Bute 11+ leavers

[londonswmum]

Hi all, I was wondering if anyone has heard anything re Bute 11+ results this year? They have not published anything on their website.

I have, but I am a year 6 mum at Bute. 😁

All in line with a normal Bute year. I am sure they will update destination "pie" as and when.

Nothing to see here. Move along.

There is no need to be rude or aggressive..

@londonswmum

There is no need to be rude or aggressive..

Rude or aggressive? It was a light hearted jokey comment. Goodness.

@londonswmum

Hi all, I was wondering if anyone has heard anything re Bute 11+ results this year? They have not published anything on their website.

Yes, we've heard about the results. The new head crushed it, results are in-line with the Mrs Sallie Salvidant years. Mrs Lowe went for less academic students. Mrs Bradshaw did an absolutely brilliant job. Wow!

offers/acceptances. 2022

Glendower

SPGS. 9/8
G&L. 12/3
WYc Abbey. 14/7

KPS
SPGS. 6/6
G&L. 15/6
WYc Abbey. 1/1

Pembridge
SPGS. 2
G&L. 9
WYc Abbey. 5

I wonder how they compare to Bute.

Mrs Lowe (previous head) after leaving tutored a good number of the year 6 girls charging a high price controversially. Really tricky position for Bute and the new head, and I think a stop was eventually put to it all. Madness.

There is so much chat amongst parents at the moment as to which direction the school is going. The new head basically has told year 5 parents the no tutoring policy is no longer a thing and has opened the doors to 'good tutoring' which to west London parent means hire a regular full-on tutor (and in many cases take them on holiday with you). West London parents are driven by anxiety and panic. The old head was quite firm but fair and did stop parents going too far. Now they are clearly keen to keep the results but also filling up classes to the brim (so many new girls in DDs previously small class) - so I don't know how selective and academic in nature it is staying.

I just hope as a parent lower down in the school that the non-competitive ethos and amazing support and extend groups survive. So far we've had a great experience with really great teaching and a happy DD who loves learning and is cared for. We're happy customers. For DD, she loves Bute and we know long term it will open doors to many great schools.

@GreenYellowFrog respectfully, "West London parents are driven by anxiety and panic." is a bit of a blanket statement. And parents outside of West London are all relaxed and easy-going?

@GreenYellowFrog

Mrs Lowe (previous head) after leaving tutored a good number of the year 6 girls charging a high price controversially. Really tricky position for Bute and the new head, and I think a stop was eventually put to it all. Madness.

There is so much chat amongst parents at the moment as to which direction the school is going. The new head basically has told year 5 parents the no tutoring policy is no longer a thing and has opened the doors to 'good tutoring' which to west London parent means hire a regular full-on tutor (and in many cases take them on holiday with you). West London parents are driven by anxiety and panic. The old head was quite firm but fair and did stop parents going too far. Now they are clearly keen to keep the results but also filling up classes to the brim (so many new girls in DDs previously small class) - so I don't know how selective and academic in nature it is staying.

I just hope as a parent lower down in the school that the non-competitive ethos and amazing support and extend groups survive. So far we've had a great experience with really great teaching and a happy DD who loves learning and is cared for. We're happy customers. For DD, she loves Bute and we know long term it will open doors to many great schools.

Mrs Lowe did not stop parents from tutoring. In fact, when a few Year 5 parents followed her "don't tutor" advice, they found themselves in early Year 6 panicked and then scrambling to tutor their DD's. It was a typical cycle. A few parents would not tutor over the summer, the DD would come back in September Year 6, take the CAT test and not do as well as other kids who tutored all summer. Then Mrs Lowe sits down with parents and tell them their DD is not in the top quartile etc. Then the parents would tutor the kid non-stop before the 11+ exams.

Mrs Bradshaw realises that this former advice was no longer fit-for-purpose. The majority of kids applying to the schools popular with Bute (Wycombe A, SPGS, G&L and LU) are all doing extra work. So why shouldn't the Bute kids do extra work too? Mrs Bradshaw is just being realistic. But by all means, if a parent wants to do zero extra work with their DD, then go ahead and try that strategy. Good luck.

