Unfair towards private school kids

[Angelkid]

Hello everyone,
I have seen an advertisement about national youth choir north east 2024. I am shocked to find out that they only admit state schools and home schooled kids. I am wondering if it is even legal. It is a clear discrimination case.
We have already experienced about music competitions/festivals are biased towards state schools. Judges don't have impartiality and blindly towards state schools.
Why aren't not judged by its own merits nowadays.
Very frustrated.

Also who's measure of merit is it being judged by...the parents who have spent £££ on singing, music and dancing lessons so will refuse to acknowledge that a less privileged child could ever compare. Maybe the judges can see the raw talent some of these children have- not all children are going to have natural talent no matter how much you money you invest

@Nomaj I have cricket-mad boys who attend these sessions (& yes have heard grumbling from private school parents when they realised one of the coaches is a well regarded county player). The kids at private school are playing hardball by 9 and then the good ones on cricket programmes are getting 5+ hours a week high level technical training vs the state school kids having a 1 or 2 hour group session from a parent coach. Hard to compete and these type of initiative as a start in the battle for equity.

Oh my actual life, this is extraordinary.

I have never been more proud of the national youth choir 👍.

Good luck and all the best to your child at their posh competitions and in their wonderfully privileged life generally.

Giving state school children opportunities is "woke" 😂 I've heard it all now. Time to shut down the internet, it's over folks.

Oh my poor son. It's so unfair! He won't get a contextual offer from uni because he goes to a good comprehensive. He'll have to get higher grades instead of being judged on his own merit. He can't go to any of the SuttonTrust events, even though he wants to and they'd be so good for him, because his parents went to university. He'll have to do it all on his own merit, while those kids who are the first in their families to go to university will have so much help. It's so unfair!

Have I got it right, OP?

Embarrassing yourself op

You could remove your child from private school and put them in a state school and they too will be able to jump on the gravy train of privilege all these state school kids are on!

Write to the United Nations. I'm sure they'll back you up.

It's called a widening access weekend. Often the criteria excludes many state school kids too as you will need to meet certain criteria. My dd did a widening access weekend at Cambridge University which was amazing, she felt a fraud because everyone else there was free school meals/care leavers/first in family to university etc and she was only in because her school was in special measures.

First World problems 😂

Wait op until you start to hear about contextual offers for university - my DD got in on lower grades because her school was so bad!

The hate here.

Shocking

Oh my goodness. What an outstandingly dense OP.

Imagine what she thinks about the little children getting all that free food in Africa.

**

My Children have both been at private schools from reception.

The facilities, preparation + events they have available to them are spectacular. In no way are they being ‘disadvantaged’ by not having access to every single music competition.

I love them more than anything on earth - but I am not deluded that their lovely manners + academic credentials aren’t, in huge part, due to their extraordinarily privileged academic environment. It is appropriate that admissions to competitions / further education, especially state funded universities, take that privileged into account.

OP, I am clearly on your team in some ways - I am privately educating my children - but goodness me… Have a cup of tea. Breathe in the clean, safe air that we are fortunate to breathe. Get some bl**dy perspective!

🤣🤣🤣

You have absolutely no idea about the massive contrast in opportunity that kids have in state verses private schools do you? Just ask your child to join the school choir and leave the other poor kids well alone.

My point is things should be only judged by its own merit, nothing else.

But opportunities aren't available due to merit. Many are available due to parental wealth.

So you want access to the advantages bought by your money and the outcome you've then essentially paid for. Without acknowledging that children who haven't had the financial advantages of yours may be just as capable or more capable naturally than your children, they just haven't had the opportunity to thrive as much and maximise their talents because they don't have the money they have. So it's not based on merit really. It's based on how much their parents have invested money in it.

You want things judged by its own merit, nothing else, but your children are to an extent buying that merit. Do you really, honestly begrudge less fortunate children being given some equity in that situation? I think that attitude is a complete disservice to your children as it is such a privileged and selfish approach to life.

Don't you want them to turn into well rounded, fair minded individuals rather than adults who believe it's right and fair to buy access to opportunities?

You are talking absolute bollocks @Angelkid - hope that helps.

What hate?

Eeeep stop! It's embarrassing. You poor love.

Pmsl laughing at your post, as I came on to ask what she thought about my little girl getting free breakfasts as we live in the most deprived part of Liverpool. If we get up really early and get her to school 45 mins before it opens, then the local greggs bakery will provide her with a pastry, piece of fruit and a drink EVERY SINGLE SCHOOL DAY. The absolute fucking horror of us peasants getting free food and singing places because we can’t afford it

I agree.

It’s absolutely dreadful that children who aren’t blessed with monetary advantage are being so preferentially treated.

Someone should inform the King.

I can't get too engaged about this but what about children in private school on financial aid/bursary? (presume this is a thing in the UK) Is everyone happy for them to be excluded too? Have their places taken by children from very wealthy areas/schools who are getting coaching/training etc.?

They'll get music opportunities at school.

Personally I'm ok with this scheme being state school only.