Radnor House- How selective?

[KindergartenKop]

Hi! My DS has registered for the 11+ at RH in November. They are moving to a new site and doubling their intake for Y7 2023. How competitive was it before the site move and would it therefore be less competitive this year?

DS is also applying to Hampton and KGS and sat the 10+ for these, didn't make the cut but feedback was that he's about the standard they expect at 11+.

@KindergartenKop , if you had the confidence to enter your ds for the 10plus at 2 schools and he was able to complete the exams and experience the exam process then he will be absolutely fine at the 11plus and no need to worry about Radnor House etc.

@hockeygrass thanks, this is reassuring. He's at a state primary and so I feel like I'm having to work all this out on my own!

I'm sure he will be fine, my ds sat the KGS 10 plus and I found it really helpful when he was 11 to talk about the experience to calm his nerves just before the exam - ie the quick goodbye, reading the questions, working out the timing and the food treat in the break.

My ds got 4 offers at 11 and went to Hampton where he is very happy, 50% at least of the intake at 11 is from state primary schools.

2 more things to remember are - you rarely meet anyone who got a KGS 10plus offer and went there at 11 and - quite a few of the Hampton 10 plus offers don't end up attending as they go to Tiffin or another school on a scholarship so for most dc the 10 plus is just a practice run.

@hockeygrass does your DS like Hampton? Why did you prefer it to other schools?

The feedback from the 10+ was definitely really helpful and let us know where he sits in relation to other entrants. We will put ds2 in for them in a few years as well.

Yes he is very happy and has been there several years. Hampton was always our main aim as we live locally but I would have been happy with KGS - he doesn't play rugby so that wasn't an issue for us with KGS.
The other schools were in Surrey and further away and more expensive fees.
At the time Radnor House was too new but it's a good back up now.

@KindergartenKop , to save me repeating myself, I suggest you read the thread on Duke's Education. There is no way Radnor House will be moving to their new site by Sept 2023! It will take far longer than that for them to get planning permission and do the necessary work.

@dynamits interesting! I did ask the head this exact question and he seemed adamant that at least y7 would be there in 2023. Otherwise how will they deal with so many kids on that site?

We are planning to apply in a couple of years - I didn’t know they are moving sites, where is the new site?

To be fair to the Head, he's probably as convinced, or at least positively optimistic, that will be the case, but he is probably not an expert on the planning process. Everybody under-estimates how long the LBRuT planning process takes, and wealth will definitely not speed it up. Hopefully the developers have got an experienced planning consultant who has worked in LBRuT before and has his eyes open.

Kneller Hall (Google will fill you in)

Here is LBRuT's planning guidance for the Kneller Hall site, for context: www.richmond.gov.uk/media/18898/kneller_hall_supplementary_planning_document.pdf

Kneller Hall – Our New Senior School from September 2023

We are delighted that our senior school will be moving to the magnificent Kneller Hall in September 2023. This thirty-acre estate will be the new home for our pupils from Year 7 through to Sixth Form.

@Candyfloss2 that doesn't prove it will be ready in September though!

By Sept 23 they may have completed internal refurbishment of existing buildings, but that's all. You can follow the progress of their planning application online on Richmond Council's website. It has been submitted but not yet validated, which means it doesn't yet meet the basic requirements of a valid application, and doesn't have a tracking number or a page I can link to. See photo.

It would be worth asking them whether the move is fully dependent on the planning permission (I suspect it will be, because although it was already used for educationsl purposes, the application seems to include a change of use to Class F1). Perhaps they are lining up a continengy site in the meantime.

@dynamits , they don't need a contingency site if not enough dc accept their offers. They have space at the current Radnor house site in twickenham so if by Feb 2023 it's clear the Kneller site won't be ready then they can offer as normal to fill their twickenham site.

Yes, that's true. I thought they were re-purposing the existing site as a prep school from Sept 23, but maybe they will have temporary capacity for both.

@dynamits , the demand for prep places in the whole twickenham area is low and Dukes already own a prep school in Kew (Broomfield) and Hampton Court (HCH) - HCH is a massive site with loads of potential if they decided to close the school and sell to a developer - (not that there is any indication this will happen).

I'm not surprised prep demand is low. Demand for primary places generally is low - some state primaries that people would have sold their granny to get into a few years ago are now under subscribed.

Why is that ? Not enough kids population ? From local residents ?

Yes not enough dc, low birth rate, move out of London by families in the pandemic, lack of movement of international families. It's not to do with the schools and same in the primary sector - for example a catholic primary school in twickenham that use to have a tiny catchment now goes out as far as Feltham for practising Catholics.

Why sw19 still so over subscribed than here Tw.

Sorry I don't know but have you dug down and looked at the reception intake numbers this Sept of schools like Willington and The Study Wimbledon? They are on a par with Newland House ,The Mall in Twickenham and potential parents for the Radnor house prep which is what this thread is about.

Come September 2023 kneller hall will be housing year 7 and the rest of the upper school. Radnor are not saying the site will be complete and there is a back up plan to use the existing facilities at bushy etc for games . My understanding is that they are doing internal works now to get the place suitable for classrooms and play areas/pitches and then the rest of the works are done almost on a rolling basis as planning is granted . the current site is the prep from September 2023 .
i just wish this had been in place when my kids were younger. I would have killed for an all through co-Ed locally

Come September 2023 kneller hall will be housing year 7 and the rest of the upper school.

Then they'll presumably need at least the "change of use" part of the planning application to be approved by then, and of course to pass health and safety checks. I know the walkways were dangerous in places.