Did you know, 11+ in Kent

[lazymoo]

This will be long as I am no good at shortening things sorry!
Ok, so Sep 2005 my DD's Head Teacher told every parent to apply for a comp as 1st choice regardless, then follow with a Grammar only if the child was bright enough. So my DD was accepted at Chaucer in Cant her 1st choice and passed her 11+ so we appealed to Barton CourtGS and DoverGGS got Barton Court straight away, (good 11+ scores and they were told to take 30 more kids) went to appeal hearing for DGGS and she got that too, Appeal board for DGGS informed me that KENT pass the top 25% so you could have a glut of kids in the Dover area trying for Grammar schools, and places avaliable in Canterbury. The interesting thing and the point I wanted to make is: when the cut of date in August for appealing to get in to schools on your top 3 is over, you can appeal to any other schools not just those on your list of 3 schools i.e in my case Simon LangtonGS, or even Faversham, or Folkestone for a place, even those which are out of area.

The 11+ is designed to cream off the top 25% in the county. However, they still apply a certain standard so that, if you have a year where only, say, 15% are grammar school material, they won't pass the other 10% just to make up the numbers because that 10% would struggle to cope at grammar school.

Also, would you want to apply for a place in another town just to get your child into a grammar school? Where all their friends will live far away, etc.?

We were advised not to put a high school as first choice if entering the 11+ because the appeals procedure was not designed for people to appeal against being granted their first choice.

We were told that had we put down Folkestone GGS on our form our DD would have got in there, but it isn't generally advertised. Highworth is always full and without a recommendation (long story) there was no way she was getting in. We were very thankful to the outgoing govt for the additional Assisted Places they created.

When DS3 went through this (he's now Y10) all the schools told us to put down the High school first and Grammar second because the boys grammar always had space. Now it doesn't, so
I'd be wary of doing that now.

I wouldn't imagine there'd ever be space at Langton though.

Putting a high school first on the list might have been sensible if your desired high school operated a first preference only admissions criterium. However, this has now been made unlawful, so I don't see any advantage to naming a high school first. Just put down the grammar school you want and name the high school second in case your child doesn't pass the 11+.

This year the schools that were over subscribed in my area were Dover Grammar schools not Canterbury.

Children that didn't pass so well ie; you needed 119 min for NV, V and Maths got in on appeal with scores as low as 114, 118, 128 (my DD BF). She passed her 11+ on Head Teachers Appeal, and then got into Langton on appeal.

The Head Teacher my Daughter had last year, recommended we all but a Comp first even the boy who got ... wait for it .. 147 NV, 145 V and 148 for maths, but, it was her first year as a Head Teacher and my oldest child.

My DD is now in yr 7, and is coping very well.

The thing is with the way it worked in 2006, all of the major Comp's said on their literature that they were first choice only schools, and as my DD (through a complete fluke!) got offered places in both of her Grammar school choices too.
In retrospect I am glad I did things the way I did.

eek I thought I put doing not coping she is 'doing very well'

Im confused as to how this is worked. We live just over the border in east sussex, but are only 25 minutes drive from several Kent grammar schools. Do they base the top 25% entirely on merit, regardless of where the child lives, or does distance from school play a major part?
These schools are always way oversubscribed, so if distance is also a factor it wouldnt be worth applying.

Also, in East Sussex first preference comes first & this is highly unlikely to change, so we would have to be damn sure of a place before taking the risk.

From what the independent appeal board members who I went in front of re: DGGS told me; (and much to my suprise) they just take the top 25% and class them as Grammar material, regardless of where they live.

Although, I tend to think that what Freckle said is right, not what I percieved teh board to mean; she said:

The 11+ is designed to cream off the top 25% in the county. However, they still apply a certain standard so that, if you have a year where only, say, 15% are grammar school material, they won't pass the other 10% just to make up the numbers because that 10% would struggle to cope at grammar school.

If you are in East Sussex, my understanding is that you can apply to a Kent school by completing the Kent application form. You could also apply to Sussex schools by completing the Sussex application form. So, you would lose nothing by putting your preferred Sussex school as first choice on the Sussex form and putting a grammar school as first choice on the Kent Form.

My sister lives about 5 miles from me here in Kent, but is on the border between Kent and Medway (Medway is an unitary authority to has its own rules and application procedures). She applied to both Kent and Medway using their separate application procedures to ensure her dd got the best school. Her dd now attends a Medway grammar school.

