NLCS

[Gingham1]

Making the decision has proved more difficult in reality! Once we get pass the brilliant results, when comparing with other offers we are trying to look at other factors and find where Dd would be happiest and thrive.

The first major concern is the "pressure", it's hard to work out how much more this is compared to other schools and if all girls cope. We are lucky to live close by so in some ways that would help with homework, clubs etc, but if anyone has experience it would be good to know.
The second concern would be the social aspect and fitting in. From other threads it seems that the ethic mix is predominately Jewish and Asian. Do they girls mix well together, are there many other girls from other backgrounds/faiths? An insight on the demographic mix would be helpful.

I'm happy to respond to PMs if you have any specific questions but....here goes with the general stuff....
Pressure- If you don't apply it as a parent and keep a check on perfectionist tendencies in DD, it's not a problem. The school knows that happy girls do well. Unless you are explicitly told that DD is finding a subject difficult (this info will always come with 'and here's what WE are going to do...'), don't probe. Don't ask how DD did in comparison to her peers, don't ask if DD knows how to do better next time. Don't ask the teachers either.
Almost every girl will have been the cleverest in their year at primary. Being 'average' can take some getting used to. Keep reminding DD that not every piece of homework is her magnum opus and make sure she spends time doing nothing, watching crap tv and reading just for fun.
The ethnic mix is one of my favourite things about the school. My DDs' friends are a complete mix of backgrounds and faiths. The new Head has just decided to embrace her difficulty with some of the more complicated names (Nigerian and Sri Lankan ones are particularly polysyllabic )and we appreciate her relaxed good humour. As a parent, I love my friendship group from the school. We're a happy rainbow.

I would add that the girls mix with their own types ie sporty girls hang out together, bookworms find each other, those who care more about youtube than homework often find each other too - nothing to do with ethnic backgrounds. I think it raises our girls to be colourblind and accepting of all backgrounds. I do, however, admit that there are many names of girls which are hard to pronounce, at first, but as our girls cope, so do we parents!

Re the pressure, I think the pressure does come from the parents more than anything. I took the "back off and leave her to it" approach on arrival at Year 7. I think they main thing is that most of the girls enjoy learning and take it seriously. Not all subjects and not all girls. But the general theme is a love of learning and joining in, irrespective of your ethnicity.

Agree 100%
Just as a side note...Mrs Clark seems to be memorising all of their names (No idea how!) . Greeted DD2 and her friends by name last week in the corridor . DD2 is distinctive looking, her friends not so much.

Don't listen to the hype, most of it comes from people that don't actually know the school. We had this choice last year. I love NLCS, it has an amazing mix of girls and seems truly diverse. Again, the pressure at all schools of this ilk is from the parents, always. The school itself doesn't rank or put the girls in sets (I think maybe Maths in year 8). DD ended up at another school, but I did try and steer her towards NLCS. We know several girls at the school and they are all lovely.

Thank you so much for your replies. We are looking forward to taking back seat in year 7, after primary school it's definitely something we look forward to!
Children do tend to be colourblind, but parents not always so. Our primary hasn't been very mixed and socially that can be difficult with most parents socialising with their girls outside of school and subsequently the girls tend to do so (not intentionally of course).
Could you give me an idea on the mix of your dds classes or how you see the senior school as a whole, including the economic mix.
Many thanks

Thank you Nylon, agree with the hype. We want to see past this and find out from people who have experience. What steered your Dd away out of interest?

Well done to your dd gingham

The daughter of a good friend and neighbour of ours has recently left NLCS. We knew her very well as she used to babysit for my dc. She said she did feel under enormous pressure at times, much more so than her friends at other, also very academic, schools. I can't remember the exact instances but she often complained that it was just her school that made them do such and such.

We also met a girl on holiday recently who attended NLCS who also said the same.

I wouldn't worry about the ethnic mix at all, you'll get that at any similar school in the area, the girls really don't notice ethnicity at all.

What other schools are you considering?

Also another question, when we visited most girls we met travelled from far. We are fairly local, so this was also a concern, although minor, maybe there are more local girls than the ones we met?

Thank you Dancergirl, we are declining two other offers but still considering St Helens. It's hard to compare the two as they are not like for like but we are looking at all the other aspects now. Do you have any experience of St. Helens

The girls come from all over. From Canons Drive on out. If you are very local, you may end up with gaggles of them hanging out in your front room ;)
Dancergirl's post made me laugh (not in a mean way, I promise). A couple of days ago, DD2 and I were out shopping and she had just got done telling me how she had been so efficient that she had no hw for the weekend and she was going to spend two days in pj's and then we ran into a friend of mine (who has boys) who asked her how she was finding school. DD2 launched into a whole tirade about how stressed she was with sooooooo much work. I was like....what was that? She just shrugged. And she did spend the weekend in pj's watching rubbish tv.
I think it's the academic girls' equivalent of being macho. 'I revised for 1,000 hours until my eyes bled.' (Reality- I looked over my notes while watching back to back episodes of America's Top Model. )

Well actually yes gingham My oldest dd was at St Helen's from Year 7-11. She reluctantly left to pursue dance at a more serious level and has gone to a school where she can combine dance with A Levels.

It's a fantastic school, dd was so happy there and did very well. The Head has big ambitions for the school, it's definitely on the up. If you compare results with say Habs girls they are very similar. Lovely grounds, lots of green space, yet they are on top of a tube station which lots of girls make use of (although there is a coach service too).

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Hi. We just accepted NLCs yesterday. We also found it a hard decision for various reasons- also have some of your concerns. We have an older daughter who joined at y7 and is thriving. It’s a fabulous school for the right kid- and hopefully the school and parents generally get it right. Feel free to pm me if you haven’t yet decided.

