Grammar Schools pupils encouraged to leave?

[Parent3963]

DD in Yr 8 at a GS, performing well so far as much as we can tell.

She has a friend not at the school who has recently passed 13 plus and now just has to wait for a space to open up.

I wasn't sure how much movement the school typically had. DP suggested that it was typical for GS's to discuss with parents of poorly performing students that an alternative school might be a more suitable option and encourage th to leave. This is more often before year 9/start of the schools gsce course. She seemed to think it was done at her school years ago and is still common practice at a number of schools now including DD's school.

I wasn't sure if this was rumour/myth or something that goes on in some or a number GS to, I presume to aid with maintaining higher exams results?

It's unlawful to exclude a pupil based on academic ability so it shouldn't happen.
Google St Olaves grammar stories from 2017 and the following enquiry.

In my LA places don’t open up. I’m in a grammar county. These places are so sought after! Dc are not asked to leave for academic reasons. Obviously behaviour issues and legal exclusions would be different. They are not common though. Waiting lists can be a long wait.

common after GCSEs but not before

Spaces opening up are usually if a pupil moves out of the area afaik.

DS’s private academic selective school has a similar entrance procedure at 11+. A few pupils are accepted with borderline results in the hope they “catch up”. But it is common practice for some parents to use tutors.

Usually if pupils have gone through the junior schools parents are advised in yr4/5 if their child is going to struggle, learning is definitely accelerated with extension to the curriculum in a lot of subjects. It is not fair to less able students who are likely to struggle to keep up, but some parents are overambitious.

If they are borderline they are given provisional places and if they are struggling at the review points parents are asked to look for alternative provision. This is made clear from the start and is for the pupils benefit. It does mean that places do become available at 12+ and 13+.

Post GCSE they have to achieve a minimum of 6 grade 6 a or above ( compulsory for Maths and English and the subjects they are to study at Alevel) to continue into 6th form.
Parents are careful not to discuss these decisions but it is universally known what the policy is.

As a private school with a selective intake policy they are able to continue this practice.
From a cynical viewpoint it benefits the schools performance but from the child’s perspective, if they struggle to keep up then it’s the wrong environment for them. Inevitably parents who use tutors to support their children throughout blame the school but ability varies and sooner or later you have to accept that your child is not a genius.
If your child is happy and doing well without extra tuition then it is likely to be the right fit.
If DS’s school had had reservations about his ability then we would not have pressured school or DS in order to keep him there.

In Bucks of you get the pass mark you should be offered a place. There’s an appeal process and dc with a lower mark then get accepted too if there are spaces. Sometimes the popular schools are full but sometimes appeal panels add quite a few! After that, few leave but 6th form is different as most schools operate a points system for all.

Some private schools do this but not grammar schools. Places will only really open up if people move away. After GCSEs is the only time when pupils will not automatically be able to stay - there are usually minimum requirements for A level.

DD went through 7 years at same grammar. No one was encouraged to leave and I think in her year group out of 160 only two left during Y7-9, Y10-11 none.

I gather one family returned to their home country and one child went private as her sister didn’t pass the test and so they put sister private and didn’t feel it fair to have one in state and one private (but many others were in same boat and didn’t worry having some in the grammar and some private).

When in a good school families tend to put off moves or if they move within commuting distance keep their child at the school if at all possible. One family even split themselves up and moved mother and twin daughters who didn’t pass test to midlands where they could afford to buy and left father and elder daughter near school which she’d been thriving at. Elder daughter had been at school a good while so wasn’t address fraud but showsemths families will go to about staying in a good school and father then moved to midlands once she finished at the school. Daughter stays with us a lot as all her friends are in our local area. Yes at sixth form there was movement but that was a natural change point.

Places only open up if people move. We don't ask people to leave in that way. It's wrong. And also not allowed.
However, as a selective sixth form, there are students who don't meet the grade requirements to enter sixth form from year 11. All year 11 are encouraged to have a plan B as part of good planning, just as they have an insurance choice at university.
Rather than being encouraged to leave, those that appear to be at risk of not reaching those grades have a lot of support and intervention to achieve.
There is sometimes some movement between Year 8 and 9 if someone goes to an Independent school. We 'lost' a student to Eton a few years back.

After GCSEs there is quite a bit of movement. At 13+ a smattering left my DC's schools for boarding or prestigious private schools . Otherwise it was just an occasional place when families moved or a child was struggling with mental or physical health problems.Getting in to some of the grammars is a long term project of expensive house in catchment, tutoring etc so parents are very committed to the notion that this is the 'best' school . It takes a lot therefore to consider moving the DC even when the signs that it might not be the best fit are there.

I knew of one case where the child was failing to cope and growing more miserable by the week so the school and parents agreed he would be better somewhere else. This particular child had been heavily tutored for the entrance exams and encouraged to believe he was very special. Sadly he wasn't.

Places do open up where we live but not really because people are asked to leave. You just get some transfer to a local private school that only starts in Year 9 ( basically parents saving 2 years of prep school fees). Also a few do just leave because struggling along at the bottom on quite an academically pressured environment is not much fun.