Please can you tell me about Latymer Prep and St Benedicts?

[BananaCake123]

I was just wondering whether anyone can share their views \ knowledge on these schools as we are considering them for DD (7+). If you have children, or know anything about these schools then please could you help me to make a more informed decision. I will of course be visiting both schools but would love to hear from other parents who might know something about the schools.

Generally speaking, I like the idea of co-ed for dd - she is very sociable and loves being around boys but at the same time I am worried about whether co-ed at this stage would be a good move from an academic point of view. Or is this more of a concern at secondary level?

Also, can anyone tell me what they feel are the strengths and weaknesses of these schools? What is the current girl\boy split? Are they still very much boys' schools that have a few girls in them or are they wholeheartedly co-ed? I wouldn't want dd to be in a class where he friendship opportunities were limited by only having a few other girls in the class. What is the pastoral care like? Is the music any good? (DD quite musical). Does it matter that DD is not great at sport atm? Are either of these schools good at bringing the best out of child? Can anyone comment on the standard of SEN provision (dyslexia)? Is it ultra competitive for a girl to get into either school? Any tips on what they are looking for in particular?

Re Latymer Prep: how effective is the prep at getting DCs into the upper school? I.e. do most go on to LU or do lots go elsewhere and if so, why?

So sorry for all the questions but I do not know anyone at either of these schools and am finding the whole process of finding the "right" school for dd very confusing and stressful . I just want to do the right thing by her but I have absolutely NO IDEA what that is! How rubbish is that?!

I don't know about the learning process at the schools, just know that a friend's family passed on the Latymer offer when they realized that it is 2/3 - 3/4 boys. They were coming from a girls only school, but their daughter quite liked the idea of having boys around. And she was very sporty.

Otherwise, on paper Latymer looks good and the split at the senior school is not this skewed.

My friend's daughter ended up at Bute.

Thank you, MMom, do you know how long ago this was?

Do all the kids from the prep get into Latymer Upper? Having just gone through the brutality of the 11+ (different part of London), this would be a big factor for me.

A very similar school near me does seem to get all but two or three into the senior school but they always seem very evasive when you ask for precise numbers. I do know a girl at a sought-after school being told she couldn't bank on a place in the senior school. Again this wasn't ever advertised as a possibility. It would be interesting if any of these schools ever published hard stats since what a lot of parents are buying into is the avoidance of another entrance process.

It was this year. However, I do like their upper school, the ratio is better there and I loved the headmaster when he came to speak at our school. I would seriously consider Latyner Under, despite the ratio.

11+ is not something I am looking forward to, and there is a lot to be said for avoiding it. My understanding is that most kids do go onto the senior school.

Also, judging from my two Dd - the longer you stay in girls-only system, the less they want to go to a mixed school. And I don't like that.

Having said all that - Dd1 would not have done well in 2/3 boys environment, Dd2 would fit in quite well, so all of it is very individual.

I don't know where you are, but if you are going to prep for 7+ - I'd look at other schols - Bute? SHHS?

Just looked up where St.Benedict is and realised that SHHS is too far. Have you thought about LEH?

Hi there, thank you both for your replies. Farewell, you are absolutely right when you say that parents are wanting to buy into the security of knowing that their DCs can go all the way through, and MMom I also agree that even if the classes are heavily weighted towards boys, the co-ed aspect is still a very attractive proposition. But yes, we are considering other options as well - LEH and Bute included (Love Bute but soooo competitive!) . I love LEH too, again because it avoids the scramble at 11+ and also because of the links with Hamptons Boys'- but it would mean a school bus journey and at age 7 I am not sure I could put her through it. Also looking at NHEHS but am struggling to think of other options.

Are either of you doing 7+ next year?

Or is there anyone else out there starting the process like me?

Just bumping - surely someone out there has dd's at these schools? Or is thinking of applying?? !!

Thought I'd pipe in to say that the ratio of boys/girls is not as skewed as stated above. I know for a fact that the entering year 3 class next year has 18 girls and 23 boys. Fairly even.

Mominatrix - thank you very much - that is very reassuring - do you have dc at the school? Or do you have any other knowledge about it? Do you think it is a good environment for a girl? Or what the teaching is like? Just trying to make sense of all the options

Hello BananaCake. I am not a current parent, but I have about 10 friends with children there, and am looking at it for one of my children. I went to an Open Day, and also a separate private tour during an ordinary school day with Mr. Dorian.

First, the atmosphere at the school is energetic and happy. We observed a Year 3 class cooking and were impressed - all the children were getting stuck in with chopping, sautéing, etc and the smell was amazing. We also observed a Mandarin class, a Spanish class, a Science class, an English class, a DT class, a reading class, and looked at recent history projects which the year 5 and 6s had completed. What struck me about the classes was that the children were so enthusiastic and engaged in ALL the classes, and it was not just boys who were swinging their arms in the air to answer questions, but boys and girls. Teachers were equally as engaged, and I was struck by one teacher who chose a quiet girl to answer a question (she had not raised her hand throughout the discussions and he chose her to bring her into the discussion). It struck me that the style of teaching was universally one of active learning in all subjects.

Boys and girls blended, and it seemed like it was not weighted towards a particular sex. I think this is a good thing as the school was missing the blatant competitive environment at academic single sex schools, and thus seemed to be a more overtly happier place.

It did not strike me as a particularly sports oriented school, and it had mixed rugby and football teams. I do know that they do have a very strong swimming programme at both the Prep and the Upper School, and the new Sports Complex will be open in September.

I cannot speak for pastoral care, but I can say that none of my friends have had any complaints on this matter. Additionally, the Head struck me as a person who really understands childrens' development and would take pastoral problems seriously.

I would visit the school and form your own opinion. It would have been the wrong environment for my elder son, but would very much suit my younger child.

I realized I had not answered all your questions.

Music provisions: They seem very good. Facilities and teachers are shared with the Upper School, and their are good choir and performance options available.

Sen: Not sure, but they have a dedicated person on staff who handles SEN.

Competition to get in: Number seem to jump every year, which each year being a record breaking year. This year there were 230 applicants, up 40 from last year. Not sure of the split, but I think that it is slightly less competitive to get in for girls as 7+ exist is less common for girls.

Moving on: The very vast majority go on to the Upper School. Perhaps one every few years does not make it, but I believe it is very, very much not the norm to not continue on.

Hi Mominatrix. Thanks so much for getting back to me and sharing your insights - so helpful! What impressed me most in what you said was that the atmosphere was happy and that the children were actively engaged in their learning - I think this is fundamental to children enjoying the whole process of school. My dd is not unhappy where she is atm, but I know she gets a buzz out of learning and where she is now the teaching is far too traditional and I am concerned that soon she will be turned off. Or worse, that any potential she may have will not be developed. I will definitely look around. Also, when you say it is overtly happier - are you comparing to any particular schools? Just wondering if you had any insights into any other prep schools that you'd be willing to share .