How much of a lottery is CVMS ?

[MANT]

I know this school is really difficult to get into and receive approx 800- 1000 applicants. But lets talk numbers eg of the 6.5 boys that are turned away for every boy that is accepted (head teachers latest quote) how many satisfy weekly mass attendance baptism under 6 months ? Do they really receive 800-1000 applicants that meet the criteria and place these into a draw ?

The application form certianly looks like an enormous voting form plus the priests ref and of course there are the banding tests !

I think only the school would be able to tell you actual percentages, but reading between the lines, if you're asking if the ones that don't get a place, those who don't meet the priority criteria of weekly mass, holy communion baptised before 6 months, etc, etc, I'm afraid that's not the case. A friend of mine's ds didn't get a place and fulfilled all of the above and then some.

TBH, I don't think it's worth applying if you don't meet the main criteria as there's no guarantee for even those that do.

Banding test wise you're actually better off falling in the middle category as there's more places. My friends DS fell in the top group and who's to say that may have disadvantaged them also - just a guess mind.

There's also Oratory as you know, who are fab and Wimbledon College have a lovely bunch.

Hi urbancupcake, I PMed you by accident! Repeating it here as smoeone else may find it helpful.

We are also in year six and looking at Catholic schools. CVMS is very well described as a lottery - worth putting first, of course, but you should assume you won't get it. We have also seen Gunnersbury, which is a bit dilapidated but does get good results, Wimbledon college, which is similar, St Thomas More, which I thought to be a rather typical inner city Catholic mixed school and where I suspect the co-ed nature leads to quite a lot of unhealthy peer pressures of all kinds, and Maria Fidelis, where I liked the head very much but with only one year of boys to go on, it's uncertain what it will be like for boys going up in the school with such a recent hsitory of single sex education for girls.
We also saw the Oratory, naturally, and if I'd had my way we'd have gone to see Richard Challoner in Merton on Thames as well, but they do work on catchment so I'm not sure how well that would have worked out for us.
I believe there is a new free school or academy opening up on Marylebone Road, but I don't think it's Catholic, I think it's CoE.
Sacred Heart in Camberwell gets an outstanding ofsted rating and gets great results. Thre's also a school called St Mark's in Hounslow which I believe is not at all bad.
I know you didn't ask for all that, but MNers have been so helpful wtih me recently that I'm trying to pay it forward a bit.

No worries steptoe - just responded before seeing this.

Thanks for your replies. I think we are all on the same wavelength esp MrsSteptoe. Yes with CVMS I am accepting that it is difficult to get into although we score highly in what they have left on their Voting Form (SIF) and will be allowed IN lottery !

London oratory seemed really honest about their application process although the the tour was poor with a no questions attitude from the head. I think we have have a better chance there but then again they may use a more lottery type process as CVMS do.. trying to balance up dsitance with suitability of school is difficult esp with other children.

Just seen the above threads regarding choosing schools - FYI just found out that the priest at Maria Fidelis Catholic Secondary School is in court, I think on 24th Feb because he had over 5,000 (!) images of children on his computer. I think he has been at this school for about ten years.

Regarding banding, we were told that there is more movement in the top band than any other, as these children ard the most likely to have selective offers from private schools too. Different school, but possibly similar principle.

Not a Catholic but definitely an advantage being a high performing child in some fair (cough,cough) banding tests. If you look at the Gov. Performance Tables, the intake of pupils for CVMS is 77% high achievers (ie Level 5 and above at KS2), 22% middle achievers (Level 4) and 2% low achievers (Level 3 and below). This type of 'fair banding' is not exclusive to Catholic schools by the way.