The Trinity-Whitgift thread of 2013 continued

[Somelikeithott]

Hi all as I posted on previous thread, I realised we had hit the 1000 mark, do felt obliged to open a new one. Hope everyone finds this thread easily

[Croydonmumtods]

aspimum little more I can add to what has already been said. Mr Beck is lovely and I'm sure if you speak to him he will put your mind at rest. Some sports are included in the curriculum others are available as after school clubs but bear in mind the teachers running after school clubs will be looking out for talented boys so impossible to imagine a talented child can slip through the net. Regarding scholarships I believe these can be negotiated whilst at the school but I would expect only considered for exceptional boys (ie county or country players in sports) who the school do not want to risk losing. My ds like burntoutdads is very competitive but needs a push to perform to his best both academically and in sport. He choose W as his preferred school as he knows they will get the very best out of him and he is prepared for all the hard work and effort this will entail.
burntoutdad you can always send ds to school on the donkey and what with renting it out for Christmas etc might not be such a bad idea.

[burntoutdad]

Croydonmumtods - LOL! Brill idea, could leave donkey stations at the school bus stops to hire as alternative transport - bit like Zipcars etc. How funny would that be, all those 'whitgiftians' riding donkeys to school? If the economy gets any worse we could be on to a winner here. Mind you the donkeys will probably end up in the food chain .
Btw heard another story this morning about a parent convinced that they were offered a 50% scholarship at interview only to recieve a full fee offer! This thread would have given them some insight.

[Seeline]

racegirl & eyes - certainly this year the Junior form has 44 I think, in 2 forms.
I didn't find uniform costs too bad for T. It's all available from Hewitts in Croydon, but the school are quite happy for the boys to wear white shirts and dark grey/black trousers from ASDAs etc! Similarly, the school jumper is not compulsory, and a grey jumper can be bought from other shops which certainly helps keep the costs down.
So far, the activity break was free and the only thing that I have been asked to pay for was the Christmas lunch if DS wanted it (£3.99). Obviously there are lots of trips on offer but it is entirely up to you which, if any, of these you take up. Currently they have ranged from theatre trips, to skiing to trips to the WW2 battlefields. At the moment we have stood back from these to see what is offered later - most seem to happen most years so other opportunities will crop up. We haven't yet had a school 'curriculum' trip offered so not sure about these.
I would strongly recommend the school web site - you have access to the school term diary which lists most activities. You can also see the 'letters sent home' section in the parrents section which will show you some of what is on offer. The HM newsletter each week is also very informative.

[cheammum]

Burntoutdad & Aspimum..just to add, that what makes W so appealing to us, is that the former W student Olympic discuss player L. Okoye ( and there are other boys like this as well) was actually offered to study Law at Oxford (but deferred taking up place until after the Olypmics).. so although a sporty school W seems to nurture, encourage and support these boys to work hard so that they can aspire to be the best that they can be, and strive to get into good universities as well...which might not happen in a good but ordinary state school. I was very impressed also with the views and ethos of the Headmaster.. he seems to really care about the boys ( have a look at the W website-latest news section)....there is a link of Headmaster being interviewed on Sky news a few weeks ago commenting on Michael Goves u turn on GCSE fiasco...Theres a lot to consider, but hopefully this thread will help make it a little easier for you to decide what best to do in the long run.

[Croydonmumtods]

And another thing ; When Victor Moses (ChelseaFC) was chosen to play for England in his GCSE year W insisted he had a personal tutor to ensure he kept up with his school work and negotiated this with the FA.

[cheammum]

Croydonmumtods ----I think we've done the same research ...defintely sold on W now for sure!

Aspimum/Burnoutdad ---although an added expense, the school bus to me is also of a huge benefit to me...because I know that I will no longer have to do the dreaded school run in the morning if I so wish, but know my Ds will get to school safely in the morning ( without mucking about at the bus stop and getting himself into trouble...which is of great concern to me).

I could go on...but I need to go and do some work...I just think W is great!

[burntoutdad]

Croydonmumtods - Re Donkeys. If we had a joint venture using our usernames we would be 'BurntoutCroydon'.... on second thoughts maybe not a good idea!

[therugratref]

I sent off the acceptance letters for the boys for Whitgift and have received confirmation that they will start in September. So far for Whitgift 10+ it looks like just you and I Burntoutdad

[therugratref]

Sorry and Croydenmum

[therugratref]

Italy trip is on according to the email I was sent.

[NotADragonOfSoup]

BurntoutCroydon That's so 2011

[Croydonmumtods]

burntoutdad LOL. I have visions of the donkey tearing across the lawns chasing the peacocks. Think it would be a lovely addition to the menagerie. Very excited about September. Really hard to focus on the term and a half he has left at school and can definitely sense that DS in his head has moved on already.

[burntoutdad]

therugratref - That trip sounds amazing! Sailing on Lake Garda, cycling a trip into Venice and a week without DS! I think the form tutors go along to a acquaint themselves with the boys and vice versa. What a fantastic start to a new school.

[burntoutdad]

croydonmum - Yes Im with you there. We're having the 'do I really have to do homework if i'm leaving' conversations already. A bit worrying because they still have 6 months of learning to do, and it will no doubt pick up a pace going from state yr 5 to W year 6. Read somewhere that lower school have 1hr/day homework increasing to 2hrs/day as they go

[NotADragonOfSoup]

Tell your DSs that W/T will be looking at their end of year school report from Y5 and using this in some nefarious way.

