North London Sixth Forms recommendations please

[OMVM2]

Looking for suggestions and recommendations please - son is in his last year of secondary school and is looking at different options for his A Levels.
He will keep his application in his current school as they have a sixth form to continue but he would love a change to be honest.
Also, his current school is more less average and he is quite academic with 8s and 9s predicted in his GCSEs so he's hoping to maybe get into a higher achieving school. His subject choices are History, Computer Science and Music (if he passes grade 5 as it seems to be the qualifying factor - if not he is happy to go with Physics).
We have looked at the list of schools in the area but to be honest it is little overwhelming trying to narrow these down to couple of good and suitable choices. Currently considering oversubscribed Woodhouse as we know quite a few kids who attended it and were very happy with it, but would love to hear what other schools people think are worth looking into in North / Central London?

Thanks Foxes.

Good to know what LAE is, I’ll have a look but it’s probably too far.

And how odd about Highgate Wood. That isn’t what I expected at all.

Sorry to be slow to come back.

Many adore Woodhouse. Others survive it. I know several who started and left (one because they didn’t think it was good enough, one because it was tough and unsupportive).

they REALLY push kids. Way more than any other school I know locally. And that’s tough.

No rave reviews amongst kids I know. Feels like an efficient and uncompromising sausage machine.

Has anyone got up-to-date info about Fortismere 6th form please?

Tbh most of these super successful schools are like this. I know a few kids in this year's Y12 at APS who are broken by it. It is unfortunately the name of the game. Parents love the results but those results, at A Level come at a cost. Many moan about the grade 7 at GCSE in the subject you want many of these schools have but the reality is unless you're a grade 8/9 student, getting A in your A Levels will be a hard graft. None of these schools lie about their expectations or what they do but most kids joining the likes of Woodhouse will be coming from schools where they might've been the top or one of the top. They're joining cohorts of kids who are all from the top. And these schools expect these kids to act as such from day 1. All of these sought after sixth forms are very honest about what they do/don't do so visit the open days (warning many sell out so keep an eye on when it goes live) and decide from then. But A Levels are very hard I think people are generally forgetting that when they criticise the methods these schools use.

And it might not be what Highgate wood is like! Go visit, this is just one kids opinion that went there for 1 or 2 days.

Yes, it’s all very personal. I was just quite surprised by Woodhouse, as I was SO impressed by it on visiting. And I now know several who have gone, and who are not as happy as expected

I genuinely don't think people realise quite how much work it is to get those A grades in A Levels. It's a very good college, it's good at what it does but I do think a lot of kids expect a lot more handholding than they would get from a large college like Woodhouse. It's brilliant for a self motivated young person who might find a small sixth form environment suffocating and frustrating.

I know 2 girls who have just finished yr 12 at LAE and they are liking it there. They both got all 9s at GCSEs and are both very sporty. So it suits them very well. However even they have complained about the work load.

My DD has just finished yr 12 at APS and has dropped her science subject. She got a 7 at GCSE but was really struggling to get a C at A level. For Maths she got an 8 at GCSE and is doing well at A level. So with our personal experience I would agree that for Science and Maths A levels you do need an 8 or 9 at GCSE to be able to cope/do well. My DD's Maths class will be half empty next year, so many have dropped the subject, are re-doing year 12 with alternative subjects, have to re-take the mock in Sept or have left APS.

Dd is off to Woodhouse (hopefully). She’s a smart girl and is quite invested in her chosen subjects but has ASD and ADHD and has a bit of a tendency to prevaricate but as PPs have said, think a-levels will be a massive step up wherever you are.

She was at Highgate Wood but is just ready for a change, wasn’t a totally happy experience for her socially but some of the teaching is really good (hence DD being able to go to Woodhouse). I’m not sure about the teaching of computer science specifically but they do offer it at a-level and I know they are putting a lot of focus into really improving their outcomes at a-level across the board including getting more kids to consider oxbridge etc so I would definitely check it out. The comment about all posh kids really doesn’t ring true, there’s a real mix of backgrounds there.

Good luck to your son, think we are lucky in north London that there is a wide range of facilities out there and if you have good grades they are really competing to lure you!

I agree: A-levels are a big step up. Woodhouse does seem to be best for students who are self-motivated and also pretty personally confident. One of those I know who left is ferociously able, but not great at friendships. I think they found it not as academically stretching as they had hoped/expected, and socially too difficult. Another, who has stayed, has found it academically difficult (but in a good way), and also not all that socially warm.

Any feedback on Capital in Islington or Leytonstone 6th form?

One thing to remember is that, while sixth forms may have more applications than places, students can apply and hold lots of conditional offers - DS1 had 5 offers including Woodhouse. While Woodhouse had slightly higher entry requirements for his course combination, all were fairly similar - 7 or above in the subjects he wanted to study/most relevant GCSEs, 8 in Maths for Further Maths. Woodhouse additionally wanted a 7.5 average for 4 A level programmes and this was relevant as he wanted to study Further Maths. I was a bit nervous but DS1 got slightly more than he needed. Anyway, for applications by the deadline, students predicted the needed grades will probably get an offer, I think.

