Is private Y9 state Y10 possible ice age 14 DS?

[Woonang]

Hi
My family will move to UK in Oct. My DS will be 14 at that time. If we wait for the allocation of Y10 upon arrival, I estimate that it will take at least 1 month. It will then take another month for DS to get used to the new environment as English is not our mother language. I'm worrying that he will not be able to pick up the missing GCSE course properly.

I want to ask if it is impossible to apply for Y9 in state school? If it is impossible, can I arrange DS to study in private school Y9 first. Apply to move him to Yr 10 in state school in Sep 2022? Is it feasible under his age consideration?

Thx for your advice in advance.

I'm doubtful he would get a place at a Guildford private school or nearby for year 9 now unless you have already applied. These are allocated well in advance and are competitive entry. Does your dd have a confirmed place at Uni of Surrey? Most students live on campus for first year or commute so would not base yourself close by just for that.

For private I would suggest you look at Box Hill near Leatherhead. Not as academic as some, but follows IB and has international pupils, so possibly more flexible to your circumstances.

I would look at the train line that runs from Guildford out to Portsmouth. Easy route to get into Guildford for your dd, or commuting into London for work. If you look at the stations south of Guildford there are lots of towns and villages in Surrey and Hampshire with good schools that you could use as a base and may not be as over subscribed as Guildford itself. You could speak with the local authorities of each area about which schools have spaces and whether your ds could drop down a year due to language issues and a July birthday making him very young in the year group.

I think you'll struggle to get a Y9 place in a good state school in Guildford this September. I know the year group and it's a very large one so you may only be offered schools which are "less sought after" - you can read into that but I don't want to start naming individual schools! It may be less tricky for the year above which I know isn't ideal but you may need to weigh up year group against the school you'd be offered.

@LIZS

I'm doubtful he would get a place at a Guildford private school or nearby for year 9 now unless you have already applied. These are allocated well in advance and are competitive entry. Does your dd have a confirmed place at Uni of Surrey? Most students live on campus for first year or commute so would not base yourself close by just for that.

Frankly, I don't know the school entry in Guildford is so competitive! By the way, do you have any idea of the schools in Sutton? Are they the same as Guildford's school?

@TerribleTiming The new logic of looking for a suitable place is very new to me. Thx. Yes, in any case, the most effective way should be to discuss with the authority directly. I hope that they can give me advice generous as all of you, as I heard the opposite from other groups.

@GU24Mum It's a real dilemma!!!

Hi OP, it's not the the local authorities are difficult , it's just that they can't really help you until you have an address. I hope it all works out well for you all.

And local authorities do not deal with independent schools, you would need to contact any of those yourselves. Not sure what your finances are like but housing and fees in that area are expensive, even by South East England standards.