Mixed private day schools in Central/South London

[BoringSchoolChoiceNickname]

Looking for secondary schools for DD who's currently year 5. A few appealing state options, but none of them are guaranteed. Local school seems good but not right for DD - she's got a lot of academic potential and needs a school with a critical mass of high achievers.

So looking at private options as a fallback position. Most obvious choice is City Of London Girls - their website says if you've got straight level 5s at end of year 5 then you've got a good chance of getting in and DD should probably manage that. The problem is that DD really doesn't want to go to an all-girls school - she's very geeky and gets on better with boys. Also we have a younger DS who would ideally go to the same school, although he's got high functioning autism and is currently struggling badly with education so his secondary school options are way up in the air at the moment,

What (if any) are the good mixed sex academic private options? I just can't work it out.

I wouldn't go for an external tutor - pretty sure I can achieve the same results with some focussed work with DD myself (with a bit of help from DH and the Bond Guide for the dreaded NVR).

Basildonbond, I work in a local primary school and have also have a son whom I tutored...he got a 100% scholarship to an excellent prep school and then went on to get a 25% scholarship and 75% bursary to one of the top tier boys independent schools I mentioned above. I am in charge of the secondary transfer at my school and advise and mentor children in their quest for their perfect schools - so...my knowledge and experience is extensive.
Not to mention, that I am a soccer-mom and rugby mom and speak with all the other mums and pupils every weekend at matches and gather a consensus on all the matters of this type... I have nothing to flog...just information to share!

Oops..excuse the typos. My DS was in a rush to get onto the computer, so my message was typed hastily.

I know I'm a latecomer to this conversation, but nonetheless, what everyone seems to overlook when it comes to choosing schools is the fact that OF COURSE highly selective schools such as JAGS, Alleyns and Dulwich get such fantastic academic results - its because they cream off the very brightest children who are bound to perform well even if they were taught by a performing monkey. School academic results are NOT necessarily a reflection of the teaching, merely a reflection of the intake. If your averagely bright child goes to Emanuel or Alleyns, I simply don;t believe they will necessarily get better results at the latter; in fact they may be intimidated and demoralised by the fact that they are outstripped by their peers academically and simply give up. So judging schools by academic results and league tables is sheer folly; it's only one, very small, measure of how good a school is. i'd love to see how well Alleyns of JAGS teachers would fare with a class of 30+ kids from some of the state schools such as Eliots, which as far as I know is still in special measures.

Can anyone please help me regarding any info they can give me about sibling policies at putney and Wimbledon high. All documents say that there is no sibling policy is that truly the case ?????

Thinking a bit further - as places in mixed schools are difficult, if you are on the Northern line and close to central London, Highgate might be doable.

Both Latymer Upper and Alleyns have large numbers applying and getting a place can be unpredictable.

A fallback which has been used by people I know whose kids have not got acceptable state school places and who have not been well prepared for Indie 11+ exams, is Portland Place. Also used by expats who have not had a chance to prepare. People seem happy.

I dont know what Chelseatina has against Emanuel. A nice school. Does what is says on the tin. Liked by parents who have found themselves buying their way out of state secondary.

yes - siblings still need to pass the exam - I know several younger siblings who've not been able to join their sister at WHS

I have a Dc at Emanuel, he left his state primary lacking in confidence and not achieving to his potential. He has blossomed socially and academically, the pastoral care is excellent and I would recommend it particularly for the less confident child.
BTW Not all of us who go private think that the academic results are the be all and end all. Emanuel is constantly dismissed as second rate or a fall back I disagree, it is a good solid school with something for everyone. I know too many people whose DC's have crumbled under the pressure of academic hot houses.
I am paying for a happy confident child who will grow into a nice adult not 10 A* GCSEs

I am not surprised and think the same is true of the other schools who went co-ed in the past decade or so (Latymer Upper, Emanuel, Kingston Grammar). However with the real shortage of mixed schools the number of applicants for each school is growing and I assume that means catchments are also growing.

The point perhaps was that London journey times can vary widely. Dulwich is very tricky to get to from parts of South London. Hammersmith is OK as long as you have easy access to the District line, perhaps via the Victoria or Jubilee lines. Wimbledon has good trains and a tram, as well as the tube. Highgate is on the northern line though quite a hike to the station. Research on journey times completely changed our list of preferred schools.

I agree that Emanuel's getting very bad press here. They've made a deliberate and commendable decision not to get sucked into the very competitive South West London school bunfight, and everyone I know with DC there is absolutely thrilled with it. Interest seems to be growing every year in my area, but because they limit applications, have a sibling policy and don't exclude all but the top tiny per cent, they will always have a more mixed group. If people chose to see this as a bad thing it's obviously not the school for them.