Tiffin boys- Wait list

alexaismyfriend · 04/03/2025 11:57

Have you had another with any more info? We were in a similar situation ( 1 mark less than cut off) a few years ago and the letter said he would def get a place by Easter. We actually got a place about 3 weeks later. Did pay a deposit for an Independent though.

alexaismyfriend · 04/03/2025 12:10

alexaismyfriend · 04/03/2025 11:57

Have you had another with any more info? We were in a similar situation ( 1 mark less than cut off) a few years ago and the letter said he would def get a place by Easter. We actually got a place about 3 weeks later. Did pay a deposit for an Independent though.

A letter? Not 'another'!

Original poster

Tiffinwait · 04/03/2025 12:26

@alexaismyfriend thank you. The email only came through this morning, they only said: "We expect a further round of offers to a small number of applicants to be made on or soon after 28 March 2025"

Just no idea how much movement there will be this year with VAT, etc.

OP posts:

alexaismyfriend · 04/03/2025 12:31

I suspect you'll definitely get a place if number 10- good luck!

Sunnyside12 · 04/03/2025 12:36

Tiffinwait · 04/03/2025 11:48

Hi all

DS is 10th on the list with the same score as last allocated place on offer day. We have independent offers but I feel 10th is worth waiting for.

Sharing here as I imagine others would be in similar positions and would appreciate past years experiences please

Does that mean there are at least 11 kids on the same score? That sounds harsh it would end up like that. Are they able to tell you why you are 10th and not 1st (i.e.does the score actually go to 2 d.p. and that was the differentiator or did they apply a distance criteria?).

Is your son born near the start or the end of the school year? It may also be worth double checking if the age standardisation has been properly applied.

My understanding is that the list does often move by 10 places though.

alexaismyfriend · 04/03/2025 12:40

If boys are on the same score- lots will be- it comes down to distance. Those nearer are ranked higher.

Original poster

Tiffinwait · 04/03/2025 12:41

Sunnyside12 · 04/03/2025 12:36

Does that mean there are at least 11 kids on the same score? That sounds harsh it would end up like that. Are they able to tell you why you are 10th and not 1st (i.e.does the score actually go to 2 d.p. and that was the differentiator or did they apply a distance criteria?).

Is your son born near the start or the end of the school year? It may also be worth double checking if the age standardisation has been properly applied.

My understanding is that the list does often move by 10 places though.

Show quote history

I understand that the reason is distance, we are around 9km away from the school. There are kids with the same score that have got a place and the kids ahead of us all live closer.

OP posts:

Lurker874 · 06/03/2025 09:29

You should be fine - in all the recent years the 'final' cut off score has been 2-4 points lower than the initial cut off on National Offer Day. See:

https://www.tiffinschool.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Patterns-of-Admissions-for-website-2024v2.pdf

Congratulations to your DS on the achievement!

https://www.tiffinschool.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Patterns-of-Admissions-for-website-2024v2.pdf

WombatChocolate · 06/03/2025 09:48

I know of 1 person who gave up their place at Tiffin to accept an independent yesterday. There will be movement.

Tricky though re paying a deposit for independent. How much is it?
I suppose you could see it as getting off lightly compared to paying fees for 7 yrs, but still annoying.

Original poster

Tiffinwait · 07/03/2025 14:00

WombatChocolate · 06/03/2025 09:48

I know of 1 person who gave up their place at Tiffin to accept an independent yesterday. There will be movement.

Tricky though re paying a deposit for independent. How much is it?
I suppose you could see it as getting off lightly compared to paying fees for 7 yrs, but still annoying.

Thank you, we decided to pay the deposit as DS is really keen on a particular school and believe he will be much happier there, as he will take advantage of the extracurriculars and all the sports on offer

OP posts:

searchingforarightschool · 08/03/2025 17:20

My DS is 9th(5.5km) on the list and we also paid the deposit on one of the independent offers. def more advantage of extracurriculars and he will be happier with smaller cohort, I believe. some give ups TS offers and some give up on WS offer and moves to TS. I would rather not think about it seriously until we hear any positive updates from TS. many movements due to vat.

Siusiu · 08/03/2025 18:33

My DS is WL30, though he only scored one mark below the cut-off. I think the reason is down to distance (8km). He has now got his second option which is a really good school. Even if he has a chance to get into TS, Coming from a happy state school and rather weak in English, I am worried he may not be able to adjust to a fast-paced learning environment.