[AspiMum]

@Cheammum - Thanks a lot for all the info. I feel like seeing myself in the mirror when I read your post as mine is almost similar to yours. My DS is in level 6 in maths and 5 in English. Not getting much benefited from current state school. Before Grammar school exams he fell sick for 3 weeks. So I didnt want to push him hard for the exams. Like your DS, mine also needs always a push to do things (Do all boys are like that??? :) ) I am not happy to send him again to state school but was wondering will W be good choice to go on Full Fees. I am getting convinced with your info now.
Did you book the sports course after accepting the offer or before? If before, did you tried using the contact details given in the site? ([email protected])

[Ladymuck]

I do think that the Garda trip is quite a big pull for 10+ v 11+. Though feel sorry for those who were 9 just a week or so earlier! Well probably more for the mothers - the boys seem to have a whale of a time.

[burntoutdad]

rugratref - didn't realise there were so few W 10+ on here. Im not sure but were there some others on previous thread who have not followed this thread?
Shall we do a fun poll to find out?
If we all just type and post W 10+ , W 11+, T 10+, T 11+ & Other choice
we could do a count.

[Somelikeithott]

I've not been able to catch up on Today's posts, just read the last few. On yet another conference for a few days, but good to see lots of posts for me to dig into later when I've got time to myself.

I did notice a few posts on DSs having moved on to W/T in 'spirit'. We have told DS his offers are conditional, on his school reports until the end of the academic year, so may still be withdrawn. ( covers face, in shame). DS always needs a challenge to keep him out of mischief !!

[AspiMum]

@burntoutdad - Good idea . Also if we can add some details (if wish to disclose)
FF (Full Fees),
MS (music Scholarship)
AS (Academic Scholarship)
Bu (Bursaries)

Here is mine - W 11+ FF

[Somelikeithott]

10+, not quite decided ( but almost)

[cheammum]

Aspimum ----I think it is a boy thing (well in my case it seems to be)...this is the 2nd time going through the 11+ process. Already have a Dd who passed all the grammar school exams very well and is now in Yr8 at Nonsuch...looking back it was so much easier as she is quite academic but just seemed to get on with the work without making too much of a fuss..With Ds however it has been like world war 3 in our house for the past 2 years...he is bright but lazy and so just needs a kick up the backside and this is what he will get by going to W..He didn't do well enough for the grammars so I do not have that issue to contend with..i.e. What if he we sent him to X,Y, or Z school when the state school results come out on Fri.

We do not have to worry about the financial costs of putting 2 children into private school as Dd is already at an excellent grammar school...so for us although a difficult decision financially, we are willing to make sacrifices so that Ds2 has the same opportunities as Dd1. The fees are high I know, but I think with the New Boarding School, the revamping of Croydon i.e building a new Westfield Shopping centre by 2015, understanding and caring teachers,talented boys in all fields (not just sport) I think Whitgift will gain an even better reputation and will become a sought after school.

Look at the BBC school league tables 2012 - AAB scores in key A level subjects- Whitgift is amongst some of the top schools; whereby a high percentage of boys take facilitating subjects that get them into the top Russell Group Universities....so if Whitgift was just a "Sporty" school this wouldn't be the case.

I booked the Sportscourse well before I got an offer from W...I have visited many schools both private,state comprehensives,grammars etc....and I knew straight away that when I saw W it was right for my Ds. ( It may not be as academic as some of the top Independents like Kings College Wimbledon etc...and I knew that my Ds would struggle in a school like that so I did not venture down that route...however at W I know he will eventually do really well if he has supportive parents behind him and will reach his true potential.

With regards to the Sports course Mr Becks organises it (it was nice to see him casual in tracksuit making the boys feel at ease) There is another sports course running at the being of July for 4 days...would love to to it again but Ds will still be at school...don't finish until end of July.

If I was you, I would maybe contact the school again and ask to speak to Mr Becks personally (he is willing to answer any queries you might have) or ask to speak to The Sports Director, his name is Alistair Osborne...or maybe see if you can get an appointment at short notice to have a quick look around the school again before Friday)....so that you are 100% sure that you are doing the right thing taking into account your own personal circumstances.

Hope this helps.

[AspiMum]

Thanks Cheammum, Croydonmum and burntoutdad for your info. As others said this thread becomes more addictive.
@Cheammum - Yes I have got very good feedback on Mr.Beck. He helps a lot for the parents in getting the info in detail. For sure he will be a key reason for parents to decide W.

@burntoutdad - What is this Italy trip? You have mentioned about this in 2 of your posts. Is it mentioned in the school site? any more light on the same will be helpful.

[Somelikeithott]

Aspimum, the Lake Garda in italy,trip is a bonding trip for the 10+ boys in W. traditionally happens 2nd week of term they join. ( I believe).And it is a way of the boys getting to know each other and members of staff that go with them, and vice versa. The beauty of it is its free ( well, included in fees already, as DH always tells me nothing is free). So parents don't have to pay anything extra at the time.

[Kylep]

Accepted offer from T today roll on sept, I'm so excited for my ds he's got an amazing school to look forward to