Garden House Boys

[Thebridekiddo]

Hi,

I wanted some advice regarding taking the 8+ at this school.

Is there any advantage of taking my son out of his state school in Year 3 and placing him in this school? i.e I can't find exit results for the boys when they leave at 11. They seem to have amalgamated the results for their leavers at 8 & 11.

Any advice from parents whose boys have joined at this point or exited at 11 would be much appreciated.

Many thanks.

It's not terribly clear on the website.

What is your longer term plan for your DS? 11+ finish does not fit with the admissions requirement of traditional boys schools (though a few more of the London ones are increasing entry any that point). So I would suspect that the parents who opt to stay for 11+ are aiming all along for the London day schools that have a main entry point then.

Might be worth asking for clarification when you visit.

I'm hoping he takes the 11+ for the top London schools, I'm just weary that the school loses focus after their 8+

Which schools are you thinking of?

And have you checked the relative size of entry at the different points? Because 8+ is likely to be a larger intake than 11+ to the feeder preps, if you have 13+ schools on your dream list. But perhaps thr top schools for you start at 11.

So far I think St Pauls at 11, Latymer and maybe St James as a backup. Not overtly happy with the state options near us.

check class size. usually very small after 8. could be a positive as your son would get individualized attention, or a negative because limited sport/club options and, too, most of the boys who stay (i.e. don't leave at 8) are the ones who have not been offered places at other schools.

great school for boys up to 8; not so sure it would be a positive change to go just for 3 years. you might be better off staying in your current school and doing extra work, if necessary, to prepare for 11+.

St Paul's starts at 13 - do you mean Colet Court? If so, they why not just try there at 8+?

I don't think GH is very interested at 11plus entry for boys, it focuses more on 13plus. But ring them and ask

I'm sorry I thought Garden House only goes up to 11 not 13.

I've tried the 8+ at CC but he never went past the exam stage, I don't think he's quite matured enough in his comprehension.

So sorry, you're right, it does end at 11, it's such a posh school I assumed it ended at 13 to feed boarding schools.

GH has a small group of boys that continues after 8, together with a few who join from other schools, for an additional 3 years (ie til 11). The "target market" is boys who wish (or whose parents with them) to board from age 11, or whose parents plan to move abriad and thus don't wish to or need to go through the 8+ process.

Colet Court and Westminster Under also have an intake at 11. Some come from state but not all. They also come from private schools that finish at 11, like Garden House.