Would Computer Science or Physics not normally be studied with Maths? At APS nearly everyone starts with 4 and most students drop one at the end of year 12, unless like DS1 they're doing Maths and Further Maths, in which case they will be expected to continue. (He did Physics and Philosophy as his others). And does your DS1 want to do A level Music specifically, or has he looked at other post GCSE Music study options? One of DS1's friends did a Music Production course alongside 3 A levels at APS, though he dropped it at the end of the 1st year.

Capital is a group formed between London colleges and Capital in Islington is City and Islington College, which has an A level section between Angel and Old Street and other parts in Holloway and Finsbury Park. DS1 had an offer there. DS2 probably could have done A levels but perhaps not A level Music on the basis of his GCSE grade (6 in Music, 2 other 6s and 5 7s and an equivalent to GCSE grade 7 in a BTec), and he chose a full time Music Performance course at a college which offers BTec style courses in creative subjects. Westminster Kingsway is part of the same group and also offers A level study. One of DS1's friends had to restart year 12 after a year at APS, and has now progressed to year 13 at what was Westminster Kingsway.

I would suggest trying to visit as many places as possible and that OP's DS1 applies to any which seem like possibilities - and then he has until GCSE results day in August, at least, to really make up his mind. He may be able to make later applications but applying to multiple places now really won't hurt and he can find out more about the colleges and what he wants to do over the next few months, even visit places if he didn't have the chance to go to an open evening before the application deadline.

I agree with @elkiedee about visiting. DS1 had Woodhouse and LaSWAP offers. One of his key subjects looks different depending on the choices the school makes and so he went with LaSWAP as they had the most interesting modules for him. He is very much Woodhouse material, in grades, approach to study, doesn’t like disruption, is very focussed etc. He reasoned that he felt he could get the grades that he wanted/needed in both places and one had more interesting content and was closer to home.

I will caveat that he went to a LaSWAP school, so he did know what he was letting himself in for as well.

I don’t think he went for comfort though, his uni parameters were, 3h max and campus and now he is at Edinburgh, which was his first choice, again because of course content.

I imagine the subjects OP DC has picked might be a bit more the same across colleges.

I think @OMVM2's DS might have started 6th form this year?

I don't think LAE offers Music.

I was keen for Dd1 to look at LaSwap @AgualusasL0ver as it's in such a great area with a wide choice of subjects. But I think she will end up staying at her grammar school.

@Slowfashion I think you mean Leyton 6th form on Essex Road not Leytonstone? Leytonstone school doesn't have a 6th form. Leyton has got a wide offering and does both A levels and BTecs I think as does Candi. They're not in the same league academically as Woodhouse or the LAEs and I think a step below La SWAP too in required grades. But I know people whose kids are happy at both. The more academic kids I know from east London tend to go for the LAEs, a few to Woodhouse but it's quite a trek.

Oops I missed the date. @Slowfashion, I think general advice still holds but you're probably in a different area of London. It might be useful to start your own thread and indicate which colleges/area of London you're looking at. OP, if you see this I hope your DS found a place to study that he's happy with.

Woodhouse was brilliant for my DD. Admittedly it was a decade ago, but it was so much more than just A levels. Not only did they offer a fantastic Oxbridge group, her tutors went above and beyond to facilitate unique opportunities that launched her current career. So many non teaching staff were amazing too. Especially the librarian. She would never have got the same opportunities anywhere else IMO.

Thanks all. Great advice... More research this w/E!!

Glad this thread has been revived. I'd be grateful for any feedback on sixth form colleges offering Music Tech, particularly LASwap

Pleased it’s been revived also. Any thoughts on CSG sixth form?

@zaxxon Have you looked at Elam?

Interested in this - DS is in Y10 in Finchley, at school with no 6th form. But really hard to predict he will do at GCSE; he's predicted 5s and 6s (maths 6, English language 5) but he has inattentive ADHD and is also August born so at a bit of a disadvantage for maturity and readiness although he is bright. We kind of need a plan A, plan B and plan C. My best guess is that he might end with a very mixed bag - it's possible, but not likely, he might outright fail a subject, but also might get a 7 in something. He might just be totally overwhelmed by the sheer weight of work GCSEs required - it was a strain even on his older sibling who found academia and self-management much easier

He is expressing interest in Woodhouse as most peers will go there, but it does sound like it won't be right for him as he needs some support. We need some 'lower grade' options and some non-A-level ones too.

Thanks for the tip! I went and checked out their website just now. It looks great, but maybe too specialised for DS, who wants to do maths and computer science along with music tech A level, rather than a two-year diploma in just the one subject.

Funny that place turned out to be a college. I'd often seen it from the motorway and thought it was a furniture warehouse!