I'm a weeny bit cross that there hasn't been a SW/W London Independent schools thread this yr.

[SonorousBip]

Every blinking year there is one - and I read, and nod, and note. Sometimes they go on for months and pages. But this year, when I'm actually doing it - pah, not a sausage.

If anyone wants to do a last minute SPGS/Latymer/Godolphin/ KGS/LEH/WHS/PHS thread, please do! (disclaimer - I'm not doing all of those.). But views welcome. Because I've got several days to form my final views

Just saying its a possibility.

Just saying it's a probability.

i think for very small schools they have to play it a bit don't they? otherwise they could end up with no kids! i guess that's where the prep heads relationship comes in, he can tell them who has other offers and who really wants it.

Totally get what you're all saying about commutes. I currently have the best commute I've ever had in London and it makes a massive difference to my quality of life.

So JAGS would mean leaving house at 7.25 for train at 7.30 (we live v close to train station). 15 mins on train then 15 mins walk. I did it door to door in 40 mins the other day. She'd get to school for about 8.10.

There is an alternative rail route via Clapham Junction to North Dulwich which involves one change - about 45 mins. I don't think that's a bad commute. What do others think?

DS 1 & 2 leave the house just after 7.30 to make sure they get on the local bus to school - they have to otherwise the bus is full!

that commute sounds good. what time does she have to be in school? what is the walk like either end (bright, safe, busy?)

Both ends are good. Station in sight of our house. Herne Hill to JAGS is nice walk and well lit - shops on the way.

The alternative is North Dulwich - right by the school and has trains to Clapham Junction - with loads of trains back to Wimbledon.

I think that's fine. A little bit of time on the train, just enough to play on her phone or swot for a French test.

choc LEH / Hamptons have later buses for those in sports practises problem comes if they are rowers, boathouse at Sunbury, 19 hours per week including Sat and Sun by Year 9, or into drama. Lift shares common though.

Plus for these schools with less local catchments, though they tend to try and do the forms geographically, friendship groups may mean you will need a good satnav to explore deepest Woking / Cobham / Coombe / Carsholton......... Guildford Leisure Centre was a popular choice for parties at one point..........

But I had different experiences with different years at the same school. One of my DDs, still has a local friendship group whereas I have explored all the byways of South West London for my other.

And you never know but that your DD may decide to start going out with a boy who goes to Oratory and the satnav will be venturing even further

Waitingandhoping - I think I'm feeling respect for that school. I'm still sorry for you both that it wasn't a straight yes, which would have been nice to have. However, if this smaller, less academic powerhouse (presume?) school makes offers to those who it thinks are very unlikely to accept (because they are highly likely to get "better" offers elsewhere) at the expense of others who are more likely to have that school as first choice, then they are playing quite a high risk game.

I don't envy the schools trying to make the right number of offers when the situation has got so crazy that some children are sitting 6 or 7 schools. If all the schools offered to the top x number from their exam, then a lot of children will get multiple offers, and many will get none, surely? I write this as a parent of a level 5/6 boy with 2 rejections out of 5 so far, seriously worried about getting no offers...

Poison - I'm pretty sure there are no late coaches from LEH/Hampton - that was a very short-lived thing that finished almost as soon as it started.

Celebrating that my daughter isn't sporty at all (re after school transport!)

We didn't apply to the schools in Hammersmith or City of London Girls for the transport reason. Some parents near us who do have clubbed together to get minicab to and from school / private minibus service - but costs a fortune.

Mertonmama the commute sounds very straight forward. Re your concerns regarding JAGS and eating disorders, I agree with an earlier post saying that eating disorders can sadly happen anywhere, particularly in girls only schools. In fact, I seem to recall a very sad story of a young girl losing her life to anorexia a few years ago - she attended WHS I believe. All very sad indeed.

I personally don't think a bit of travel time to school is a bad thing as long as it's an easy journey. In fact, most of the schools mentioned on this thread have pretty wide catchment areas.

