London grammar and private senior school entry 2025 part 2

[CruCru]

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

All I can say is two dc with very different personalities have done very well there on every score. I don't want to be too identifying with details but their academic outcomes have been excellent and so have their friends' they're all at fantastic unis or have offers to go to the very best out there. They both made really lovely, kind, fun, loyal and unsnobby friends. The teachers are excellent and engaged. When we had some health issues with one child could not have been more proactive and supportive. I personally prefer coed as preparation for the real world and both dc have close friends of the opposite sex, which I think is very healthy.

I'll say it again - if your commute is easier to LU I really would go with that one as it will make a huge difference to your lives. If you had a shorter commute to the others (which I don't know much about) I'd have said go with them. They're all great schools.

This is so great to read as we are about to accept a place!

We've just made a decision, it is SPGS for us. Tough to choose between LU and SPGS but our daughter's preference swayed the decision. I know a few here are on waiting lists and fingers crossed for all that these move favourably!

@SamPoodle123 I just like that they are adopting a modern approach. Spoke to several staff members about it and feel comfortable that kids won't be disadvantaged for university applications. I think the quality of the educational experience will be richer for the reforms and more suited to the modern world/workplace. At the end of the day it's a personal decision though. Maybe speak to the school if you need more clarity on the reforms, I am sure they would be happy to talk to you about it.

Do you know why your DS prefers Dulwich? It might sound funny, but even at that age many kids can sense what environment appeals to them. We had a similar decision - 25 min bike ride away school vs 40min school bus ride away school. The coach journey really not a big deal as is social and she likes having a downtime between very full days at school and homework. If the timetable says 40 minutes (conservatively) it usually is quicker. My DD very happy at the latter and years on I have caught up to be able to see why she prefered the latter school.

We accepted a place at G&L post OH day and given our preferences: all-girls, GCSE (for better or for worse), option for IB, sports facilities and (relatively) conveniently-located (have younger children at other west london schools). It was always DD’s 1st choice, though she was positively intrigued by SPGS. Agree w previous poster that at this tier of academic results (based on The Times’’ rankings) there is no hugely important differential from SPGS down to LU…. Very much a question of preferences and likely “fit” for DC… DD happens to v sporty, v social so this might have been more difficult decision if she had received SPGS offer post interview but, like everything in London life, there are always trade-offs/compromises…. Have declined all other offers; hope it helps anyone at day school WLs, particularly CLSG, LU and SHHS. All great options

Hearing directly from one very happy family tonight that SHHS WL is def already moving…. Good luck in your decisions!

I think he just likes the feel of it and they did a really good job of selling themselves. I felt at the interview stage, they were really working it to sell the school to the parents. Latymer, it did not feel like that as much. But I understand some schools work at it more than others. So I don't want to let that sway me. The coach concerns me because it means he would miss out on morning sport (he is very sporty) because we don't drive and he would be very dependent on getting there by coach. Also, Saturday sport becomes an issue for the same reason. Latymer he can make his own way.

I have two sons at DC, both very happy. LU and DC do have very different vibes. I wanted eldest to go to LU as closer but he felt it was too urban for him, he preferred campus and greener space of DC. DC did a better job of selling for sure. I have friends with kids at LU- they’re happy and it’s a great school too, just a very different feel. Also, once sons in Y8 they didn’t want to coach anymore- they hop on the tube and train, meeting friends along the way. Still, there’s a lot to be said for being close and able to cycle to school. Tough decision!

I’m a very happy LU parent so may be a bit biased but do think about how you would get to DC if you don’t drive. Will it be easy for you by public transport for early mornings or late evenings or for them to travel on their own? You may be there more than you think- parents evenings, other meetings, concerts, plays, matches etc. And all school trips seem to leave at ridiculous times - we’ve had 1am drop offs, 4am drop offs etc at different schools. We can travel by public transport easily to both my DCs schools but also find ourselves driving quite a lot both for school events and picking them up from friends, parties etc.

How long was the travel to DC when they stopped using the coach? My issue is if he did not want to take the coach travel would be 1 hour and 15-20 minutes!! There is no way he could really drop the coach.

Thank you. Very good point indeed. No way we would take the public transportation because so long. I mean, as a one off we could if needed. But we would either have to get a car and start driving (I would need to get my license as well) or pay for taxi each time (which is what we do for weekend sports now anyway). BUT for LU he could get there on his own if needed as the sports field he can take the train or bike to. I think based on travel this makes the decision for us. I just need to get my dh to realise this. DS loves DC, but I think he understands the reasoning why I am for LU.

