Westminster 6th Form for girls

[Lewishamiltonwasrobbed]

Hi all, I need to make a decision this week following DD gaining a day place offer. Obviously we are very proud she has been selected. She is already at a top 10 London day girls school so this is a tricky decision. Looking to hear from any recent 6th form girls parents to advise if they had their time again, would they still move their DD to Westminster? Did they achieve the grades in a levels expected?I think DD would love the school, style of learning, and is more than capable etc but is 4 A levels too much? She has ambition to go to Oxbridge or the USA for uni. The money is doable but to be clear other sacrifices would be made as a family to support her going (I’m not expecting any tiny violins, I do know we are privileged). I do not however want to send her to party/drug central we have looked round in person twice so no issues there but want to be sure that any lockdown learning would be as expected took thanks in advance for any insight any parents of girls have.

I can offer some observations. Sixth form is a very short process. She would need to be comfortable of performing from day 1 vs the status quo, consider that others would be very well known to the teachers. For the lofty goals you mention, perfect predicted grades are imperative and that is all done in year 12. Teaching there is great but that would be the case in your current school also, unless you are after certain humanities subjects and associated opportunities (e.g. debating). People there do 4 and even 5 a levels but that does not always result in perfect grades. Just for reference a comparable super school restricts pupils to 3 a levels. Someone could say this is one reason they are able to edge others on exam performance and oxbridge rates.

Hi @Oblonsky thank for the reply. Do you have a daughter there? Obviously I can solicit varying opinions on this forum about thoughts on Westminster but I’m really keen to hear from parents of girls who have attended recently. Thank for taking the time to reply tho.

It would be a no from me if she's currently at an all girls school.

I know 3 who went from my school (girls) and their grades were fine and they got their oxbridge place but they didn't really enjoy it found switching hard.
The additional layer of coed wasn't great.

This was a few years back though so maybe not that helpful.

It's hard because it's so prestigious and therefore a tempting choice

Thanks @Totalwasteofpaper can I ask how long ago you are referring to? I’m really interested in parents of girls post ‘everyone’s invited’ I guess…

😅 Everyone's invited was waaaaay after my time...

I am in my 30s but one was a friends sister who is 28 now...

Perhaps reflect on why you and she applied. What was it you were looking for that she won’t get where she is currently? Has she been able to visit and get a sense of the feel of thr place?

FWIW I went to Westminster as a 6th form girl a long time ago. It was a fantastic academic experience and the teaching was the most inspiring of my life (even though I subsequently went to Oxford and then to postgrad at an Ivy League university). It definitely shaped who I was academically, and I am still in touch with friends I met there.

Best of luck making the decision.

Friends daughter there at the moment. She was at a top indie girls school - super high achiever. It's the perfect environment for her and she's very confident. Top grades are a given with all options open to her.
Another friends daughter left a couple of years ago. From a Grammar, didn't feel she fitted in and this affected her mental health. A very bright girl too.

I don't have a girl, but my son was there for 5 years, including 6th Form, and it was absolutely brilliant for him. The teaching is top notch, he matured, became independent and made friends for life. They're now at university in different cities and even countries but still very, very close. 4 A levels were definitely the right choice for him, and he's now at his top choice university doing what he wanted to do, with a scholarship.
It's also pretty much the only private school still increasing their Oxbridge admission rates year on year - 78 this year I believe out of some 210 students. That didn't matter for us, but worth a consideration if it's important for your daughter.
And they are hands down the most expert in the UK at guiding students to US universities. My DS started the process before deciding it wasn't for him, and there was literally no comparison between the support that they received in terms of personal advisor (they work with several who just specialise in US admissions, themselves from admissions departments at MIT etc), workshops etc etc. By comparison, a friend's son at St Paul's had to do it all completely by himself (he still got in to an Ivy League university but it was VERY stressful).
It was hard for those who arrived in 6th Form as it was right at the peak of Covid, but things should be back to "normal" now.
The final thing I'd like to say is that the "drug central" reputation that Westminster had decades ago is long gone. Of course there are issues as in any 6th Form, but they are pretty rare. My DS was aware of some groups getting into trouble, but we never saw or experienced any of this. His friends regularly came to ours on a Saturday night and had a few beers and on occasion some vodka shots, but overall behaved very sensibly - they were more interested in board games than wild partying. We were never worried in the slightest.

I think that will be my son's experience too. The friends he made at Westminster are just very, very special. Selfishly, ditto for the parents - DH and I made friends for life during his time there. We are still in close contact after they left. Much more so than at our other son's (also independent) school.
There is just something quite magical about Westminster. (And yes, of course, incredibly privileged, but we're aware of that).

Oh and they've taken the whole "Me too" scandal very, very seriously. The abuse of 6th Form girls absolutely did happen and was awful, but it was a long time ago, and they have really tackled it. We had almost weekly update emails from various senior members of staff about the measures they were taking at one point, and it wasn't just lip service. The students were also very much involved.

And my son has been teaching me over the past couple of years about LGBT/trans issues - not to address students by their "dead names", what pronouns to use (I'm getting quite good at "they/'them" when required, or "she, Cynthia" for someone who I've known for years by a male name). Several of my son's close friends are in these categories, and the school seems to have looked after them very well.

This is a zombie thread from last year

Argh, sorry! It was in "trending"! Seems to be happening a lot at the moment - this is the 3rd or 4th zombie thread I've seen reactivated in this way in the last 24 hours!

Agree, I think MN have a problem with their algorithm