Distance will be a factor if the grammar school you want is oversubscribed. You need to look at the booklet sent out by KCC which lists all secondary schools in Kent and details their individual admissions criteria. Each school will state whether they use distance between home and school, sibling as existing pupil, etc. as their criteria.

It strikes me that, if you also apply to your favoured Sussex high school, you have nothing to lose by applying to a Kent grammar, but do bear in mind that your child will have to sit the 11+ and you may have to make your own arrangements for that as, obviously, your child's primary school will not be providing that facility.

Unfortunately we wouldnt be able to apply to a Kent school on the Kent form & an East Sussex school on an East Sussex form freckle We would have to apply for the Kent school on our East Sussex form as first preference & put all our eggs in one basket. If we put our local school as first preference we would be offered that, & if we put our local school as second preference we would have no chance of getting in there if we failed 11+ Its a huge gamble. DD isnt year 6 for another 3 years though, so weve got a little time to see what happens. Local school is probably the best option anyway, as long as it doesnt go seriously downhill in the next few years.

That's odd. I thought if you lived close to the border of two counties, you could cross-apply. Certainly my sister did.

Have you checked with Kent what their position is? If you've been told this by East Sussex, they might have a different agenda .

According to this years Kent & East Sussex admissions booklets, both state that you must apply for a school using your own LEA`s preference form, not the one from the neighbouring borough. Your own LEA will pass on your preference form to the neighbouring LEA. Theres no way of getting around it im afraid that particular loophole has been well & truly closed.

Well I hope when the time comes you get the school of your choice for your daughter Sparkle Princess. Another small tip, which would of been useful for me, is try going to the school open days on your own the year before (at the beginning of yr 5) so if you have a huge choice it you can wittle them down to just 4 or so. DD and I live in a catchment area, where there is 11 schools. (4 Dover, 6 Canterbury and 1 Sandwich)

Hi fiofio, nice to meet someone who lives near

Thanks lazymoo If we dont try for a Grammar then we only have one local school to go for, so unless it goes seriously down the pan she will probably go there. I will definitely look at all the options though in year 5. Less than 2 years to go then

Oooh the school I went to has been mentioned.
Absolutely hated it, but it was a long time ago. Back when it was 13+.
(Random pointless post, sorry)

We've put both Highworth and Folkestone on our list, along with the infamous Tenterden "comp" with entrance exam. From where we live in the middle of nowhere we have no other suitable secondaries within a reasonable travelling distance. Getting jittery about all of dd's choices being selective now.... She's bright but a bit unpredictable.

Dd1 has positively flourished since being at a local grammar school - primary head said she was anti-social, would never make friends and was far too serious. Ha! Prompted me to move the rest of the kids pronto.

So what's the infamous Tenderden comp with entrance exam? It wouldn't be the one with Martin wotsisname as head, would it? The one who leads the campaign against the 11+?

Think his kids attend but he's not actually HT. Think HT is close friend of the govt. It's Homewood btw - the only comp you'll ever have to take an entrance exam for to ensure your entry, assuming you're in the top 20% of course. That's comprehensive education in Kent for you!

I thought Martin Frey was the head of Homewood. He is certainly the driving force behind the Stop the 11+ campaign and this is supported by Homewood. So how hypocritical is that? To campaign against the 11+ on the grounds that it's selective, yet impose your own admissions test to select your pupils.

Shows how much I've read - determined she'll go to GS with her sister so didn't pay much attention! Apparently he spends lots of time away from the school looking at new initiatives. Facilities there are great but totally agree about hypocritical approach. They even have a music "scolarship" for children who are Grade 4 or above!!

So, anyone fidgety about results yet? And did anyone else apply onlone? I'm so worried about it all.

I was thinking about you lot and your results this morning. This time next week you'll all know eh.
I had got the wrong end of the stick last year and thought I would off recieved DD results through the post on the morning of the 1st, oh how wrong was I they were posted by KCC on the first and I think it was the 3rd before we got our results.

Good luck to you and all year 6's.

I applied online. Apparently I can access DS2's school allocation at 9am on 1st March. Why not earlier so that the poor sod knows his result before he goes to school???

Dd doesn't want to check before the letter arrive - I'll do the school run then be online at 9am! I'm far more worried than last time - older dd was so reliable on all the papers.