Emo76 you made me laugh! dD2 also not sporty, the fields at LEH would have her running (well, walking in a leisurely pace the other direction (-;). Amaidai Hinchley wood is miles from us but then so are KGS' fields and we have applied there too! We are Richmond/kew based. Tricky tricky! But have too many kids to be carting one here and there. I really need them to be independent!
Dark, definitely redecorate! She has done well!

beingfrank I was sure I had seen them come through at that time recently but definitely not on the schedule now. So yes choc a life of sitting in Car Parks. My DD was into Drama, so I have spent a lot of time waiting outside schools, theatres etc.

Most of DDs peers have sat between 6 and 10 schools each. With the results coming through the top 2 or 3 in each class (2 classes) are getting offers and interviews, the rest are getting straight rejections. Makes me wonder where on earth all the rejects (my own DD included) are going to end up

dark definitely agree with the others that you should decorate.

OMG Castles it is worse than I thought! Utter madness. I wouldn't want to be a registrar in those circumstances. It all adds weight to my theory that at least some of the schools may collude?

there is going to be massive movement on the waiting lists. i'm sure of it. strong candidates from DDs school all put on wait lists. utter madness. must be because of numbers applying to multiple schools.

6-10???? that is nuts!! I appreciate that it's hard to gauge where your child is so you might apply to one or two too many, but that is crazy. Are those kids getting multiple offers, Castles?

chocfinger we like Francis Holland Sloane Square for that reason amongst many . No playing fields! DD liked Alleyns the best on the basis that they have a costa coffee and we saw a cooking lesson. Its a shame there's no fee discount for those who aren't likely to take much advantage of the Olympic standard sports facilities some schools have!

For the tally, DD applied to 4 schools but I know some girls applied for 5 or 6 but including St Paul's which was probably a massive long shot (dd did not).

Yes so far the ones who did 10, yes 10, have had offers/interviews from those schools that can at this stage. I think it's totally bonkers. I thought DS sitting 4 in his day was too many. Good news for this on waiting lists though. AND probably just me feeling desperate hopeful, it makes you wonder if they will work their way down those very quickly.

Good grief. 10 schools. Madness. All the people I know from state primaries went for three max four a tricky one, a middle one and a dead cert. I would have thought( though have no idea) prep school kids would apply to no more than that as surely you are paying in part for advice as to the most appropriate school. Ten!!! That's at least a thousand pounds on exam fees, would buy me a nice new laptop

I am absolutely novice at all of this - first born child, most of our friends in the state system as we are at the moment. However, from my utterly ignorant standpoint, I find it hard to believe that there is collusion and tactics of the sort mentioned here when it comes to offers. I agree Waitingandhoping that your news sounds utterly baffling and I'm sorry to hear it, but the idea that they can somehow throw away excellent candidates in case they get better offers sounds illogical to me.

How do they know that a strong candidate will get offers elsewhere? Why wouldn't they want to chance it that they might opt for their school? How do you they know that there aren't strong reasons for them to prefer a less prestigious option?

I only know a little bit about the North London ones we're going for, but two of them have been very explicit in saying that they interview the top x% of exam candidates and siblings. That's that, no other factors. Since they didn't even have my son's report when they offered an interview, I don't think they look at these or any other information at this point. Why would they?

Maybe it's all gloves off post interview, but it still doesn't seem logical to reject people just because they might reject the school - wouldn't they just factor that in to how much they over offer? I don't know, like I say, I'm a total ignoramus in this field.

And 10 schools? Madness.

Dino crossed posts, same words on 10 school applications.
We applied to three, a tricky one, a tricky one and a tricky one. Sigh.

Having been through the process twice, I've not heard of anyone not getting an offer because they were thought to be too strong a candidate for the school. We applied to a very non selective school with one child and got an offer, despite the fact that we were honest on the application form about the other selective schools we were applying for, and eventually chose instead.
That said, I know of several children who either deliberately or not, performed poorly in certain exams (my dd did this for a school she didn't want to go to) and didn't get offers despite getting offers at supposedly more selective schools