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Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Secondary education

Has anyone heard from the South West London Independents?

105 replies

PureQuintessence · 21/01/2013 21:31

Getting more and more nervous here.

Thinking especially about the Emanuel, KCS and Ibstock (well, have not done the exam for that yet so really just the first two...)

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Report

Shaded · 01/02/2013 09:49

We have our letter from CLSB and DS has an interview for the 10+. We got our news early because his dad went to the sorting office and begged for the letter. Good luck all.

OhDearConfused · 01/02/2013 10:13

Well done to your DS.
Fingers crossed for the rest of us

stclemens · 01/02/2013 23:02

DS had his KCS interview today, English and general followed by Science and maths. Apparently there were loads of boys there and multiple interviewers. Tip from our neighbour - don't sit until asked (one i would have ignored). I wonder how many they interviewed.

We also got letters for Hampton and CLSB today so DS has done well so far, cross fingers!

castlesintheair · 02/02/2013 08:52

We still haven't heard from KCS which is a confirmed no in my opinion

Good luck and congrats to everyone's DS who has had an interview.

OhDearConfused · 02/02/2013 10:00

DS got the one 10+ interview he was hoping for.

Anyone know how many are being interviewed?

OhDearConfused · 02/02/2013 10:00

Oops. In City of London Boys....

stclemens · 02/02/2013 12:03

Well done to your DS, OhDear. castles are you waiting on any other schools? 11+ at KCS is tough - why we went for 13+ as odds much better.

I am amazed by how much DS improved this year from last Sept when he sat and failed pretty much all the grammar school exams.

PureQuintessence · 02/02/2013 14:10

Well done for securing interviews.

If ds does not get for 11+ do you reckon we could still put him down for 13+ at the same schools?

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stclemens · 02/02/2013 14:33

i think it will depend on whether the intake is a pre-test at 11 followed by CE or just a 13+ test. For example, Emanuel seem to do a 13+ test which you register for the year before:

here

Latymer have limited places available at 13+ for which you just apply:

here

I don't think for either of these it is CE it will just be another test.

At kings I think you either do 11+or 13+ so you can't do both.

Is there anywhere else you were thinking of?

stclemens · 02/02/2013 14:35

I was going to say, your DS may still be successful - cross fingers for Feb 14th!

Shaded · 02/02/2013 15:28

OhDearConfused very well done to your DS

castlesintheair · 02/02/2013 19:18

Thanks stclemens. Yes waiting on 2 other schools for which he's had interviews. What you say about 11+ v 13+ is interesting. My DS has been a late starter for various reasons and has only "taken off" in last year which hasn't been quite enough some of the most selective but in a couple of years he could be quite competitive. The head at KCS told us though that if he isn't successful in 11+ he won't be at 13+ ... maybe that's because they can only sit for either or there, as you say?

PureQuint, some people do seem to move their DS to prep if it all goes wrong. We have it in mind if necessary but I had expected it to be harder.

I look and feel really old at the moment. This process is really trying.

PureQuintessence · 02/02/2013 20:36

Well, if it all goes wrong, then we know it is because he has been away from the UK for three years, and sort of jumped from Norwegian Y3 to London Y5, so effectively skipping Y4, and he has had lots to catch up on. He has been working like a hero, but he has not been reading the same books as his contemporaries the last 3-4 years, he has not covered the same topics in lessons, and was behind in numeracy, and has not followed the news in the uk the years he was away. This is why we only went for 3 independents, so as not to put so much pressure on him.

Just not sure what steps to take if he gets no offers, and not our top choice for RC secondary.

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KingscoteStaff · 04/02/2013 19:22

Ok, well interview over and he seems positive.

Now just 10 days to wait...

stclemens · 04/02/2013 21:26

good luck to all. PureQ, don't despair - he sounds like a lovely lad and I hope you find the right school for him. For what it's worth none of the interviews DS has had refer to the news at all - they have been very generic (what do you like doing) or focused on specific questions on maths, science and English.

stclemens · 06/02/2013 16:42

Has anybody else done Hampton? Funny questions (what do you want to be? What A levels do you want to take?) DS said he wanted to be a bio-geneticist (because what he really wants to do is to create genetically modified pets, which is a rather niche area) - ha!

PureQuintessence · 06/02/2013 18:01

My son wants to be the same as yours, because he wants to modify animals into pokemon!

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stclemens · 06/02/2013 18:20

That's funny - I wonder if it is more common than I thought! I think of Frankenstein, DS thinks of Wallace and Grommit...

PureQuintessence · 06/02/2013 22:53

Never heard of it before, so I reckon our boys are pretty unique.

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stclemens · 14/02/2013 17:20

well not sure how everyone else is feeling. I am just going to rabbit on so I don't bore everyone in real life!

We won't hear about CLSB until the 22nd but I don't think the interview went that well - and judging from other comments on the 10+ CLSB thread DS might fail on the "leaders" aspect (mind you he wasn't asked about his interests anyway there!). But Hampton and KCS all went quite smoothly according to DS. By the far the nicest were Hampton who seemed to go out of their way to sell themselves as a school to prospective interviewees and parents. DS so jaded at the end, he didn't take a biscuit at CLSB as they weren't as nice as the ones he had elsewhere (ie not chocolate covered).

I'll be at work tomorrow, so will have to wait until I get home at 7pm. And we won't find out about our grammar options until March 1 so one could say this is only yet another staging post in this very long process.

KingscoteStaff · 14/02/2013 17:34

One more sleep, then we'll know.

Although knowing the Fulham post, probably two more sleeps....

PureQuintessence · 14/02/2013 19:23

I am less than hopeful, to be honest. He was not offered an interview at KCS. So really it is just the one now and on 22nd and then March 1st.

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Marni23 · 14/02/2013 19:33

We hear from all 4 of DS's potential schools tomorrow (post permitting). I am on the

PureQuintessence · 14/02/2013 21:45

Fingers crossed for tomorrow!

I wish I could have it all over and done with in one day... Nailbiting, though!

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mimbleandlittlemy · 15/02/2013 13:34

We heard today from Emanuel and it's another no for us so ds off to the comp up the road, however a whole lot of other friends haven't heard from Emanuel today as apparently they didn't get all the letters signed in time for the post yesterday so they didn't all go out (which I think is a bit shoddy to be honest but there you go). If you don't get the letter today Pure, that'll probably be why.

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