Help on advice for good schools South Manchester/Cheshire

[beanybaby1]

Please can anyone give me advice on good schools, possibly independant in the above areas....we are relocating from Spain with our 11 yr old to start secondary school Sept 14 and as yet do not have an address or know where we will be living so very difficult to register for 11+ as not moving until next summer and don't fit the criteria for catchment areas....?? Very confused....advice welcome.

I am in this area, where specifically?

I'm from South Manchester but could move anywhere, prefer to rent first so trying to find school first, then house...

Marking place, and will reply later when on computer, not phone. Do you want single sex or mixed?

I think only Trafford schools have the 11+ around us.

Cheadle Hulme, Wilmslow, Poynton are all good. Bramhall is in the top 10% for attainment in the country.

I went to Stockport GS, Cheadle Grammar is good as well if you want co-ed, otherwise Manchester GS for boys and Withington or Manchester High for girls (on phone and can't remember if you had a DS or DD). King's Macclesfield have a boys and girls division as well.

I would prefer mixed....at the moment reading Ofsted reports on Stockport schools.....Withington Girls sounds like its for mini genius's...tad intimidating!!

No, it's a really lovely school , I was there until very recently

For mixed, Stockport, Cheadle Hulme and Kings are good. Kings teaches some subjects separately so you get some things single-sex and things like music (I think) mixed.

You'd have to sit separate entrance exams for all the independent schools, they're usually taken in the January, then interviews shortly afterwards.

There's a few not as academic as well, places like Hulme Hall. They're a bit smaller, and very 'caring' schools, is how I've heard them described

Oh, and Alderley Edge School for Girls too (but obviously not mixed!).

Then there's Fallibroome in Macclesfield., that's recently become an academy. I don't know much about there- it has a lovely theatre though!

Will you be able to come over for some open days do you think?

Am in Stockport- got a child in Trafford grammar. Local school Priestnall is o/s by Ofsted- so win win really I don't think you can just move and assume a school will materialise- many are oversubscribed even Indies.

Happy to advise further if I can, but good advice on here already.

That's a point DIddles, I'm guessing you'd need an address to even be considered for the state schools? I know you do for Altrincham Grammar (the girls at any rate) even though there's an entrance exam too!

The independents are a safer option in a way, as they don't have distance criteria. If you sit the exam, you have a chance of being offered a place.

Alty girls have 8 mile radius - boys is different- postcodes outside the local area work on score ( details on website) -worth considering.

They haven't changed that since I applied then . I was so far out I wasn't even in one of the named bands!

Yes, we visited Altrincham Grammar but they will not entertain us even if she were to pass 11+. Cheadle Hulme I like the sound of and St. Bedes....Independents seem the better option as exams are January and they have interviews. Unfortunately have been out of the loop for so long and not been 'prepping' our child with the Verbal Reasoning section....am worried that we are up against children who have been revising for the last 2 years!!

Verbal Reasoning isn't that hard once you get the hang of it. I think practice is more to learn the 'structure' of the questions and what typically comes up rather than how to answer them if that makes sense? Buy some of the workbooks and do a couple a week and she'll be fine

You might need to do some non-verbal as well, I'm not that well up on which schools do which.

Oh, and try and get hold of some past papers from the schools (I know they often sell them at open days), so then you'll get a feel for the structure and timings of the papers.

If you know all this already, just ignore me!

Just to clarify - there is no 11+ anymore in Trafford - all the state schools that you'd traditionally have gone to if you passed the 11+ (Altrincham Girls, Altrincham Boys, Sale Grammar, St Ambrose, Loretto etc) have their own entrance exam, so if you do consider any of those for your DD she has to sit their specific exam (all on different dates usually in the September of the year before she wants to start). IN your case, that would be next month! Obviously the independents have their own exams too but I think they are slightly later.

You are right though that the vast majority of children who sit the exams have been prepped for quite a long time - this doesn't mean to say that your DD couldn't do it.

If you're specifically looking at Trafford, the comprehensives have done much better in recent years. I know its not all about league tables, but Trafford comps did better last year than comps in other areas of Cheshire where the top layer isn't creamed off.

Thanks to you all for your thoughts and advice....it really has been helpful