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Further education

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Original poster

Dance sixth form options

62 replies

OhMyDarling · 19/11/2019 09:45

Hi my daughter’s best friend is a fantastic dancer. She is in y10. Her parents aren’t the most proactive and have said if she wants to pursue dance after GCSEs, then she needs to be exploring all her options herself.
She hasn’t got a clue where to start and had a bit of a cry last night when she was here and asked me to help her look.

So Mumsnetters, help me out, where do I start??

This needs to be a free place or somewhere that doesn’t involve fees being paid buy her parents as they aren’t well off.

Areas she lives near: south London, can get to places in and around Surrey or London.

OP posts:
AlexaShutUp · 19/11/2019 09:50

Our local sixth form colleges all offer dance options, not sure if that's the kind of thing that you had in mind? DD has no intention to pursue dance as a career but she went for a taster day because she loves dancing and thought it would be fun! Think she was very sorely tempted after that...

Seeline · 19/11/2019 09:51

BRIT school in Croydon is were all the DCs at DDs dance school go.

Original poster
OhMyDarling · 19/11/2019 10:11

My first thought was BRIT but she knows older students that have dropped out and so wants to avoid.
She wants somewhere that isn’t a sixth form.
But isn’t live-in or feed paying.

It’s not my world so I am limited on knowledge of dancey stuff!

OP posts:
Original poster
OhMyDarling · 19/11/2019 10:11

Obvs I meant fee paying!!

OP posts:
AlexaShutUp · 19/11/2019 10:13

If she wants somewhere that isn't fee paying, I would assume that the only real options are the state funded FE colleges.

Seeline · 19/11/2019 11:06

I haven't heard of any that DD has known drop out of BRIT school. They all love it.

See if you can persuade her to have a look, and at least then she can ask questions about drop out rates etc.

Original poster
OhMyDarling · 19/11/2019 21:38

She knows of 3 that dropped out. So BRIT isn’t an option for her.
Moving on...

OP posts:
Loopytiles · 19/11/2019 21:41

So she’s dismissing an option because of anecdotal evidence.

There’s a knowledgeable poster on here with a dancing DD, the poster is Katie something?

OnGoldenPond · 19/11/2019 21:42

I'd second BRIT School. DD loved it and has gone on to gain a place in one of the top drama schools as have many of her contemporaries. She also knows people on the Dance strand who got into top dance colleges.

It is the only state school offering top quality performance training and has a great reputation. Competition is stiff to get in and students are fantastically talented.

They have their open evening tomorrow, why doesn't she go along and find out for herself?

Original poster
OhMyDarling · 20/11/2019 01:52

She doesn’t want to go there.
The evening tomorrow is for chn looking to attend from age 14 I believe. She has attended events there through her school and a dancing day or something.
She doesn’t want to go there/ I’m not being difficult, she doesn’t want to go there!!!
How is that challenging to understand??

Plus I’d say she is basing her evidence on personal experiences of people she knows- not mere anecdotes. I haven’t outlined these reasons on here for not wanting to discourage others or blight the school, however I felt they were very justified reasons for her not wanting to go there.

There is more to selecting a school based on anecdotes of students going on to bigger and better performance related things too- but it’s different because you are stating them- right??
They have to go there everyday for 2 years. There is more than simply “anecdotes” of some successes to consider. She wants to be somewhere she will be happy, for the reasons she has explained to me she doesn’t feel this will happen there.

Not really sure why I have to justify her opinion a thousand times??

So moving on from BRIT, any other ideas???!

OP posts:
OnGoldenPond · 20/11/2019 06:22

No need to be offensive to those trying to help you. We really don't have to give up our time to answer your questions you know, we all have plenty to be getting on with you know.

I, and several other posters, are relating personal experience of being parents of actual students at BRIT who see at first hand what goes on there. Not just random anecdotes about friends of friends. But what do we know hey?

Anyway, she's discounted the only free option to study performance at a high level. Not much anyone else can suggest as the stark fact is there ain't much else out there so she will probably have to make the best of whatever local FE colleges offer. A shame but her choice.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 20/11/2019 06:31

As far as I understand it that is the non fee paying alternative open to her though and it's in her area. I don't think people are being difficult but saying that there isn't another one. I don't know anyone who dropped out or whose parents were unhappy.

The alternative is local colleges which are presumably coming into open day season very soon. Can you take her to these as her parents are showing so little interest?

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 20/11/2019 06:34

Oh and will her current dance teacher talk to you about which colleges she likes and which less so? That might be helpful

PrettyPurse · 20/11/2019 06:39

So BRIT isn’t an option for her. Moving on...

How is that challenging to understand??

Not really sure why I have to justify her opinion a thousand times??