CaptainOhMyCaptain · 08/03/2025 19:57

OP, we also know someone about to give up a Tiffin place for an independent so unless @WombatChocolate and I know the same person (unlikely) only 8 more to go!

Aimhigh20 · 08/03/2025 20:17

Hi guys how do we know what was the cut off?

Sunnyside12 · 08/03/2025 20:28

Aimhigh20 · 08/03/2025 20:17

Hi guys how do we know what was the cut off?

I think it was emailed to those who sat the second stage but didn't get an offer on Monday (and only for those who didn't get allocated a school they had ranked higher preference). If your DS did get an offer from Tiffin, you aren't told their score.

Aimhigh20 · 08/03/2025 21:01

asking for a friend her child scored 86 but received email saying his in the waiting list?
cut off score my understanding was 100.
the chances of getting a place very thin right ?

Sunnyside12 · 08/03/2025 21:17

Aimhigh20 · 08/03/2025 21:01

asking for a friend her child scored 86 but received email saying his in the waiting list?
cut off score my understanding was 100.
the chances of getting a place very thin right ?

I think anyone who sat second stage is on the waiting list. Was she told what position on the list he is as well as the score? But that does seem a long shot to get to that score, sorry. I presume he didn't have a sports / music ranking as that might make it more likely?

Ladybowes · 08/03/2025 21:28

Aimhigh20 · 08/03/2025 21:01

asking for a friend her child scored 86 but received email saying his in the waiting list?
cut off score my understanding was 100.
the chances of getting a place very thin right ?

Last year the cut off score on national offers day was 104. It then drop to 102. And if you look at the trends over recent years it the cut off on national offer day has been 104 the past two years running and it was 103 before that. Someone up thread posted historical patterns of admission.

I think 86 is very unlikely looking at past admissions cut off scores even though they do drop by a couple of points by September - unlikely to drop that much

MarchingFrogs · 08/03/2025 21:44

Two different 'cut-off scores', I think? Given that the combined score is equal to or greater than that of the 450th candidate (I have no idea whether 86 falls within that category, but presumably it does, if the applicant os being told that they are on the waiting list?), then

1 - the lowest offer on national offer day (applicants with lower scores normally subsequently being admitted if and when places initially offered are turned down, but bearing in mind that the first few at the top of the waiting list may be late applicants with higher scores than the initial cut-off).

2 - the cut-off score for the year group, which is the lowest score gaining admission by the end of the academic year of entry. This then becomes the threshold to be considered for an in-year place in years 8-11

www.tiffinschool.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/4e-Admissions-Policy-2025-25_Feb_24-WITH-aptitude-tests.pdf

2024London · 09/03/2025 07:33

Hi there

We didn't put Tiffin as the first choice but now my son is desperate to go there. But I havent received any emails or other communication from the school to let me know his stage 2 result or anything. I'm not sure what this means, can I add him to the waiting list without knowing his score?

It's very confusing and with no interaction from the school it's not helping matters

Thanks

Secondaryspectator · 09/03/2025 08:29

You can always go to waiting list for your lower preference schools but you need to communicate with schools and council first. Always accept what you have now but go onto waiting list. If you manage to get it in future, I would believe councils will do swap but you need to get in touch with council and school .

redrobin75 · 09/03/2025 09:06

2024London · 09/03/2025 07:33

Hi there

We didn't put Tiffin as the first choice but now my son is desperate to go there. But I havent received any emails or other communication from the school to let me know his stage 2 result or anything. I'm not sure what this means, can I add him to the waiting list without knowing his score?

It's very confusing and with no interaction from the school it's not helping matters

Thanks

Which school did you put as number 1 and get allocated?

2024London · 09/03/2025 09:13

Sutton grammar. We're happy with the choice but our son now wants Tiffin. Mostly because some of his classmates are going there

redrobin75 · 09/03/2025 09:22

@2024London , Sutton Grammar is a great school to with a long WL.

WombatChocolate · 09/03/2025 13:00

You can add to the WL and will be slotted in where your score places you. Contact Tiffin to ask about it.
A number of people do this at this stage and push some on the WL further down it as they have higher scores.