Haha horsemadmom I can imagine that was quite entertaining. I can see that being top of your class all through primary and not being so at senior school can take some adjustment but I'm sure they all have their strengths. Speaking to parents the pressure issue always comes up as does the pastoral care. Although the pastoral was the one thing that impressed me about the school!
I'm trying to see past the diversity issue dancergirl, but it's hard to get a clear picture, we just want her to feel included and enjoy her senior school.

Thank you cbarb, I have pmd you.

We had two daughters go through the school and now one is in her last year of uni and one has just started. Both loved the school

Pressure: the girls create their own pressure (and, of course, the parents) with their drive to succeed. That drive is partly in them and encouraged by the school. The majority of girls that feel the pressure and want to leave are the ones where the school wasn't right for them. That is also true for any school you select

Ethnic mix: didn't even think about it. Lots of all walks of life...my daughters made some amazing friends and I guarantee they will still all be friendly in 25 years

Living local: we live in Stanmore and horseandmom is right....we often had a house full of school girls post sports. Luckily we liked it

Huge advocate of the school....

My niece has been to an international branch - not sure how to call but anyway located in south korea. I heard that nlcs in south korea is also academically excellent and she had a chance for exchange to nlcs. What she told me about the school was that (1) there are a lot of girls from India who are a academically passionate and excellent (2) rich families- not exactly 'rich' but the family tends to have a lot of money. But even though there are these parts, i've heard that the girls love the school community itself.

This might be too late but I would echo the experience of the other NLCS parents. Mrs Clark is lovely and has her own personality. She is a breath of fresh air. The school is very diverse and what brings girls together is their intellectual curiosity or other things that they like together - not race or economics. There are always some who don't fully appreciate the privilege they have of attending such a good school but when it matters they work and want to do well.

Being on the inside of the school is very different than being on the outside. I have been asked so many times that the school must be pressured. In fact the school does everything they can to diffuse pressure - there are no sets apart for Maths - I didn't even know what set DD was in until a lot later. Nobody knows each other's results. The pressure comes from the parents in junior school and from the girls themselves in senior school. For the right girl the school is brilliant and caters for their intellectual curiosity and will provide depth as well as breadth. We have been here for a number of years and I too am a huge advocate. Also local to school.

Another thing to add there isn't a NLCS type - one of the best things about the school is that you can be yourself and don't have to fit a mould.I have not heard the same about other schools. Unique confident and ambitious is the output.

This is an old thread but I was wondering if you have any feedback on the Junior School, joining at 4+. My daughter is very very emotional and temperamental, I wonder if the school will be loving and caring enough ... if she cries will someone try to comfort her?!

My daughter just started Sixth Form and had joined in year 7. I would totally agree with some mums here - It is 100% not the school that puts pressure on the girls but mainly the parents and the girls themselves. The pace ist fast and the atmosphere very stimulating. We LOVE the school and Mrs Clark who is a very involved down to earth Headmistress. Girls who are intellectually curious and self driven will thrive. On the other hand, over-tutored spoon-fed children who only just got in through a huge effort and 2 years preparation will struggle. Some parents are so desperate to get their children in that they forget they would do hugely better being among the best in a less academic school rather than being below average at NLCS. This may lead to difficulties with confidence and self-esteem.

It is a great school but not worth travelling to from a far out

@Lilly2013

My daughter just started Sixth Form and had joined in year 7. I would totally agree with some mums here - It is 100% not the school that puts pressure on the girls but mainly the parents and the girls themselves. The pace ist fast and the atmosphere very stimulating. We LOVE the school and Mrs Clark who is a very involved down to earth Headmistress. Girls who are intellectually curious and self driven will thrive. On the other hand, over-tutored spoon-fed children who only just got in through a huge effort and 2 years preparation will struggle. Some parents are so desperate to get their children in that they forget they would do hugely better being among the best in a less academic school rather than being below average at NLCS. This may lead to difficulties with confidence and self-esteem.

Being below average is not necessarily a problem in and of itself. By definition, half the girls at NLCS will be below the median, just as half the children will be below the median at any school. The problems arise when there's clear daylight between a child and the pack. And there really aren't that many of those at NLCS, if only because the over-tutored spoon-fed children who spent huge effort and 2 years preparation form a significant proportion of the students and, therefore, the pack.

My worry is that the bar is set so high with the outcomes at the school. Last year 100% of GCSE exams taken were A grade equivalent or above and 100% of A-level were A grade equivalent or above. Even looking across the other top schools in the country, that is astonishing and frankly intimidating. I understand the whole idea there is that excellence is attainable, and what an amazing thing to sign up to and buy into, but imagine if you were the only kid who got a B. How would you process that? At any other school a B grade would be unremarkable (or possibly applauded).

Any parents who work full-time in the City? How did you manage with the commute when daughters where in Reception? I am assuming the first year will be the hardest as she will be very tired after school but I won't be able to pick her up ay 3.15pm.

@Anca123456

Any parents who work full-time in the City? How did you manage with the commute when daughters where in Reception? I am assuming the first year will be the hardest as she will be very tired after school but I won't be able to pick her up ay 3.15pm.

I'm assuming that you're either not convenient to one of the early bus routes or else you can't pick up even at 16:00-16:30 from one of their stops.

NLCS offer an after school club which runs until 17:30. There is a daily fee; it used be around £5 but I don't know about now.

They'll cover all these options during the offer holders' tour.

I should add that it's about 40 minutes from Liverpool Street Station to Canons Park Station on the Metropolitan Line and Jubilee Line, then 10 minutes at a fast walk to the Junior School.