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Secondary education

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Original poster

Leaving prep for 11plus school then moving again at 13 plus

31 replies

SuperGinger · 24/02/2022 14:29

I know this is controversial, I'm not very happy with DS's prep school and would like to move him at 11 plus as he has had offers. However if he gets offers to 13 plus schools, I would like him to attend one of the two we have put him forward for as they are both top notch. Would it be ok to accept an 11 plus school and then move at 13 plus and would he be adequately prepared for the 13 plus school?

OP posts:
Original poster
SuperGinger · 24/02/2022 14:39

All schools are London based.

OP posts:
Sweetnhappy1 · 24/02/2022 14:52

No direct experience but I think with 13+ schools, if you sit the exam in year 6 and get in, the offer letter is conditional on you staying at your current school until year 8.

hockeygrass · 24/02/2022 14:54

@SuperGinger , I know of a ds who was at a prep and went to KGS for 2 years and then moved to Hampton at 13 and fitted in fine. At his prep he had sat KGS 11plus and Hampton 13 plus so had both offers before he left his prep.
Also on MN a few years ago there was a Richmond based person who was going to send her rugby mad son to Whitgift (it's a tricky journey from Richmond) for 2 years and then to board Wellington at 13, he had both places. I don't know if she ever made the move.
I guess it depends if you have both offers now otherwise the new secondary school will have to write the reference for the 13plus school so you will have to tell them in advance of giving 1 terms notice.

Original poster
SuperGinger · 24/02/2022 15:00

Thank you both very helpful. We will know about the offers for the others at the beginning of March.

OP posts:
Whatswrongwithakipper · 24/02/2022 15:06

We had about 3 boys turn up at our prep which goes to 13 as there prep finished at 11. Slightly different but all were completely fine

TypsTrycks · 24/02/2022 15:24

Is it possible to do? Yes. Is it a good idea? Maybe not..

Most 13+ offers are conditional these days, as the test is taken more than 2 years ahead of time. It could be conditional on continuation at the current school, school reports at the end of Y7 or even talking to the Head at the prep school in Y7 and Y8 for personal feedback.

Would the grammar school or 11+ school happily give this feedback, grades and reference letters? As long as you are willing to take that risk and happy with the 11+ school to continue if needed, you should be fine.

I know of one 13+ school whose unconditional offer is truly unconditional, but they do ask for CE/scholarship exams to be taken at their premises in Y8.

Also you have the moral dilemma of wasting a 11+ seat that could go to someone on the WL.

Original poster
SuperGinger · 24/02/2022 15:49

@TypsTrycks this is what I feared. However the 11 plus school we would like to accept is one we would be happy for DS to remain at in the longer term so I guess we will have to risk it.

OP posts:
BlueBishop · 24/02/2022 18:58

This does happen, but isn’t common, as most 11+ schools expect you to stay with them through to the end, or at least through to 6th form. As TypsTrycks points out, your 13+ school will reach out to your 11+ school because, as you know, they do talk to each other, especially if your child needs to satisfy any further entrance requirements (eg common entrance exams, school report, feedback from head etc). So it is best to be upfront with your 11+ school otherwise they will definitely find out anyway.

RandomUsernameHere · 24/02/2022 19:09

Why would it matter if the 11+ school finds out after the DC has started though? Presumably you can just give a term's notice and leave whenever you want? Whereas if you tell them your plans at the outset they may well be reluctant to offer a place. Apologies if I've misunderstood the situation.

Beachcomber74 · 24/02/2022 19:25

Very regular occurrence. The 7/8 prep system is frustrating for a lot of children as they find it all too restrictive, much better if he goes into a new senior school for new experience rather than getting stale at prep. The 13+ school will have a wide intake & much of Year 9 is consolidating. Good Luck.

SW1Mummy · 24/02/2022 19:39

We did exactly this OP

Sent our DC at a popular boys school in London for 10+. The school starts at 10+ and finishes at 6th form as usual. Moved them to boarding at 13+.
The London school had to give the references and said they are used to DC leaving at 13+.

In two of their classes, they had boys come in at 10+ and move to a more academic school within London at 11+. If you blocked a space at 11+, you still leave an extra space at 13+. A lot of schools may have DC leaving at 16+ as they prepare for Uni. Sometimes, the situation cannot be helped.

ConfusedaboutSchool · 24/02/2022 20:24

Does you 11+ school have a 13+ intake as well? If so, then it should be fine. If not, its not a great idea as the school may not really look favourably on it.

