7+ exam and 45 minutes bus for 5 years or stay in local prep 4 minutes walk?

[IsaidCrocCroc]

We live in Kew and attend a very well regarded prep minutes from our home. We are considering sitting the 7+ exams since our DD is doing fairly well and would like to avoid the dread of 11+ if possible.

However as time approaches, we are are not sure if we want to commit to 5 years of school bus to say LEH (if we get in!) versus a few minutes walk. This would be 1.5 hours a day in a bus, so about 7/8 hours extra of travel a week?

I know other posters strongly recommend considering the travel for primary, but if it solves the 11+ conundrum of not having to sit the exams later on, is it worth the change?

Other schools we could apply are Putney High and Notting Hill and Ealing, but with a similar much longer journey.

That would be a no-brainer for me: stay put.

Does the 11+ need to be that terrible? You clearly have an able DD and, given her age, she was born well after the London demographic peak of 2011-12. I’d have thought she’d be very well placed to get great SW London offers in due course. Obviously it’s a big deal for you and DC at the time but it doesn’t sound as if she’s unlikely to achieve a good outcome.

*London birthrate peak, I should have said. Obviously there are other factors affecting the relevant demographics!

Thanks Honor. We do not have experience of the 11+ as yet... DD is our eldest. But everyone seems to hate the process and that it takes a toll on children too. So it is the toll of the bus versus the burden of having to prep for the 11+ exams a few years from now. Are we being lazy and leaving the bigger issues for later??

The other point that people make, is that we would not know yet what type of secondary school would suit my DD yet - whether it is all girls or sporty or co-ed etc. I think she would more or less fit anywhere but it is true that as she grows up we will discover other things that will affect her choice.

@IsaidCrocCroc , if poss visit LEH juniors, it's a fantastic prep school but it tends to suit a confident dd, when you visit you will know if it's right for your dd and the bus trip is worth it. Also ask the registrar how many 7 year olds travel on the bus, it may not be as many as you expect - the bus is shared with Hampton prep, Hampton boys and LEH seniors.
Otherwise stay put in Kew and stick with 11 plus, there is masses of choice for girls in the area including Kingston Grammar which is easy on the train from Kew.

You would be mad to commit to 1.5 hours of travel every day (less than the time you would spend on any necessary tutoring) when you have a good school a few minutes walk away.

Whilst the pressure of no 11+ is a pro, you can't know at this stage whether that's the right secondary school for her, and there are real benefits to not being at the same school from 7-18.

My DD travels to LEH juniors from a very similar location. It is a brilliant school and well worth the journey. We were previously at a great local prep but I do not regret the decision to move at all. The curriculum is really wide and varied, the facilities amazing and the head is fantastic. Lots of the junior girls travel on the bus and my DD really enjoys it.

You both @UserStillatLarge and @notimetothinkstraight have laid out the issue.

We were set on the 7+ exam and convinced ourselves it is the best route. Have been to see LEH and of course we liked the school and the facilities. Have been doing some light prep especially in English composition.

But then as time approaches we are not sure really want it. For a start there is a bit of prep to be done (everyone does) but the travel time really bothers us. I am sure they have a fine time but could that time be spent playing outside or having a playdate or something else? So many parents will talk about how important is to reduce travel time during primary school, but then you have parents at LEH or other schools (NLCS?) that will do it.

Also I just found out some girls above us applied to the likes of LEH last year. Our school does not like one bit people applying for 7+, the ones that got in are the quiet and serious ones, the super bright so to speak and not necessarily that sociable. This may be just circumstantial though. Although our girl is fairly bright, not sure she is in the calibre they look for and also she is quite chatty and gregarious and stubborn, still a young child.

We are not sure the school is the right fit (or will be in the future), and would not like to do all this work ahead to make the wrong decision (and maybe we are also being a bit lazy? since these are top schools that need prep).

Tbh, as someone two weeks away from the 11+ I’d go for the 7+ to see if we could avoid it.

I would do the prep for the 7+ and go for it. So many people say kids are too young to travel until they’re 11, but I’ve found kids are really resilient and so so many families travel for the best and right schools.
I also don’t believe you have to be a certain type of way or have certain characteristics to fit in at any one school. Schools consist of very different girls with varied interests and quirks about them. LEH gets a rep for girls who are confident, alpha types. But not all the girls are like that, and I know girls who are shy but very bright do well there.

