he is confident in but is not his first language:
It has always been, and continues to be, completely sufficient for him to be able to do really well in all school subjects except the local language/literature. As eg written answers in a history test aren't marked down for spelling or grammar mistakes. In language/literature he can get great grades at times, but even four years later he can work as hard as he likes, he simply cannot get to the same level as the equally able (as judged by other subjects) native speakers.
He can do at least as well as not-so-able native speakers, just not as well as the 'top stream'.
Socially, it took him about a year for his words to come out at the necessary speed (before conversations moved on etc) and in that time he struggled a bit and was a bit isolated. It helped to be in 1-1 situations; in groups, things tended to move too fast for him to join in properly.

So from my perspective:

• don't worry too much about 'graduating' with the cohort at your current school
• your child's English sounds perfectly good enough to be able to keep up with school subjects
• it does take a little while to settle in with a new language, new school system, new friends, so having some time before work on important exams begins, would be valuable
• your child will most likely be at a disadvantage compared to native speakers in English language/ English literature GCSEs, but moving a year earlier or later will make little difference to this, it won't turn her into a native speaker! Nevertheless, with effort, she can get decent grades, though she may have to work harder for them.

Another thought: Certainly not all schools are like this, but I've read on MN of kids joining English secondary schools from abroad, and as they have no (English) 'record' of ability, they get put into whatever ability group that has space, or into the lowest ability group by default. This is certainly not good practice but has popped up on here every now and again as something new incomers have experienced. So your child might need some time in her new school to work her way up the ability groupings. (It is important to understand that lower ability groups are often not taught the full curriculum needed for top grades, but rather, only what is needed for a pass grade; so if you have an able child, you don't want her to be stuck in the lower ability classes).

As PP said, move as early as is feasible, and work on her English in the meantime. Is her academic vocabulary/writing behind? Perhaps have a tutor work with her, you have two years to do this. I find the Cambridge International Lower Secondary textbooks and workbooks helpful and reasonably close to what is taught in English schools.

Cambridge is an expensive place to live. I recommend trying to find a school you like the look of which is likely to have places, and living there. Housing is at a real shortage in Cambridge though. Can you get some local advice?

I wasn't trying to imply there wasn't a shortage of places.

Years ago we faced this DH working in a city with a massive school place shortage and high house prices. It was talking to LEA, people there and looking at figures it was clear it was very real possibility we'd be given 3 different primary schools places - and face trying to be in three places at once for pick up and drop off - a lot of people round us insisted it was scaremongering because areas they lived didn't have this issue.

So we looked further away - factoring in DH commute - which put us in under Welsh education and NHS and in a city that frequently slated on here - I have gripes but overall it was a positive move for our kids and us.