Good grief. Dread to think how you respond to be people who aren't trying to help you Hmm

Whynotnowbaby · 20/11/2019 06:44

Dance schools are usually fee paying although scholarships may be available for the best dancers so she could look into that. FE college dance programmes will be of variable quality, she needs to visit and also look at destinations statistics for those courses. Of course it is entirely up to her if she won’t countenance the BRIT school but that means she has basically discounted the best option. Having such a good provider available may also have a knock on impact on the quality of students at the FE colleges.

OnGoldenPond · 20/11/2019 06:53

Bursaries at fee paying schools will involve extensive cooperation from parents in chasing these down, providing financial information and being interviewed. From what OP says no way would parents bother with this.

Original poster
OhMyDarling · 20/11/2019 07:01

@OnGoldenPond
@PrettyPurse

She doesn’t want to go to BRIT.
Thank you for suggesting it and passing on a anecdotes about friends of friends doing well there, but she categorically does not have any interest in going there. At all.

She knows 3 people, “not friends of friends”, who dropped out for reasons I find totally valid.

This is the fourth time I have stated this.
She doesn’t want to go to BRIT.

OP posts:
LIZS · 20/11/2019 07:06

What do her dance teachers suggest? It is likely they have sent pupils to similar courses to BRIT etc. What style of dance may influence choice too ie. Specialist ballet school, or more dance disciplines, drama and musical theatre too? How academic is she and where in the country? Would she board? Plenty of sixth forms offer btec Dance without being a vocational college so that may be worth exploring as a back up.

sashh · 20/11/2019 07:08

Have a look at FE colleges, a BTEC in a performance subject might suit her. I don't think they do a dance only option but the definately do performing arts.

Do have a look at the private options as there can be some funding / bursaries.

Original poster
OhMyDarling · 20/11/2019 07:18

She’s pretty good across the board, says she likes humanities partic citizenship and geog, says art is her second fav subject after dance.

She does everything- I wrote it all down:
Ballet, tap, modern, national, contemporary, jazz, hip hop, street, musical theatre (but doesn’t really like acting).
Not sure is Eng Ballet Sch would be for her- and looks expensive. Her parents are supportive but maybe are just trying to be realistic in terms of career options. I do get that. But 14 yr olds usually can’t organise clothes on their bedroom floor, let alone investigate sixth form choices totally by themselves. They say she needs to learn to be independent- out of the frying pan into the fire type thing.
Oh and she does some kind of ballet week in London in the summer every year though. I think she’s an absolutely fabulous dancer- watching her makes me cry and she isn’t even mine!

I think what I’m looking for is advice from a dance teacher if there are any out there??
Is BTEC better than A LEVEL? I assume there is an A LEVEL dance option??

OP posts:
daisypond · 20/11/2019 07:24

What sort of dance? This really matters. Many full-time dance courses start at age 16, if you haven’t been to a full-time dance school before then. Some full-time dance schools have government funded or subsidised places. At 16 there are more options - degrees in dance start at age 16 and last three years. You can get a student loan for these. Eg, Central School of Ballet in London. But it’s very competitive to get in. Most student dancers have to live away from home to access the training they need.

Fifthtimelucky · 20/11/2019 07:25

There is a dance A level.

But best option is to google DaDA (dance and drama awards). They are available at 16 for dance students at a range of independent schools and colleges. I can't remember if the English Ballet School is one of them but I think it might be

If she's most into ballet, google Royal Ballet School. Financial support Is available there through the Music And Dance Scheme.

Both DaDA and MDS are obviously very competitive, but worth investigating.

daisypond · 20/11/2019 07:31

BTEC and A level dance will not help you be a professional dancer. Don’t bother with these. You need a full time dance school or performing arts school. For advice, look on balletcoforum or notapushymum.

OnGoldenPond · 20/11/2019 07:33

No, my experience is not of "friends of friends " but my ACTUAL DD and I have direct experience of dealing with the school as a parent. DD has actual, long term experience of the school and is close friends with many people who have been at the school in all the strands. But what do we know eh?

You are so rude that frankly you don't deserve any replies but I persisted because there is a young person involved here who has no idea how little high level performance training is available in this country and could lose her chance of a career by discounting the best option available to her.

However I'm sadly wasting my time clearly.

LIZS · 20/11/2019 07:35

I would tend to agree with parents. If she is that driven she can start to narrow down her options, by talking to her teachers ( where did they train, do they have history of sending pupils to such places, what type of school might suit her, what prep would she need to do for auditions etc), others a few years older who attend courses, the internet and sources of funding. Her parents need to set her parameters such as budget, what limits they may place on day/boarding, travel. She also needs to consider what happens if she does not make it (there are lots of good dancers but it is a very competitive world) or gets injured, and have some qualifications to fall back on.

There are plenty of options out there but until she decides whether to go down a purely vocational route at 16 or a school with pa specialists it is tricky to suggest specific choices. .