Second chance to apply for independent schools.

[Liam436]

Hello,

We live in Fulham. DD was in year six before schools were closed. We had applied for several independent schools in our area but were unsuccessful.

Do you think, given that a whole academic year has effectively been cancelled, that we may have another chance to apply for again for any independent schools after this is all over?

Our state primary has been very good for our daughter, and most of the state secondaries we've looked at seem to be okay for the most part. I'm just interested to know if anyone thinks an independent school would still be worth it and why.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Liam

do you mean aiming to take a "year out" and apply again for 2021 entry into y7?

or do you mean that you think the schools may have newly available vacancies for 2020 entry to y7 that they can't fill from their waiting list?

The year hasn't been cancelled. I suppose it doesn't hurt to ring around the schools she applied to to see if they do have unexpected vacancies due to people not being able to afford to go next year. But in Fulham I would have thought most independent schools have a waiting list. Was your daughter on any?
Did you apply to Lady Margeret's? It's an excellent school and if she got in there I'd chose that over private.

A whole academic year hasn't been cancelled. A term and 2 weeks at most if we stay off until September, and some of Europe are reopening theirs soon already...

OTOH I can see that more people than usual will pull out of committing to pay fees if their jobs are lost/uncertain, so it is certainly worth a try I would think.

Pipandmum

I don't think DD was put onto any waiting lists. But given that more places may become available, it may be worth contacting some of the schools.

And yes, we applied for Lady Margeret's along with many of the other local schools. But I want to have other options available in case DD doesn't get a place.

I would call them and ask if she can be put on a waiting list.

We were thinking of moving our daughter (last year of primary) in February and we were told that all schools were full, letters going out end of feb and to call back once people had confirmed, or not, their place. Round here there people who apply for more than one school, so not all places are taken up. Using that logic, it’s worth a call, especially if there may additionally be people pulling children out.

OP- your post is a bit confusing. Presumably your daughter has got a place at a state secondary and you’ve accepted it? Which independent secondaries did she sit for? You would know if she was on a waitlist as you would have been told rather than just getting a straight’no thanks’. I think whether the schools may now have vacancies will depend a lot on which schools they are. The ‘big name’ very selective schools are much less likely to than the smaller, relatively less academic ones I would say.

OP, I would bear in
mind that if your dd wasn't put on a waiting list then the schools you tried for may not be suitable for her. You live a short distance for some of the most selective private schools in the U.K. and they select dc who will thrive in their fast paced environments. I know parents who pushed their dc in the top level schools and then regretted it as their dc spent their schools years in the bottom cohort despite gaining GCSE's that put them in the top percentile in the U.K.
Perhaps consider a different set of schools, if you want suggestions then pls name the schools your dd was rejected from.

So your daughter has one term left of year 6? Given the current financial climate it might be worth contacting private secondaries and asking if any more places have become available. Was your DD on the waiting list for any of the schools she was rejected from?

I would think worth a shot IF your DD was a close call to being offered a place anyway. If she wasn’t (is that why they wouldn’t have offered a waiting list spot?) then I would think very carefully about sending her somewhere she may not cope. You must have a state secondary place by now, don’t you?

Does she have a state secondary place for September as a fall back? I would suggest it depends whether she met the minimum academic level required, but perhaps lost out to better candidates on the day. I doubt they will lower entry standards unless there is a significant fall out, which should be apparent in next week or so when the term's notice kicks in. Are there less competitive schools she did not sit first time round?

To answer some of the suggestions raised here:

GreyishDays

I agree it would be a good idea to ask the schools in question if they may have extra places next year. I will probably do this.

talktalk2020

Most schools were closed in March 2020 and many before this. We had already accepted a place at a local state secondary school, but we were wondering if there may still be a chance to apply for an independent school.

Singingrain1223

Yes, for some of the schools we applied for, we were told admissions was very competitive, most notably for SPGS and G&L, with many applications for each place. I accept that DD's chance of getting a place at either is rather small, but maybe still worth a try.

