Trinity/Whitgift 2021 entry

[Onvacation]

I have found the previous threads for Trinity/Whitgift entry really helpful, and I don’t think there is a 2021 yet. My son will be trying for 10+, and for a sports scholarship. He is bright, and pleased to be back training for his sports, but he gets really stressed in exam situations and works slowly. He is only trying Trinity this year because he is not at all sure he wants to leave his primary school, but if he managed to get a scholarship I think he might decide to go.

I was hoping the activity on the exam day might help motivate him, but we got the email saying it wouldn’t be happening because of Covid. Can I ask if anyone had more success at 11+ than 10+? Do they ever offer academic and sports scholarships? I am assuming that we will more have the issue of him getting stressed in the exam, and not passing, than standing a chance of a scholarship, but just thinking of best possible scenario . Thanks!

I have two children at Trinity, both on academic scholarships, one got in at 10+ and the other at 11+. so many of the boys have scholarships or bursaries of a sort, it's amazing. as far as I am aware there isn't a budget set aside for 10+ or 11+, they just look at the quality of all applicants. good luck, it is a fantastic school ! very academic plus also very caring and rounded in all disciplines.

They certainly offer scholarships at 10+. It is allegedly less competitive at 10+ too.

We did 10+ as a practice for the 11+ but actually got an offer of a place (we weren't expecting a scholarship). I would recommend going for it and seeing how it goes. Even without the planned activity, I am sure they will make exam day as relaxed and friendly as possible - it's just how they do things there. And they really know 9/10 year old boys too!

My DS has just finished after 8 years there, and my DD has just joined the 6th form. It is a lovely school.

Is he not trying for Whitgift as well. They are bigger and take more DC I believe. It's always been my impression that Whitgift gets the bigger chunk of funding in general.

I don’t think I have heard any negative reports about Trinity from existing parents! It is lovely to hear the positive stories! @Mummy195 he isn’t doing Whitgift this year because Trinity is a much better journey and we won’t move him this year if he doesn’t get in. I wonder possibly for next year, although my heart is with Trinity (visiting Whitgift might help that, mind you).

Is this the 2020/2021 thread for Trinity/Whitgift/RR? I have followed past years' threads but first time I have posted as my son is trying for these schools this year. Any thoughts on the changes of admission this year due to Covid? ISEB Pre-Tests online in December in stead of usual papers in Jan.

@sd1000 welcome! For the 10+ exam we haven't been told that they are using ISEB pre-tests online (maybe yet). Are you applying for an older age group? Have they confirmed a change of tests? Perhaps because there are smaller numbers for 10+ they are still planning face-to-face. It is so hard, I would have loved to take my son to an open day, but clearly we couldn't. He swims there, so he has been onsite, but his experience is limited to the pool and the climbing wall!

I have attended their online open evenings, but I felt those were much more for parents, and wouldn't really have inspired a 9 year old.

Are you apply for more than Trinity? We are just doing Trinity this year.

Hi onvacation: I have an older DS currently at Trinity and my younger sat 10plus last year. As far as I know the 10Plus is being conducted as normal, as the numbers are smaller, it's just the 11plus that is moving to ISEB this year.
They do award scholarships - academic I would say you'd need to score over 90% now (younger DS got mid-80s and it wasn't enough). Older son has small academic scholarship and music award.
They do give them out but for sport the Whitgift schools do get some exceptionally talented boys and IME they prefer boys who are rugby or football players.
Ditto, music scholarships you do need to be an exceptional talent.
HTH, good luck!
I do recommend the 10plus if you're keen to move DS. We decided to wait a year with DS2 as we felt he wasn't quite ready for the journey etc.
Like others have said, we love the school too. Great pastoral care, and virtual learning was top notch.

@JustJuice187 that is really helpful! My son is a swimmer and a footballer - although I think his swimming skills are more exceptional than his football skills, but then less children swim than play football. He is also swimming less than he was pre-lockdown because his squad are not back up to full training hours yet (not all of the pools are open). But he isn't the top of the top in either. He is really more of an allrounder than an exceptional talent I think. We were looking at the currently available sports clubs, and he was quite excited about the idea of hockey and horse riding (neither of which he has done before).

I'd be (very) surprised (and very pleased) if he does get an academic scholarship, because I'm not sure he works fast enough. As lovely (and helpful) as a scholarship would be, I'm really just hoping that he gets in.

