Entrance exams for private schools in Scotland

[BanksiaRose]

Hello, I know nothing about private schools but am considering it for my two daughters when we relocate next year, as they would get a lot out of the extra-curricular activities and one of them could do with smaller class sizes and extra help with her work. Can anyone comment on how academically gifted kids need to be in order to pass entrance exams? Is it really just top students that are going to be offered places? How can I prepare my kids for the tests?

@StatisticallyChallenged

I'm not 100% sure but I think the figures are just based on the school rolls. I think even filling WHEC wouldn't do it!

And I can well imagine the chaos if they tried it too - and I say that as someone who grew up in WH and now has a kid at private school.

www.edinburgh.gov.uk/downloads/file/22448/secondary-school-roll-projections this has the current (well, 2020) rolls of the secondaries along with their capacities and projections. Capacity is 22700, projected 2021 roll was 21500...pretty sure 1200 spaces wouldn't touch the sides of the private secondary schools. And yes - over 400 of those spaces are at Whec, 300 at Castlebrae, 200 at tynecastle, 250 in South Queensferry. Most of the others are full or close to it - large parts of Edinburgh are at bursting point.

South Queensferry is a brand new school which was built with capacity - with people moving to the area they reckon it will be full in 5 years, but by then there will be a new high school at Cammo (apparently) which will then create more capacity. But by then there'll be another 70squillion new houses there...

Surely they could just repurpose some of the then-defunct private school buildings

and then turn over all the private school teachers into state employees, voila, job's a winner, easy. Think probably a slight digression from the Op.

@Tailendofsummer

Surely they could just repurpose some of the then-defunct private school buildings

Can yoy imagine Edinburgh council getting their paws on the prime land most of them are on and actually keeping it as schools?? They'd be flogged in seconds to pay for whatever daft vanity project they could think up fastest.