The new head is indeed setting the tone for the future but this will be her first year choosing students for year 3. Interestingly I think about half the 7+ intake chosen by the previous head (~18 - 20 girls) in this Year 6 class came from Pembridge Hall which is 🤔.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/education/3479327-Pembridge-Hall-School

[quote Savanta]The new head is indeed setting the tone for the future but this will be her first year choosing students for year 3. Interestingly I think about half the 7+ intake chosen by the previous head (~18 - 20 girls) in this Year 6 class came from Pembridge Hall which is 🤔.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/education/3479327-Pembridge-Hall-School[/quote]
@Savanta that's right, it will take several years for Mrs Bradshaw's vintage 7+'s to make it thru to Year 6 and the 11+. It's clear that if we compare the Salvidant vs Lowe vintages, that Mrs Lowe took a wider range of academic abilities at Year 7 compared to Salvidant. Mrs Lowe seemed to do everything in her power to dispel of the SPGS-feeder status that the school previously had under Salvidant. Looking at the Salvidant years, recall 2014 when 81% of the class received offers from G&L, 47% to LU, and 44% to SPGS. Mrs Lowe years were characterised by 48% getting G&L offers and 25% to SPGS. None of this is good nor bad, it's simply an observation of statistics. What do you think...will Mrs Bradshaw take an even wider spread of academic abilities at 7+ or will she focus on more academically able students like Salvidant?

But by all means, if a parent wants to do zero extra work with their DD, then go ahead and try that strategy. Good luck.

Bit off topic, but what parent at Bute would do that? You're hardly a hands off laid back parent sending your DD to a prep that feeds the largest number of girls to one of the most successful school in the whole country?

Tutoring with your child at home is all that's needed for a DC whose good enough for the Hammersmith senior schools. Any DC who needs intensive professional tutoring to get through doesn't bode well for a happy secondary school life. I know many will dis-agree with this and of course it depends on how savvy the parent is on tutoring themselves ( also how much time they have) True its easy for me to write this with a DD with years ahead before reaching 11+

Last month we were invited to meet the head before a formal offer documents for our DD. During the meeting we got the impression the non-competitive, trust in the school not tutors, approach was very much being led by Bute.

If we were told our DD isn't in the top Bute Quartile, I can't see us hiring a tutor , I'd want to see my DD weaknesses identified - what the school has progressed on and what we as parents can work on.

We wouldn't want to push a borderline SPGS / G&L pushing her through with tons of extra tutoring either.

I think the success of Bute is telling lower school girls out of 400 girls applying, and only 10 places, you are the lucky ones, it tells the sisters of Bute girls, you are lucky as your family has reserved you a spot simply by your surname and birth.

The 40 or so girls who come in the middle school are told they are very lucky and beat over 5 or so girls for their place.

They create an atmosphere where all pupils know they are 'lucky' and I've seen this in many great schools, that it's a great privilege to be here.

It's interesting that in our meeting the school had many questions for us, the underlined theme being did we understand the ethos and did we agree with it.

@tryandcountsheep I completely agree with you, very well said.

May I ask, what questions did Mrs Bradshaw ask you in your meeting?

[quote pkim123]@tryandcountsheep I completely agree with you, very well said.

May I ask, what questions did Mrs Bradshaw ask you in your meeting?[/quote]
Just sent you PM @pkim123 x

For those who wants to know :) Bute results this year

62 candidates this year, out of which 15 are moving on to SPGS (all offers accepted). G&L made 33 offers (11 accepted), LU 28 offers (11 accepted).

Those are amazing results, go Bute!

All prep school results:
www.londonpreprep.com/2022/04/11-results-london-prep-schools-2022/

Really useful data. I have to say that I am very very surprised that girls at any of the top selective preps would need external tutoring. We didn’t tutor at all and got really good offers and scholarships. Surely if you tutor too much your child ends up at a school they can’t keep up with? This can only mean long term underperforming for the top schools, which actually lowers their Oxbridge results. I remember when SPGS used to get 50% Oxbridge!

it depends on how savvy the parent is on tutoring themselves ( also how much time they have)

…and how receptive the dc is to doing work, effectively set by their parents. Not all bright dc will sit down happily to complete test papers in a non-school/tutor setting!

SPGS has not sent 50% of the students to Oxbridge in the last decade. And keep in mind the very well documented decline of independent schools supplying students to Oxbridge, which as been a trend from the 1970's.

Tutoring can take many forms: employing a professional teacher, employing an older student, regular extra work with a parent or sibling, etc.

Well you need to be bright, motivated and enjoy academics if you are going to succeed in a top secondary school.
However at the highest level of selection (11+) it really does seem only a point or two separates the outcome, and of course personality type. It’s a little bit of a lottery.

Agree, a DC needs to be bright and motivated. Makes sense.

Just curious, what do you mean "only a point or two separates the outcome"?

I know that it’s changed a bit, but even teachers I know are surprised sometimes at which girls actually get offers at SPGS. So tutoring is clearly effective short term.

What's changed a bit? And there's only tutoring at SPGS 11+? None at GL, LU, NLCS, City, etc?

Are you saying people tutor their kids at secondary school too? It’s bananas 🍌

Sorry, I wrote that poorly, apologies. I meant to say that don't you think there's plenty of tutoring during the 11+ process for other schools like the ones I mentioned and others?