London grammar and private senior school entry 2025 part 2

[CruCru]

Here is the new thread for when part 1 is full.

that’s very interesting re: Alleyns as North Bridge House (the school being rebranded) is currently non selective. I wonder if the 2 Alleyns will be selective then especially given one of the is from 2 years old!

@Dontknowmuchanymore I'd rather not go into too much detail here, as it's a very personal feeling/preference and you may have different perspectives. For us, my observation is very much based on the actual exam day (there's a full day of exam after year-end holidays) where a particular ethnicity took up way more than the majority of applicants. It wasn't so obvious on the day of CEM test or interview when the girls are allocated different slots in small groups, or even the open day somehow.. As someone else said above, I could be post-rationalising too! I could equally have chosen the school blindly just because of the reputation or prestige had we had a straight offer, so I'm actually glad we had DD waitlisted to think whether we really wanted it.

I almost can guarantee they will be in the future. Given they have taken the schools near quite a set of academic schools I suspect they are going to start positioning themselves as an alternative academic co-ed for north London and not sure Alleyn’s would lend their name to a school which isn’t good to be the same high standard they are.

Which is a huge loss for the indie school scene as not everyone wants an Alleyn’s level academic school and there are dwindling options for non selective / less academic co Ed schools close to central London now since Portland place closed and Eaton Square (?) merged with LPS

We’re in the same boat of deciding between LU, G&L and PHS. My dd LOVES the vibe of LU, it makes her buzz whenever she visits, and the head’s tour absolutely convinced her she wants to go there. I have a DS there and he couldn’t be happier. G&L is a fabulous school so I am personally tore. But dd seems adamant LU is the place for her so I think we’ll be joining you! Wish the curriculum-change wasn’t there to add uncertainty, however I’m 100% certain replacing GCSEs is the right way forward for the modern world, away from antiquated rote learning and success that relies so hugely on exam technique.

At the risk of derailing, what is this change at LU? What will GCSEs be replaced with and will they keep A levels or are they an IB school? Are other independents moving to this model? (Personally - as a foreigner - think kids are taking too many GCSEs and can’t see how they can possibly smash them all unless they’re genius level or are immune to the chaos that hormones provoke).

@Fableana , to not derail the thread you can search on an old thread called Latymer Upper scrapping GCSEs.

FYI, 2 other schools already do this, Bedales and St Edwards (known as Teddies) in Oxford.

It's probably a good business decision. North / central London is rather short of co ed independent schools - the ones people near me choose are Highgate, Forest, Northbridge House and Alleyn's (difficult to get in and far away). I rather had a sigh of relief when my daughter said that she wanted to go to a girls' school.

Wetherby Pembridge is also opening as a co ed senior school in west London (W14).

Great news @Cheeseandquince !

DD has offers from CLSG, Emmanuel, G&L, Putney High and Latymer Upper. She didn't make it to SPGS post interview. Waiting on Tiffins next week - but it doesnt seem like a personality fit.

My first choice out of these would have been G&L simply based on rankings but she seems to be having an allergic reaction to G&L. We have declined Emmanuel. CLGS seems to involve a long commute which I am not keen on even though they are very highly ranked.

DD seems to be stuck between LU and Putney High - please can anyone offer an opinion on these two? They seem to have similar ethos in terms of pastoral care, more or less similar facilities and the teachers sounded nice in both. Putney felt a bit more 'personal'.

I feel once we have a top choice amongst these two, we'll rank it against CLSG and G&L (there have been tears when we try to push G&L so I am holding off on it till the weekend). It's great to have offers ro choose from but equally very painful too!

Any pointers on Putney vs LU will be really helpful please to help us start the ranking process.

Any further thoughts on your choices please? My daughter has LU ans PHS as top on her list while I have G&L.

@simona28 I wouldn't be pushing a school on your dd that makes her cry! I think it's very understandable to get caught up in rankings but honestly they're pretty meaningless - your dd will reach her potential at any of these schools. I say this as someone with one older child that you realise then that the dc from all these W London schools, no matter how they' sit in the tables, still virtually all end up in a handful of universities. As an example one neighbour's kids who went to SPGS and SPS ended up at Durham and Oxford, which was exactly the same result for another neighbour at a school (don't want to name) that people often sneer at.

