SE London Schools - Alleyn’s, St Dunstan’s, Colfe’s - 2026 entry

[hereandthere14]

Hi everyone,

I’m not sure if there’s already a thread for 2026 entry to the SE London schools, so I thought I’d check in. How is everyone getting on?
Our DD has just completed her first sports scholarship assessment for Alleyn’s and absolutely loved the experience. She came out beaming, which was lovely to see.
Would be great to hear how others are finding the process, and how your DCs are getting on with assessments and preparation for Alleyn’s, St Dunstan’s, Colfe’s, or any of the nearby schools.

That’s very helpful thank you! Sorry you didn’t get to ask that many questions!! 🙄

@Crinoidallimestone how did the Dulwich interview go?

I think it went ok - he seemed positive and fairly relaxed when he came out so we can only hope! 🤞🏻 That was our last one - just have a few weeks to wait now. It was nice to have the chat with the head although we didn’t get to ask much either - but my questions were asked by others so it didn’t really matter. The library room we were in was very impressive and hog warts - esque!

@Crinoidallimestone lovely! Let's keep those fingers crossed.

Last year when we did a tour the guide started in the library because she said it's her favourite room. I think she spent as much time talking about the history and art in the library as she did about the school (not really but she was passionate about it - and can't say I blame her).

Just found this thread. The wait until 13 Feb is killer. Anyone have an idea re timing of emails on the 13th? We'll be waiting to hear from Alleyn's, Eltham College, Colfe's and St Dunstan's. Alleyn's is the only uncertain one for DD (I think) so of course it's her top choice. 🙃Good luck in the final stretch!

Hey! I’ve got no idea about timings on the day. I do keep randomly checking the portals (pointless but I can’t stop myself). Counting the days until the 13th! We’re only waiting for SD and Colfes

Ha! I did same on portals when we were waiting for scholarship invites, interviews, etc. in case there was an "early" post on the portal before the email landed!

We live in SE too, but I was surprised that no one mentioned sitting the exams for St Paul’s Girls, Highgate, Latymer Upper School or City of London School for Girls. We also applied to Alleyn’s and JAGS. Good luck to all of us!

When DD applied (Colfes two years ago) the offer email was sent in the morning of offer day (no scholarship - standard offer).

Just checking in with everyone.

I’m a mess already. Because we will require bursary I’m trying to prepare myself for a rejection. (I’d rather assume the worst and be pleasantly surprised)

how is everyone else coping?

@Elembeeee if it helps i know a fair few dc who didn’t pass Graveney or the grammars or rather score high enough but got a Dulwich offer.

So ready for Friday - can't come quickly enough. I keep trying to remind myself we've had positive "soft" signals with scholarship assessments (none for academic), but just ready for this to be over.

I think the roughest time for me as a parent was post-exam/pre-scholarship assessment emails. When other parents got he emails and I hadn't that's when the real panic started to set in.

Fingers crossed for everyone!!!

Does anyone know if there was a Dulwich College academic scholarship assessment, or would those come out on offer day? The reason I ask is that my DS went to the Alleyn's scholarship afternoon. I believe Emmanuel also had an academic scholarship invitation, but I'm not sure if other schools do the same. Specifically, DC, Latymer Upper and KCS.

I don’t know if DC do a separate scholarship interview. Haven’t really thought about it too much as we’ll just be super happy to get a place! The wait until Fri is killing me!

Agreed!!!! This process is painful for everyone.

@ThatNoisyZebra i think I read that DC scholarships are based on entrance exam results? But don’t quote me.

like @Crinoidallimestone ill just be happy with an offer on Friday.

Don't get me wrong, I am in the same boat, I'll be happy with one offer.

I just feel slightly more positive about Alleyns due to the scholarship invite, but that doesn't guarantee an offer.

Congratulations on getting a scholarship invite to Alleyns@ThatNoisyZebra that is a very significant achievement and I would say you have a very high chance of an offer. It seems as though there isn’t a separate scholarship process for DC and it’s done on the basis of high marks for exam and interview - but I could be wrong! Given I often hear people saying Alleyns is more difficult to get into I would say you have a very good chance of an offer for DC (either with or without scholarship) too. Best of luck! 🤞🏻

Hello,

Is it important to get an academic scholarship at these schools?
My daughter received two types of scholarships at a GDST school (less selective than JAGS) including an academic scholarship. The academic scholars’ empowerment programme at the GDST school looks very strong.

For example, If she does not receive an academic scholarship from JAGS, do you think that really matters?

Not getting a scholarship won’t matter (sorry double negative). Most pupils at these schools won’t be in receipt of a scholarship.

@365sleepstogo But JAGS states on their website that they offer 20 academic scholarships, plus other creative scholarships, so in total it looks like around a quarter of the girls have a scholarship?

In this case, even if my daughter doesn’t receive a scholarship, should JAGS or Alleyn’s be chosen because they are more academically prestigious schools?
Or would it be better to go with GDST on a scholarship, with advantages like 1:1 mentoring etc?

So… the majority don’t have scholarships.

Arts, sports and music scholars will have a lot of additional commitments e.g. performances, fixtures, portfolios to develop. This means a lot of additional work on top of the timetable, so not sure how that fits in with your concerns about the those without music/sports/arts scholarships losing our on the academic side of things.

Not sure what additional, if any, expectations there are for academic scholars - something to ask the schools and if the outcome are significantly different for those that have them versus those that don’t.
The results for the cohort, as a whole, are very good in both schools, so I presume the non-scholars are doing fine.

But there is more to school than just the academics and scholarships.

If cost isn't an issue I'd go with the school you're happier with overall. The additional things from scholarships are great, e.g. going to art exhibitions if you're an art scholar, which my dd enjoys, but they do come with extra work. Others are a bit more onerous and not that much added value, like academic scholars having to attend evening seminars online about careers my dd has no interest in. So it's a mixed bag and the school overall should be your primary decision unless you absolutely need the scholarship to make the finances work. Overall, everyone is paying to attend, so the school can't provide so much extra stuff to scholars that it ends up seeming unfair to the rest of the students. So I'd take all the info about what's included with a pinch of salt.

A letter arrived by post today addressed to DD from St Dunstan’s. I think she should open it this eve after her club but the curiosity is driving me mad!!

I didn’t realise they were still sending offer letters. Are you still waiting for your DD? Nothing in the post here, so it looks like we may be waiting until Friday. Good luck x