Thread 47- Covid GCSE Cohort - Summer's running away from us!

[OrangeCinnamonLatte]

...it will be Christmas before we know it.

This is a support thread for our young adults post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting, and their results ( or life updates for those who went into work or have had results earlier). It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, uni vs employment please don't within this thread.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue. We were previously on the secondary board and then further education, now we shall be here in 'Parents of Adult Children' gulp

Our DS/DD may continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed). Experience is that everyone is welcomed wherever, whatever their child is doing we have some in work, gap years , apprenticeships etc too. Lots of contributors with different experiences and always sympathy and advice to be had.
Previous thread https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/parents_of_adult_children/4792342-thread-46-gcse-covid-cohort-searching-for-summer-solstice

@Comefromaway , where did that thread go about campus unis and music??

Oh, don't worry. Found it!

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/higher_education/4861067-friendly-feel-campus-universities?page=3&reply=128072190

😆

Thanks for all the replies about Birmingham, I knew we would have the knowledge here ❤️

DD asked me to check over her standing order arrangement for next year's rent, for some reason the management company is asking for the year's payments split over 10 months rather than 12. Fortunately her "buffer" due to summer earnings allows that higher amount before the first loan payment arrives. Has anyone else encountered this? Could catch some people unawares.

She is now on a web-app to handle maintenance requests, etc, and can see that the 6-room house is 50-50 split between men and women, which has reassured her a bit.

(In other news, DS is completely outclassed at the Worlds! But he's having a lot of fun, and the tent he's sharing with DW even survived two nights of 50mph gales, thanks to reinforcing by tying to a fence and weighting down with rocks... Tomorrow he has his first ever long-distance race, over an hour on the water. Fingers crossed.)

DD is still waiting on results from yr1 exams - they have passed the deadline for notifiying they need to do resits so not sure how it will be managed 🤔
DS is having the time of his life in Korea - unfortunately the UK organisers have made the decision to pull them all out due to "organisational issues" 😞He will be gutted. Having spent 18 months preparing for the trip, DS will be gutted...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-66407392

Oh that’s not great handmade, here’s hoping your DD gets to hear definitely all’s good to go for Y2. Is your son being pulled out for sure or just temporary due to the temp conditions? I can imagine how gutted he is feeling.

@handmademitlove Sorry to hear about the Scouts. DS has a second cousin on that trip. What a shame for all the young people.

DS has only 1 of 5 modules back from the end of years exams. I'm still thinking they are going to be nodded through as these results do not impact final degree class.

@ealingwestmum the whole UK contingent (4,500 people) is being pulled out and moved to Seoul to hotels. I feel for those on the ground but my DS says it is the right decision to make in the circumstances. While his group is okay not all are.

I'm sorry to hear about the WSJ @handmademitlove . DS and I are not involved with Scouts any more but I was on the exec. committee of ours at the time of the last WSJ and a couple of the local Explorers went and made a slideshow of it for us all, I remember how hard they worked at fundraising and what an experience it was.

Oh that’s such a shame about the WSJ (one of DD’s second cousins is out there). Easy to downplay it, but look at that photo of the camp, no shade at all. It’s not until you camp in serious heat that I think you realise the bandwidth for comfortable camping is actually very narrow, hot can be worse than cold.

Sorry to hear about that @handmademitlove. Your DS must be gutted. Hope your DD gets clarity on results soon too.

Hope the Nottingham resitters are doing ok.

DS is getting himself organised for next year, done a few practical things such as sort doctors, dentists etc. Got his first session with student support on Monday so can hopefully put a plan in place.

In other news DS has managed to get a few weeks work. Starting in a week, it will be very long hours but pay at minimum rate of £15.50ph plus enhanced overtime rates so will earn a fortune over a few weeks. It’s ideal timing to give him a focus as his girlfriend is going back to a job at uni on the same weekend. Same job as he did last year but didn’t think there would be a chance for it locally this year and the timing is a bonus as there’s no way he could have done it earlier this summer.

Ah, sorry to hear about the scout camp @handmademitlove that must be gutting.

Fingers crossed those still waiting for results just get to progress. Dd is away at a festival and will be back Monday, a week before her exams. She's not done any revision yet... She's also booked to do 4 morning shifts at work next week. I hope she knows what she's doing. She's mainly been obsessing about getting a car. She's planning to share it with ds and they've both just about got the money so we're going to get it tomorrow I think. A Kia Picanto 2013. Hope it's a decent one. I find buying second hand cars so stressful!

Glad ds is getting sorted @283nouveauxnoms and has some work.