Also talk to your Prep and see if they think your DD has a good chance ? The competition ratios are quite high for 7+ but from a decent Prep, I’m sure she would be ok

Can your DD get to LEH by public transport when she's older or are you committing yourself to 10 plus years of the bus? Its not just her either, there's the parents evenings, plays, sports days etc. I seem to be at the senior schools far more than I thought I would (pre Covid..) and I am so grateful I can get there fairly easily. Junior schools will have even more parent stuff.
Been through the 11+ twice from state primary and its really not that bad if you don't let it be. From a prep it should be easier.
You can reach loads of secondary schools from Kew - all girls and Co-Ed. Your DD will probably change a lot by then.

Also, as someone has mentioned upthread- my DCs both went to schools at 11 that had attached preps. A lot of the children, especially in DD's all girls school, are utterly bored of the school by Y9/Y10 if they have been there since the beginning.

I’ve found kids are really resilient and so so many families travel for the best and right schools.

I used to do a similar journey to the one proposed by OP from age 9. Because my parents thought the school was worth it.
My parents also said it was great how well I adapted and how the school was amazing.

The fact my DC go to the local (bog standard) secondary school tells you a lot about what I felt about the travelling.

I have had two DDs go through 11+. And, yes it is stressful. However - one needs to have a perspective.

The stress of 11+ is a concentrated short burst of exams and interviews. Normally it’s worst in that one week of exams.
But most schools that prepare girls for the exams know how to get the girls through the process. And as the whole class is doing the preparation - it all ends up being less stressful than parents make it out to be.
In my observation - most stress is experienced by the parents. Especially when it’s their 1st child going through the process.

Years of extra commuting for 1.5hrs/day and missing out on having local friends and play dates - is a completely disproportionate price to pay to avoid the boogie man of 11+.

Can a 7+ manage this long daily commute. Sure, they can. Kids are resilient. But will they be happier without having to do it? Of course.

I wouldn't want to put my 7-11 yo through a 45 min commute each way to school.
In fact, I wouldn't have wanted a 45 min commute when I was working.

If you are happy with the school she is at, why move?

My DDs did 35 mins on the school bus from the ages of 4&6 to the nearest state school...

I know nothing about the London private schools.. does 7+ entry guarantee 11+ entry?

I think that fear of the 11+ is over hyped and really isn’t that bad (one dd has done it, one dd doing it this year). I think that there’s a clear financial incentive for schools with junior departments to do this, and also parents have a bit of a tendency to wind each other up about it (especially prep parents, this is where being at a primary can be easier). So I wouldn’t weigh avoiding the 11+ that highly. I also think that moving at 11 allows you to pick a school with a better fit, as you know your child’s interests and abilities better by then.

I would check very carefully, being in the junior school doesn't necessarily avoid the 11+. Our local school is 3-18 and at 10 they do the 11+ those who fail do not get places at the senior school

@gogohm , LEH Junior is automatic to LEH seniors due to the entrance exam and interview in Dec of year 2 and because the school starts at age 7.It's harder to get into LEH juniors than LEH seniors.

[quote Skatingpark97]@gogohm , LEH Junior is automatic to LEH seniors due to the entrance exam and interview in Dec of year 2 and because the school starts at age 7.It's harder to get into LEH juniors than LEH seniors. [/quote]
Really automatic? Or just a a case of you don't have to take the exam, whilst the school quietly "manages out" anyone in the junior school that they don't want to progress?

They do manage out but give lots of notice and small numbers. Any dd who can answer comprehension questions, write a story, have KS 2 maths skills and can manage a group interview/problem solving aged 6/7 will be ok at 11 at the senior school which has an entrance exam now of VR / NVR/ problem solving plus interview).

I would stay at the current school or if you move school, also move house. We live near an academic through school and virtually all the parents in my daughter's class who applied from other parts of London moved house once accepted. Two moved from areas that would have been shorter commutes than what you've outlined.

A long commute at primary school is pretty challenging for all involved.