Whitgift v Dulwich

[Mumofthreelondon]

Any views on Whitgift or Dulwich. DS is bright and sporty. Whitgift is far from us but we liked it.

IMO two different types of children and parents. It's a long time at school. Best to go with the one that 'feels' right.

We turned down an academic scholarship offer from Dulwich (13+) for Whitgift, even although W is further away from us (we're SW London)). DS is highly academic but also super-sporty. Haven't regretted it for a moment. W instil a sense of pride and mutual respect in boys and staff which is reflected in the way the school is pristinely kept, and the way that boys treat each other. A really inclusive environment.

Helpful. How do you get to W from SW1?

Does your son weekly board or do the commute daily ?

Mumofthree - where are you in SW1? Don't forget that East Croydon is a super fast train ride from Victoria.

Mumofthree- We're a 15 min walk from Clapham Junction so DS gets the fast train coming from Victoria to South Croydon, then a 7-10 min walk from Whitgift. Large numbers of W boys do this commute and the older ones keep an eye out for the younger ones, which is reassuring when they start (true during the school day, too, which helps a lot with settling in). W runs school buses from Wandsworth too, but CJ is closer to us than the bus pick-up by about 5 mins. We considered flexi-boarding but so far haven't needed to use it - the commute takes about 45 mins.

Interesting. We re near West Brompton station but DD will have late nights twice a week as he is a chorister. I'm thinking of signing up for weekly boarding and pulling him home whenever he wants -do u know boys doing it? Do they enjoy it? I was impressed w the set up. I never waned boarding but this seems a good in between solution -

I'd go for day boarding if he's happy with that. It's not uncommon for the train from Victoria via CJ to be cancelled. Also that particular route has been removed all together more than once and only reinstated after petitioning from parents. The coach would be a very, very long journey.

Wanted to add that I have many friends with kids at Whitgift and they can't speak highly enough about it.

I meant week boarding

Yup that's what I am thinking plus w the day boarding they are very flex so if he only wants to stay 3 nights that's fine too which is helpful. Thanks!

I have a DS going to both schools. They are comparable academically but very different in terms of general vibe and ethos. Whitgift obviously takes its sports very seriously but imo general pastoral care and engagement of the staff is much better at Dulwich. Dr. Spence also brings an inspirational quality as HM @ DC. There's more of a hierarchical (regimental?) feel at Whitgift which might suit some but is definitely very different to DC.