Ds narrowly missed out on a place to wsj and I was feeling sorry for him, but he would have truly hated the heat. I hope your dd is ok. Although not at the camp, I guess air conditioning in hotels is preferable?

@NCTDN Ds is absolutely fine. He is a patrol leader so I am sure is putting a positive spin on things for the benefit of the rest of the group. My younger DD also applied but didn't get a place and we are now quite glad. Her autism means she wouldn't manage well with the many changes and she doesn't know when she is hot/cold/ thirsty which would be a nightmare for the leaders in the conditions they are in! She would be the one sat in the sun with a hoodie on in 35° heat 😯

Oh wow, I've just been reading about the WSJ. Sounds like pretty horrible conditions, must have been a tough call to make. That's sad for the kids.

DS' competition finished early due to gale-force winds. He's had an absolute blast, racing in extremely challenging conditions all week, and the pour soul is now completely exhausted. (He ended up near the bottom of the points table, which has at least helped him with his plans for the future!) They'll make their way home over the next few days, including a minor detour to visit Mont St.-Michel which I vaguely remember from a school trip.

DD and I have colds, so it's nice that we can spend the weekend just pottering (and getting the house straight).

@handmademitlove ah what a shame for your DS and all the scouts. It sounds like it was a sensible decision to make but so disappointing for them.

Well done to your DS @PhotoDad, the only way is up from here! 💨🏄‍♂️

@PhotoDad glad he had the chance to go and you are probably right about the decisions made - if he had done really well it may have been a tough rethink!

Anyone had any experience with Huddle bill sharing? One of DS’s housemates has suggested it. The benefit is that it’s split liability so they can’t be held liable for other’s share. But they are not sure if it is unlimited utilities or not. It’s £23.50 per week each (not Sure if that includes water at £3.83).

Any experiences would be welcome.

Sorry not to have been around in recent months.
I can't quite believe that a year has already passed (nearly) since A level results day; so much has happened since then for all our DCs.

Sorry to read of the various difficulties and setbacks some (and parents) have had/are having to deal with - sending positive thoughts and get well wishes to anyone struggling.

D D didn't have exams, only assessments, and was very pleased to finish year 1 with a 2:1.
She's really enjoying her course but finding the English part more challenging than the film, mostly because of her difficulty in getting her thoughts into words in a structured, coherent way. I get the feeling her tutors find it frustrating, as they can see she has some interesting ideas and views but they are lost in her muddled writing.
Hopefully, she'll improve now she has DSA in place and feels more confident to ask for help.

She's moved into a house of 7 in Selly Oak, but is regretting rushing into deciding sharing arrangements so early in the first semester, as her close group of 4 now doesn't get on with the other group of 3. ( I am biting my lip not to say, " I told you so"...)

DS has a fantastic first year at his new school as a boarder. He's thriving musically and doing well academically (but I think he could do better, if he was at home under our gaze) and enjoys life as a boarder.
We had the incredibly special experience of going to the Royal Albert Hall at the weekend to watch him play in the BBC Proms - a night I will treasure for a very long time.

I still miss having both DCs living at home, but it's lovely to see them finding their place in the world.

That’s a lovely update on both Piccolo. And very well done to your DS for bbc proms, the RAH is truly a performance venue that’s hard to beat 👏

I am in the throes of creative work mode ahead of my annual 2 weekends of open my doors to all as part of a 200+ artists sponsored by council. Think all the nature/bird photographers on this thread would do very well :)

DD is on her final round of holidays x 3 (I know, I can’t believe I’m writing this vs my couple of weekend breaks) but very much looking forward to returning for Y2. She is awaiting referral and cracking on with life in the mean time.

Hi everyone! @Alsoplayspiccolo lovely update esp about DS in RAH. What an amazing experience. I still remember some of my early amazing musical experiences - not so impressive - like singing in St George’s chapel etc - it never leaves you 💕. Well done your DD it sounds like she is really getting there and a 2.1 is a fab result.
@ealingwestmum open house sounds nerve wracking and brave! Hope it is a great success.
I have an empty house apart from DH 😱. Just returned from a fab fortnight abroad with all 4 kids plus an extra or two, but now dd has returned to london life and work, ds1 to london internship which is going so well, ds2 island hopping with girlfriend before returning to start uni in mid sept, dd4 in Spain for a fortnight for an intensive Spanish homestay. 46C at the moment 😱😱😱😱
I’m back at work and otherwise DH and I are rattling around with an unusually sparse fridge…

@handmademitlove so disappointing about the scouts but it sounds like the Uk made the correct, early decision to pull out. Hope all is well.