HandfulOfDust

Yes, I was thinking that more places may become available for various reasons. Also, I assume DD wasn't put onto any waiting lists as we weren't told that she was.

thewinkingprawn

Yes, DD was accepted for a place at a local secondary, but we still want to consider other options as well. I also agree that she may not cope at somewhere like SPGS, but we don't want to rule it out completely. When we visited SPGS last year, they told us DD should give it a shot and that the best way to assess if it was the right school was if she sat the entrance exams.

But that being said, DD may get just as good an education if she was in the top sets in an average school than in the bottom sets at somewhere like SPGS.

What state school did you get?

Celeriacacaca

Fulham Cross Girls' School

OP- if your DD didn’t get a place on the WL at SPGS or G&L it’s very unlikely she would get a place now but it may be worth contacting other schools you may like when they are back after the holidays. They are not ‘closed’ as such- the staff are working and pupils are working remotely in most cases. DS is starting in Y7 in Sept at an independent school and they are still contacting us regularly.
At DDs secondary school it’s almost business as usual except the pupils are at home.
Are you also on Wait lists for other state schools you may prefer? These are also moving and admission offices are working.

OP, if you want a private option try St James's in Hammersmith and More House in Knightsbridge, you have to be realistic about the ability of your dd and where she would thrive. You couldn't choose 2 more selective schools in the U.K. than SPSG and G&L.

Singingrain1223

I agree. While SPGS or G&L are both fantastic schools, I accept that DD getting a place at either is rather slim. I also agree that it wouldn't do much good to her self-esteem to be in the bottom ten percent of attainment at one of these schools. Better to be in the top quarter at a less 'top' school.

I will look at some of the less oversubscribed schools that you mention as well as possibly FHS in Sloane Square.

G&L seems to now be a close second to SPGS in difficulty to get into in terms of expected academic ability combined with popularity. I heard both schools only needed to take a handful of girls from their wait list so if anyone dropped out now I suspect they would be able to fill from their WL.

That being said, an email or phone call to the registrars wouldn’t hurt. You never know if others on the WL have already accepted places at other schools and wouldn’t want to lose deposits etc.

I’d be really interested to know what they say to you if you don’t mind reporting back!

I know of families who gave notice at Easter to withdraw their children from private schools as their family financial situation has changed. Maybe not at the most competitive schools but you may well find gaps opening elsewhere

I want to thank everyone for all the constructive suggestions.

On talking with DW and DD today, we have decided to stick with the local state school we accepted a place at earlier this year, assuming we still have the place.

Our concern with many independent schools is that they seem to be excessively focused on their league table performance, and thus would more likely throw out struggling pupils instead of trying to help them. Do correct me if I'm wrong.

In answer to your question, you are wrong. However, it shouldn't matter in your case since you are happy with the school place that you have and haven't had a confirmed option for a independent one.

Your girl will be absolutely fine.

MandalaYogaTapestry

You think that a top private school wouldn't throw out a pupil who was constantly getting low marks? I'm interested.

@Liam436, a 'top private school,' may allow an 'under performing' student to remain, but with lots of conditions. For example, some London Day schools, have been known to do any of the following:

1. Pupil is made to sit fewer GCSEs.
2. If pupil is scoring 6s (Bs) or lower, they're made to sit exams as an external candidate, either at their own school or another school.
3. Parents are advised that if the child has not made the required progress by the end of Yr 9, the school could help them find a suitable boarding school.
4. The pupil is put on permanent notice by the school, if child scores below a certain level at end of year exams, the child would be required to leave at the end of the year.

A more mixed ability London Day School would be more reasonable.

Soma

That's interesting to hear. At any rate, we're still sticking with our state option as we're also concerned that the excessive pressure of an independent school may be counterproductive to DD's education.

@Liam436 , glad you made a decision. You can always revisit the situation in Year 8 and Year 9.

Most schools, both state and independent become some what pressurised in Years 10 & 11. Having said that, the most pressurised we know of is a well known girls' school near Oxford Street. It was formally known to be an extremely relaxed non uniform school. But the head teacher but one, was brought in to bring up the academic side of things and we hear the pastoral care has really slipped.

Soma

Thanks again for your advice.