Godolphin & Latymer & WHS

[Bagpipes1234]

Hi everyone. We are lucky to have had an 11+ offer for our DD from WHS and G&L and struggling to choose between the 2. We live in the middle of both but G&L probably an extra 10 min journey on bus to Hammersmith station so door to door 40 mins, instead of 30 mins to WHS. Our daughter is very good at maths, coding and loves her music and singing, and also netball. We would be very grateful if anyone with recent experience of either school may have some advice for us. Thanks for any advice.

Girls commute to G&L from all over London, usually by tube. Swiss Cottage, St. John's Wood, Putney, Ealing, Kensington, Wimbledon (!) as well as Hammersmith, Barnes, Fulham etc. etc. Worth bearing in mind with regards to where friends will live! It is a superb school which would undoubtedly suit your daughter - you presumably got a feel for this at an open day?
Wimbledon High is rather more parochial but again would suit well from the sound of things.
Where do you live? Which school did you / your daughter prefer when you visited?

... £1117 per term difference in fees...!

DD is WHS and very happy there. Didn't apply to G&L as gut feel wasn't there but know v happy girls there too.
In DDs year I'd say about half are from Wimbledon- the rest from Putney, Battersea, Earlsfield etc. Few from Fulham and Chelsea but very much mainly south of the river.
Lots of music, drama etc and easy to get involved even if you're not super talented!
Netball is in the spring term only unless you're in the top teams when there are some tournaments in the Autumn term. Lots of teams in the younger years. Not really any complaints!

@Bagpipes1234
I can't comment on many of the things except maths. DD has an offer from WHS. Since maths is her favourite subject, I did a bit research on that. My feeling is that they don't put too much emphasis on it (GCSE curriculum, Maths Challenge outcome, A-level results etc.) This really confuses me as I keep on hearing how much the school values STEAM subjects.

But apart from that, the school is lovely and easy to get to via public transport.

Maths is the only thing they stream in in Y7 and they have regular testing etc. They seem to do all the challenges etc. DD is very good at maths and is in the second set of 5 I think.

Thank you for the replies. Useful to read the last two comments about the maths too. At the visits there was a slight preference for WHS partly influenced by fact it is more of a scrum to get onto the bus home at Hammersmith Bus station than at WHS and longer walk with heavy backpack, but on the other hand still a couple of years of building works at WHS to live through too and I am not sure how disruptive all the noise, dust etc is to the children. I guess we just hope by the time she is doing GCSE's at WHS she will have the maths and computer science taught as well as it seems to be at G&L.
G&L also seems to receive a lot of praise for all the pastoral care on offer which is a good selling point too, but perhaps it is just as good at WHS? Does anyone have any impression on that point? I know both will be fine and lucky to have an option. Thank you again for any feedback.

The pastoral care at G&L is, indeed, exceptional. It is very rare to hear negatives, as pointed out on the 'SW independents' thread that is running.

PS, also there are a number of threads on here referring to the fact 20 or so girls leave WHS each year for 6th form to join KCS etc. Why is that and is that the same for other schools such as G&L? Thank you!

Many girls at WHS (about 50%) have been at the same school since the age of 4. They are ready for a change by the time they are 16.

It's one of WHS's biggest challenges... stopping their Year 11s going straight up the hill to the boys school!

Better STEM at Kings too.

The girls move at 6th form because they want co-ed (ie boys!)... ;)

Thank you. Also do music or netball clubs tend to be after school or at lunch time? Just trying to get a feel of what time ‘home time’ would really be for the first couple of years. Hopefully more are at lunch so leave school at 4 pm?

Most music is before school or at lunchtime, they have a longer lunch break so that they can fit in lots of clubs.
Sport Clubs tend to be outside of school hours (eg at weekends) although some things are before school (swimming)

Netball training is after school and at lunch time but DD isn't very sporty so generally leaves at 4 except for the netball day. When there are plays/ concerts etc there tend to be lots of after school rehearsals but only for a week or so before.

thank you!
@Utility
I wonder if you may have any information about finishing times at G&L, if the girls play netball or are in a choir or orchestra in year 7, do they stay at school later certain nights each week? Is there still a bunch of them walking to Hammersmith bus station or are they generally picked up by parents. Thank you, we don’t know anyone at the school, so grateful for any advice. Thanks.

Netball at G&L is played for two terms, one practice before school each week starting at 0745 (school starts at 0830), one practice during lunch break, matches after school about once per week for A to F teams.
In year 7, there is the possibility of an unauditioned choir or various auditioned choirs. Practices tend to be in lunch break. Orchestra practice tends to be after school but again, depends on which of the orchestras/ ensembles etc. she is in.
It seems daunting at first but there is a huge amount on offer. And not too much homework! There are always other girls walking to the Hammersmith public transport hub.

Correct but you also need to factor in £4.60 per day for lunch at G&L which is extra on top of the fees.

Hi @Utility and others. I have a few more questions I would be grateful to get answers too. If any matches after school are at a different school what do you do about transport? Are they brought back to G&L? Are there Saturday sports too?
At lunch do the girls use the 3G pitches to play on just for fun or are they reserved for sports?
Do you think the teaching there is quite special or is it more to do with the cohort of girls who are there? I wonder how it has developed the reputation of being a gentle kind school.
My DS is at a school not too far away and we often get emails about muggings around the Hammersmith underpass near the bridge.
Is this an issue closer to King St as well? Thank you for all your advice. Still struggling to decide between GL and WHS.

Hi Bagpipes. Just in case it’s relevant, G&L has an early finish at 3pm on Fridays which is good, especially in winter, as they can get home before it gets dark.

Hammersmith is a worry yes, but tbh, a friend of mine’s daughter was mugged on Wimbledon Hill.

If you want a chance to go and see the school again, just call them and they’ll sort it. Last year there were various groups going around after half-term for a “second sight.” You can ask the sports teams questions then, as it will be variable depending on what she plays. My DD does all her clubs at lunchtimes though,

As I’ve said on the other thread, the homework seems light so far and it does feel like a kind, unpretentious school.

I’m sure WHS is lovely too, but I have no experience of that one.

The main difference will be where the friends live, as I doubt there’s many from north of the river at WHS. At G&L (in our class at least) its Notting Hill, K&C, Chiswick, Barnes, Putney, Kew in the main.

77seven has answered many of your questions.
Three are no matches on Saturdays (bizarrely in my view). If the team plays away after school, they are indeed brought back to G&L to make their way home from there.
I have never worried about Hammersmith, any more than any other part of London. The transport hub is always thronged with children from G&L, LU, St Paul's boys and girls, St James', Sacred Heart etc. etc. The children feel safe there and indeed socialise there!
The teaching is very good in my experience.

Thanks Utility and 77seven. That's really helpful!

@Bagpipes1234 - same situation this year with us. We live 18mins walk from WHS, but will need a door to door journey to G&L, including tube, of about 50mins. We haven’t managed to get into the schools to get a feel for what resonates best, so keep swinging between the two. DD is academic but loves her extra curricular stuff too. Tearing our heads apart. What did you decide in the end?