LIZS · 24/02/2022 21:08

Agree with @ConfusedaboutSchool . A school which intakes at year 7 is not likely to match the curriculum or pace of one that only intakes at 13+ predominantly from prep schools. If you plan on taking up a 13+ place look for an alternative prep for year 7 and 8, preferably one which sends several to the same senior.

Original poster
SuperGinger · 25/02/2022 21:01

We got the schools we wanted and I think we will just stay at the prep because it seems an easier route. Thank you for the useful advice. We are going to have a chat to the headteacher next week, as there are quite a number who got through to both schools.

OP posts:
7plus11plus · 26/02/2022 23:46

OP we are facing the same problem. We secured a 11+ place long before we got our dream 13+ offer yesterday. Our prep goes to 13 but senior teacher suggested us to take the 11+ offer for two years as DS won’t be stretched enough at current prep. The 11+ school (doesn’t have 13+ intake) knows we were waiting for 13+ offer and said it’s ok to leave at year 9 as they have long wait list at each year (it’s a very popular senior school). Now we need to confront the 13+ school and see if they mind we leave our prep!

TizerorFizz · 27/02/2022 00:39

@SuperGinger
@7plus11plus
Do none of you think of your DC and their friendships. Honestly? Who goes to a prep that cannot prep a child for a decent senior school snd recommends another one? What are you paying for? My DDs old prep would never say this. They have a scholarship stream. It’s messing about with friendships and it’s very disjointed to do this. The best plan is to choose the right prep for your destination schools in the first place.

7plus11plus · 27/02/2022 00:50

DS has a group friends who stay and another group of friends go to the same 11+ school. He also have local friends who come for games every weekend. He’s extremely lucky. He doesn’t care where he goes for these two years, as long as he goes to his dream school at year 9.

His current prep is a non-selective one and has nothing to compare to the said 11+ school. There is no scholar class in year 7 and 8. No one else goes to the super selective 13+ school he’s got. I thought his teacher is really nice to suggest us to leave.

7plus11plus · 27/02/2022 01:20

@TizerorFizz
“The best plan is to choose the right prep for your destination schools in the first place.”

This is a bit ridiculous. OP asked a question and you are not helping. As for us, no, we didn’t have a “destination school”. We are pretty laid back parents and only wanted a happy through school (3-18). Until year 5 DS had his first mock, teacher told us that he can go to any school, we had no idea. His teacher suggested schools, we visited and DS chose his first choice and stuck to it. So no, we didn’t have a “destination school”.

TizerorFizz · 27/02/2022 01:30

Well parents who want schools with 13 plus entry make sure they go to preps that get DC to these schools at 13. If you are laid back, don’t make any changes! You made a decision about 3-18 and now are being talked out of it. If you really didn’t care about schools, you would stay where you are. The OP could stay where she is. However I can assure you that most parents know what 11 or 13 plus schools they might want and choose a prep accordingly. A 3-18 school only preps for themselves.,So why not stick with the senior school you chose instead of getting your head turned? That doesn’t sound remotely laid back to me.,

7plus11plus · 27/02/2022 01:55

We do care about school and that’s why we made sure we have chosen a “happy” school for DS. He is happy at his prep and has grown enormously since he was 3. Now he needs a highly academic environment and his prep doesn’t suit him anymore. I thought this would be very easy to understand.

We are laid back as we never hover over DS and over prep. DS is extremely self driven and has been working hard towards his aim. He has the right to choose whatever school his heart desires.

hockeygrass · 27/02/2022 07:30

@7plus11plus , having followed your journey and knowing the schools you are talking about go with the 11plus school and not the prep. The 11 plus school is large and wealthy enough to not mind if your ds leaves after 2 years (as they have told you) and the prep with the head leaving doesn't sound like the right place for a bright ds.

7plus11plus · 27/02/2022 08:48

@hockeygrass Thank you. Really appreciate it.

hockeygrass · 27/02/2022 08:53

@7plus11plus , I hope your family is going on a relaxing break soon to recover from your school admissions experience!! 2 dc, 3 entry points!

TizerorFizz · 27/02/2022 08:53

@7plus11plus
It is important to look at how schools function and choose suitable schools. I still don’t understand why anyone doesn’t choose the best school to meet their needs. Why didn’t you change at 7? You must have known he was bright by then.? Laid back isn’t just about homework. It’s about being relaxed about schools too. Not moving a DC with school friends to achieve glory elsewhere. There’s no need for this if through schools are avoided. You only have to look at destinations and what the ethos is of a school to know that they meet a certain type of parent and child.

hockeygrass · 27/02/2022 09:01

@TizerorFizz , do you know the schools @7plus11plus is taking about? It's not possible to choose a prep for the 13plus school because it's too selective. We are talking about a small part of London, all the schools are a few miles from each other.