So I'd go for the one she likes best - she's worked hard and it should (within reason) be her decision and take the commute into strong account so if CLSG is far it makes no sense to still be factoring it in as it makes a huge difference! I'm an LU parent and have two dcs who love(d) the school so can't compare to PHS, but does single sex vs co-ed make any difference? Which is closer? Which does your dd like the vibe of best?

If she's in tears about G&L, you shouldn't push her to go there. You need some degree of buy in from the child.

Thank you for your considered response :). I am almost striking off G&L this weekend based on her reaction. CLSG remains to be seen - I'd love to travel with her in the mornings but its definitely not ideal from a commute point of view.
DD has made a pros and cons for LU vs PHS on her own - interestingly she put co-ed as both a pro and a con and has ended up completely undecided now. So are we.

Anyone waiting on sps 13+ and hear back today please post! Am back to refreshing emails.

I think the rankings are a blessing and a curse. My eldest goes to a school ranked 300+. The less academic environment suits them and they are on track for 9s across their GCSEs. My youngest needs the competition of a more academic environment hence Alleyn’s.

Please don’t make a decision based on league tables. All these schools are great and move around the top ten or twenty from year to year (and that is also not really a reflection of anything more than selecting the brightest children in the first place of which your DD is one of them!)
I would focus on Coed vs single sex, your opinion either way on LU dropping GCSE’s, commute time and fees (in whatever order is important to you).

You want to travel to school every day with your dd when she's 16? I don't think she'd be so pleased about that and making a teenager do a long commute every day in the rush hour isn't AT ALL ideal when there are much closer alternatives. Plus it makes such a difference to have local friends - I know CLSG girls come from all over but not that many from West and SW London, where you must be based. One of the joys of living nearish to the school is the kids hanging out at each others' homes that are an easy walk/bus ride/cycle from each other. Honestly, CLSG versus these other choices will not make a jot of difference to your dd's eventual outcomes.

@simona28 we will be accepting LU today and declining G&L, PHS, Emanuel, KGS and Surbiton. Offer holder open days really helped with decision making. At the start of the week, we were undecided between LU, G&L and Putney High, but much preferred LU on the tours. Like the modern ethos, buzz, size, co-ed, facilities, head and more down to earth nature / focus on expanding access via bursary programme. For us GL felt more traditional, less diverse and modern and a bit less 'real world'. All great schools though. Good luck with decision making, it is really difficult!

Thank you for helping narrow down the list of things we should consider! It is the right list to start with I feel

Thank you! Any thoughts on LU vs PHS? DD has put her foot down about not going to GL based on vibes she got every time so that is almost out of the consideration.

@simona28 we live close to PHS so it was a serious contender. In the end we all just felt more strongly drawn to the opportunities offered by LU. Probably the biggest distinction between them is coed vs girls, and the middle school / GCSE curriculum reform. We favoured LU on both counts. As you can see on mumsnet, not everyone agrees with the reforms but for us this is a major attraction. Also felt that LU had a more down to earth vibe which is important to us. Both great schools I'm sure. Best of luck deciding!

That's simply not true. My daughter is in year 12 and it's a great mix of girls, in all years. She's very happy at SPGS. Lots of creative subjects too. She sat 12 GCSEs, which includes OCR Add maths, which is the first year of A'levels.

Yes! 13+ SPS Good outcome :) Waiting on Westminster now. The last and final one for us.

Please could you tell me more about why you love LU? We are trying to make a decision and want to feel confident in our choice. I felt LU did not do a great job to sell the school during the tour compared to Emanuel and Dulwich. I am leaning towards LU, but my ds and dh are not convinced. They now favour Dulwich, which I admit does a great job when selling the school. But, Dulwich is twice as far and we would rely on their coach service. LU, ds could get there by bike, bus or tube!

Why did you favour the reforms? For me, this makes me a bit nervous. I like the idea, but a little nervous at the unknown and how it will affect University applications.