For Trinity sports scholarship, I would try anyway. you never know who applies at the same time as you do, plus the boys get to spend a day there so get a feel for it, increase visibility too.
Trinity is a great rounded, but academic school, we were also very happy with their online/home learning during lockdown. Obviously not the same as being in class but we don't feel the academic side of things really suffered and they managed to run some clubs to. Good luck !

We are doing the 11+ this year, he wasn't ready last year. He is bright but has dyslexia and although he achieves expected level at school his educational psychologist assessment states that he has a high IQ and should be a high achiever. There is a discrepancy between what he is achieving at school and his potential as apparently is the case with many dyslexic children. My worry is whether the independent schools look at potential or if they just go by what school reports and test results show?

Hi SD1000 I would say speak to the school. I think this year more than others they are looking at extenuating circumstances, and not just test results and reports.
My older son has Aspergers and although it has generally not affected him academically, the school has always been very supportive of him and any concersn we have had. I really think they excel at this.

@SD1000, as Justjuice suggests, all the schools need to look beyond the exam grades this year it has been catastrophic for all the children. Does your DS shine on other ways, beyond the academic where dylsexia tends to blot the academic profile of many. Your child's school must be supportive for your DS to be achieving well.

Thank you all so much for your comments. He doesn't excel at anything in particular but is a bit of an all rounder. He enjoys all sports, football in and out of school (not first team though), hockey, cricket and would do more sports if available or had time. He use to swim for Bromley but he lost interest a year ago. Grade 3 piano and music theory, would like to learn guitar. I just wonder if this is 'enough' compared to all applying. He would certainly make use of all the clubs on offer, he likes to try everything, works hard and always opts for the harder work at school.

Not all the boys at T excel at something. They are all bright, some very bright. Many have interests/hobbies, but they are not all Grade 8 instrumentalists/county players/exhibitors at the Tate etc!

@SD1000 My son did 11+ and has just started at Whitgift this year. He's not sporty at all, was Grade 5 & 4 on two instruments and he did well enough on the entrance exam to be assessed for scholarship but was unsuccessful. I don't think he's exceptional at Whitgift! He's a bright kid but he's certainly being challenged now. I think you stand as good a chance as anyone else

Thank you so much for your comments. Keeping my fingers crossed!

This thread concerns me, any thoughts? www.mumsnet.com/Talk/education/3619437-My-son-was-expelled-for-telling-the-truth-Sunday-Times?

This story gets shared every few months.

By all accounts there was a lot more to the story - and no one goes to the papers to say that there was an issue at school and the school handled it well so it's hard to form a balanced view of pastoral care.

I don't really have any comment on this. My son takes the train to school regularly. As it says in the story, the Whitgift schools are zero tolerance policy, and IMO rightly so.
I haven't heard of boys being targeted on trains. It really depends on the boy.

[quote Doobiedooo]This thread concerns me, any thoughts? www.mumsnet.com/Talk/education/3619437-My-son-was-expelled-for-telling-the-truth-Sunday-Times?[/quote]
That boy was the only one to admit to it (but not the only one to take drugs), it is to note that his grades were not quite where the school would have liked them to be ...

Thanks both. Aside from the issues of this child, I also noticed a comment about the grounds, facilities, etc, not actually being particularly available to the children... is this people’s experience? Is it all show rather than substance?

The kids don't get to run wild with the peacocks and they don't get to kick a football about on the cricket pitches at lunch

Nonsense! The grounds are available to the kids with everyone getting a chance to play on the main pitches (including E and F teams!). We have never had any issues at all with facilities not being available. My DS has been commuting for a number of years on the train has never been approached by anyone wanting to sell drugs. As for the story mentioned above...there are always two sides of the story and the school quite rightly decided not to respond. And I completely agree with the zero tolerance policy.

We only have experience of Whitgift during Covid but even under the necessary restraints at the moment, my son has been playing 5 different sports a week in various grounds/facilities (and he is NOT a sporty child - many kids are doing more!) plus using the music facilities etc, so I don't get the impression of restrictions at all.

The best teams have access to the best pitches (right in front of the school) and the best coaches of course, whilst the clubs are relegated to the playground at the very back but it the case in many places.
With the regard to the boy in question, the fact that his grades were not quite where the school would have liked them to be certainly didn’t play in his favour in the final decision to exclude. There wasn’t much doubt in the fact all the boys in that group had taken drugs, he was just the only one to admit to it thinking it was the right thing to do.