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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

a level admission

32 replies

tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 12:38

hi all,
Ned your valuable input on my situation.
I am basicslly from Milton Keynes.
Have 2 children :daughter i y10 in a grammer school in buckingham. son in y6 who scored very good for queen elizibeth boys school in London. Have kept qe as a first preference, however very much scared that how my daughter will cope if we move her from her current grammer school. was also considering the parents to be split between son and daughter till daughter finishes her gcse)around 10 months) and then joining her in a levels near qe boys.

Kindly guide my questions
1.What are the grammer schools near banet for girls?

2.Is it a common thing to go to a different school for A level?

3.My daughter wanted to do something along the lines of maths and chemistry in A levels, so what is the min grades that the grammer schools accept?

4.Is it hard to get a place into a levels?

Please let me know any suggestions.
Than you so much.

OP posts:
Octavia64 · 06/11/2023 12:42

It is a very common thing to change schools for a-levels.

The grades that schools will accept to a levels are different from each school, you'll need to check the schools website.

It is a competitive applications process.

As a general guide 6 or above is minimum.

clary · 06/11/2023 12:50

Is your dd in yr 10 or yr 11? If yr 10 as posted then she has about 20months till she is finished with GCSEs. You should avoid moving her between yr 10 and yr 11.

But Yy fine to move for sixth form. GCSE grade 6 is a usual minimum but for some subjects inc maths many schools ask more. Grammars may also have higher requirements across the board.

Original poster
tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 13:11

thank you Clary. She is in y10 currently. My son will be joining next september. so she has only 10 months in y11.

OP posts:
Original poster
tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 13:13

Thank you Octavia, school website says 6/7.. but when called a few schools they are saying 9 in all subjects:(

OP posts:
StressedMumOf2Girls · 06/11/2023 13:46

The schools in Barnet are HBS (girls only), Latymer (co-ed) and Dame Alice Owens (partially selective). St Michaels too if you're Catholic.

Entry into all of those schools is competitive and having the minimum requirements is unlikely to be enough as they will have more students than places available who exceed the requirements. So have a look at and see where your daughter is working at as only you know her grades. And have a backup plan in case she doesn't get into the schools. There is private but they're also competitive and of course, it depends on whether you can pay for them.

Original poster
tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 13:55

thank you.
is there any other schools in the neighbouring boroughs that are worth considering within an hour of commute?

OP posts:
SheilaFentiman · 06/11/2023 13:59

Absolutely do not move your DD between year 10 and year 11.

Do you know for sure that your son is into QE Boys or is it that he scored well in tests but TBC if he was in the top 180 and you won’t find out for sure until March?

3WildOnes · 06/11/2023 14:06

If your son is in year 6 and your daughter is in year 10, then what is your plan for your daughter's year 11? I presume you aren't planning on moving her mid GCSE so are you planning on driving her back and forth every day?
Very few places come up in the London grammar schools for A levels so places are incredibly competitive. Even will all 8s and 9s you might not gain a place.
Your daughter might also be pretty upset about moving away from all of her friends aged 16. Are there no good schools where you live for your son?

SheilaFentiman · 06/11/2023 14:24

“? I presume you aren't planning on moving her mid GCSE so are you planning on driving her back and forth every day? “

The OP states that each child would live with one parent.

nibblz · 06/11/2023 14:34

tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 13:55

thank you.
is there any other schools in the neighbouring boroughs that are worth considering within an hour of commute?

Edited

St Andrew the Apostle School in Barnet is very good. It has a Greek Orthodox denomination, but is open to all. My child goes to another school operated by the same trust and I know some non-religious parents who use St Andrews and they would recommend it.

Original poster
tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 15:34

hi we are planning to stay seperate for 10 months while my daughter is in y11. Then move her in y12 to London

OP posts:
LIZS · 06/11/2023 16:03

Realistically will he get a place from that distance? Will not being with one parent/brother not risk your dd's gcse results? You may encounter similar distance issues when trying to find a year 12 place for your dd while she is not locally resident.

Original poster
tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 16:06

oh dear, i am so confused now.

OP posts:
SheilaFentiman · 06/11/2023 16:18

LIZS · 06/11/2023 16:03

Realistically will he get a place from that distance? Will not being with one parent/brother not risk your dd's gcse results? You may encounter similar distance issues when trying to find a year 12 place for your dd while she is not locally resident.

I think QE BOYS is distance blind and only uses it as a tie break between two boys with the same score.

SheilaFentiman · 06/11/2023 16:19

@tanuja21balivada do you know the score your DS got or just that it was a qualifying score?

SheilaFentiman · 06/11/2023 16:20

A qualifying score doesn’t mean a place. It means the minimum standard was met.

SheilaFentiman · 06/11/2023 16:21

Having said that, in Lincs the raw scores are given to parents so it is possible with past info to guesstimate what decile you are in and hence be certain (or less certain) of a place. So it depends what QE BOYS does.

Original poster
tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 16:36

hi Sheila, for the score he got last year they got a seat on national allocation day

OP posts:
SheilaFentiman · 06/11/2023 17:58

That’s a good sign. If it was close-ish, worth looking back a few years if the info is available.

Do you have any feel as yet what your DD will get at gcse?

StressedMumOf2Girls · 06/11/2023 19:25

tanuja21balivada · 06/11/2023 13:55

thank you.
is there any other schools in the neighbouring boroughs that are worth considering within an hour of commute?

Edited

Watford I suppose. I know it has a girls grammar there but there might be a catchment area.

If you really want to send you son to QE, I would get comfortable with you and your partner each staying with one child for 3 years until your eldest completes Sixth Form.

redskyanight · 07/11/2023 07:34

If the only reason for moving to London is for your son to go to this particular school (i.e you don't need to move for work purposes or anything else) I would honestly shelve the idea.

As others have said, you can absolutely not move your daughter in the middle of her GCSE years, so you make sure she can keep going to her current school until at least June of Year 11. You could move then, but does your daughter want to move - whilst it's perfectly normal to move at sixth form level, you will also be taking your daughter away from local friends with a house move. This is going to be incredibly disruptive for her.

I'm not sure your plan of splitting the family (unless there is a compelling reason to have to go to London that won't be resolved by commuting instead) is a great one either - this is agian going to be very disruptive and unsettling.

T

SheilaFentiman · 07/11/2023 07:46

I think @redskyanight makes a very good point. You are contemplating a big change in the life of one child (and the whole family TBH) for the sake of the other.

SheilaFentiman · 07/11/2023 07:49

My sons go to a selective private school and around 10 boys leave after GCSE and therefore 10 join in the sixth form. Grammar schools may be similar with a general expectation that almost all the year stays on. (Those that have left have largely done so to pursue a levels that the school doesn’t offer)

That may be why the schools are mentioning 9s on the phone as the few places that come up will essentially be competitive. And if that is the case, you won’t know for sure until after the gcse results are in where your DD has a spot.

Soma · 07/11/2023 12:32

@tanuja21balivada St Michael's take non catholic girls into the sixth form. Have you looked at Woodhouse College in Finchley?

londonmummy1966 · 07/11/2023 13:35

Why does your daughter have to be the one to make sacrifices - why can' your son go to a Bucks grammar too so she's no messed around?