If you have say a 1hr coach vs 30 mins public transport between two schools, I would say that is a deal breaker. But that’s my personal opinion and lots of people do it!
Obviously single sex vs mixed and GCSE’s vs new untested yr 10 & 11 are other important considerations.

For us, it’s about 40 minutes without coach, it sounds like your journey is a lot longer. And depending on which sport your son chooses, you will need to be at DC for Saturday morning fixtures. In Y9, rowing is an option - which is great if you live West as the boat club is in Putney.

I was also wondering about the sport at DC. For example the rugby or football. When do they do the practices for this if you are on the team? Do they have a morning practice? For example my dd at G&L has netball practice once a week in the morning, lunch and after school. She also does hockey, so this means she needs to get to school early for those two days. I am wondering if at Dulwich they also have sports practice in the mornings sometimes (as I think this would make it a clear deal breaker, since he would not be able to take the coach earlier to get there for morning sport).

@Gretchenn I am curious about sport at LU, for example if they are on the ruby or football team, when do they do practices for this? If they have a morning sport practice, I assume they make their own way to the sports field and they have a coach to take them back to school? Or for example for lunch or after school, is there a coach that takes them to the sports field?

https://cdn.vectare.co.uk/media/foundationschools2324/Foundation_Schools_Transport_Guide__2024_25_v2.pdf

Here is the current DC, JAGS, Alleyn’s coach info for anyone that needs it.

Seems there is a late coach for those who have after school training but mornings remain tricky. At Alleyn’s some of the before school training is at 7.30am

@SamPoodle123 - I don’t think they tend to have rugby/ football practice before school as a rule (although I think DS had the very occasional before school ‘skills’ session at school )but when they go to the sports fields there is a coach from school and then they can either come back on the coach or make their own way home if permission has been given. On Saturdays they make their own way to the sports fields if a home match or there will be a coach for away matches.
From memory there is early morning training for cricket, swimming, fencing, rowing and probably other clubs that I don’t know about.
In the lower years rugby/ football will be played on the games afternoon and one day after school training. And then matches on Saturday morning.

@SamPoodle123 agree with the above, though you’d be better off asking the school as it’s possible it’s changed since mine were doing sport big time. It’s very quick on the coach to the Chiswick grounds

We have accepted G&L offer. CLSG was our other top choice but the commute would have been so bad. Declined LU, SHHS, FHSS, Wimbledon High and Putney High. Hopefully lists would be moving soon for those waiting.

Congratulations! I think it feels so much better once a decision has been made.

If LU is 30 min commute, then it’s no brainer, I would think. Both schools are (extremely) good and the fact that one sold itself better than the other is not a decisive factor, I would think.

@SamPoodle123 we have kids in Y7 and Y9 and at DC there's not really anything in the morning before school that we are aware of. I remember seeing lots of that on the Emanuel timetable but not at DC. Additional sports practice happens at lunchtime (there's a long lunch break) and for clubs after school, there's a fleet of late coaches timed to accommodate. So many kids take the school coaches they have to take this into account. There is sport on Saturday mornings but we just use an uber if need be. Remember if you're out west, some fixtures will be in your direction and you can go directly to them rather than school first. We've never experienced the middle-of-the-night school trips someone else referred to.

@Londonintherain is right, rowing is an option from Y9 and lots of the boys take it - my eldest started this year and absolutely loves it. We live in SW and it's handy not living too far from the river; my son can travel independently down there at the weekend. Mercifully, rowing times have so far been at a very civilised time of day on a Saturday so no dawn or pre-dawn starts.

@SamPoodle123 it's such a difficult choice to make, isn't it, particularly in the very last days up to the deadline? We were really torn as all our shortlisted schools (both co-ed and all-boys) seemed great and we were really worried about getting it wrong. No doubt it would have been fine at any of our final choices but they are so happy at DC - no exaggeration to say they love pretty much every single day of school and seem to pack in so much. Do feel free to PM if I can be of further help with any last-minute questions.

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@redrobin75 you can tell I'm not a MN pro! Ah well, @SamPoodle123 feel free to ask me anything on here!

@ALongProcess unfortunately all users were sent child p about 10 days ago, they are having to upgrade the security.