SW London grammar and private year 7 entry 2024 - Continued

[11plus24]

New thread continued here

We have also declined Epsom already and will be releasing Ibstock and Emanuel soon. KGS it is for us. Am sure waiting lists will move not too long after half term. A lot of kids sitting on 4-7 offers and will be able to narrow it down to 2 or just 1 shortly.

I know 2 people at St J’s that will be giving up their space. But I don’t know how much they over offer by. The lists do move though I know 4 people who got in from the WL in my OC year.

@peekaboo1 , of course decline as soon as you can but most admissions depts are close for half term. Most of the movement is after the 1st March when state school places are released, the offer ratios at all schools are far higher than you imagine when you are sitting the exams so the volume of declines has to be quite large to trigger the WL.

the offer ratios at all schools are far higher than you imagine when you are sitting the exams so the volume of declines has to be quite large to trigger the WL

Yes I can see this is true - but still, every little helps. If you know you will not be taking up a place then why not release it now (or at least soon). Hopefully means things will move a little faster after half term at least.

We will be declining WHS and SCHS in the next few days - just in case it helps.

Generally they over offer 2-3 times for the mid tier schools, more
for bankers and less for super selective confident they are peoples first choice. It’s always a bit of an art though which is why you get bumper years and situations like IPS last year where they lost the plot a bit and only offered super academic children for whom it was a banker. They were not full in year 7.
they seem to have improved their process this year .

good luck to everyone now waiting!!

Surely schools would not want to risk having more acceptances than they can accommodate by over offering and thus in theory they would all go to waitlist to some extent. I’m just speculating of course (and being hopeful).

Not frequently, but some schools have mis-calculated in the past and significantly over-offered. The most recent notable case was Surbiton a couple of years ago, they ended up having to put in place extra forms and there were quite a few parents not that pleased (given the pressure on facilities, etc). Other schools might have got it a bit wrong but have just added one-two DC per class and did not go to WL.

There have been rumours in the past of 'exploding offers' and I seem to recall people mentioning a school (I don't remember which one) using it one year... but the backlash was such that I cannot see it happening again (so the schools just tend to err on the side of caution).

@TBNT thank you xx congrats on the 1st choice scholarship

City girls did exploding offers 2 years ago but it went down so badly and also I think breached some sort of indie school association code so they scrapped that.

DS is on the waiting list for KGS (from a general interview 😅) and has an older sibling there already. Any ideas about whether there’s a way to gauge if he’s likely to eventually be given an offer? Do they let you know about quartiles etc?

yelloworanges - that’s surprising. I’d definitely give them a call as we found them very transparent through the admissions process. I heard exam marks & extra curricular did play a significant part in the offers process so they might share more info. Are you happy with the school generally for your older child?

We were offered 6 so will be declining soon but I am just waiting for final t&cs. Waitlists will move.

Anyone planning to decline a FHSS offer or WL place that would like to reveal that here to give me some hope would be much appreciated - I know I need to trust the process, but it’s hard!

My DD does have offers from St James Senior Girls in West Ken/Ken Olympia and St Catherine’s in Twickenham, so if the FHSS WL place doesn’t convert to an offer we will be choosing between those two. Any views on or experiences of either schools would be great to hear 🙏🏻

@ItsMeHi48 we have friends with a DD at St Catherine's (they also had, like you an offer St James Senior Girls and another one from Sutton High). They are really happy there - small school and strong community and pastoral care. The extra-curricular offer, particularly on sports, is quite good too.

Good morning. Well done to everyone on their offers and good luck to those on wait lists.

I have DC at KGS and SHS. Both have been great schools for my children so happy to answer questions but both definitely recommended. I have friends with kids at most of the schools being mentioned here. Tbh they are all good and I know a lot of happy parents and children! Better to factor in travel time to school, sports your child likes, what clubs on offer, co-ed v single sex and did you like vibe of school. And remember sometimes it just doesn’t work out for whatever reason and there is some movement at y9.

As time goes on, honestly, I think travel
time to school (and games site if off site) is a really important factor. Heads change, vibe of year group change but location doesn’t change!

Can anyone share their experience regarding whether SPGS can defer the 11+ entry to 13+?. Thanks

We’re in a fortunate position of having offers from both PHS and LEH. DD wants Putney for sports but we think we should give LEH a serious consideration. Commute is the same to both. Can anyone here with experience shed some light on pros and cons of both? Thanks

My daughter was accepted as part of this co-hort. It was annoying when she signed up for clubs and sports and there wasn't space for her to join.

Radnor House do exploding offers, or did 2 years ago.

I heard Eltham College did exactly this a few days ago. They sent letters to some parents that they had reached their capacity before the deadline and therefore they withdraw their offers. 🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️

Does anyone know when Tiffin boys offers go out? Asking for a friend!

@SkaterGrrrrl Ist March national offers day - as it is a state school.

Thanks @tennissquare @lolo99 I will be keeping my fingers crossed, hopefully there will be some movement after half term

I have experience of PHS and the sport is excellent, but I'm sure that it is at LEH as well. PHS are supportive of and accommodate elite athletes, and they have quite a few. Also, they play lacrosse and not hockey, which may be important to some, football but no rugby. Both schools have a rowing programme, which might not be on people's radar at yr 7, but its a huge opportunity that is not available everywhere. It's a heavy training commitment but a real community - for parents as well. It yr 7, PHS runs 7 netball teams but this dwindles as girls move on to other sports - especially if they're not in the top 2-3 teams. There's no pool at PHS whereas there is at LEH, so that's another factor. Good luck with your choice. I would look at other comparison factors than just sport however. Ultimately, both are great schools.