Y11 2025/26… come and join

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Wow that’s incredibly short notice. Did you choose the school specifically for the ib? Round here several sixth form admissions deadlines have already passed, with a few open until December for applications. I hope you have options.

we have the mock timetable now and dd has taster lessons next week for potential new alevel subjects.

Gosh that's early for closing deadlines for 6th form @36and3 . We're in London and they all seem to be having their open days in October and November with deadlines from January to March. Dd1 is only doing her mocks in Jan so won't have much in the way of predictions before then.

I hadn't heard about the government pulling Latin funding. Both Dd1's grammar school and Dd2's state school offer it at present. Dd2 is in yr 9 and about to chose her options and Latin was one of them - they haven't mentioned cancelling it. I will check with the teacher. It looked like there were just 40 schools on a Latin excellence programme whose funding was getting pulled so hopefully they're not one of them. If they have cancelled it, I guess she'll just do dual modern languages instead.

Yep! A crazily heavily oversubscribed sixth form college near us opened its applications in July (of year 10) and closed end of September with offers made 1st October. Dd get a place which is nothing short of amazing. However, she wants to stay at her Indy sixth form. We’ve got until January to confirm with them so will hold both spaces for now.

Yes sorry I was referring to the ‘Latin excellence programme’ . Not sure how many other state schools do Latin, particularly comprehensives. It was a great opportunity.cancelled.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3d813v7ylxo.amp

Yes 6th form we’re not sure whether to stay current independent school, or move to local sixth form college.

We didn't choose the school specifically because of the IB, but the kids have been geared up to doing it for years now e.g. practice extended essay one year, "creativity, action and service" programme another year. Multiple languages (2 modern plus latin). Doing 11 GCSEs including 2 languages (which I wasn't totally sure was a great idea doing so many GCSEs). However, I suppose it's all good for their development!

We've been looking at 6th forms over the weekend, think DD was a bit freaked out by it all yesterday, but she's calmed down a bit today and is even having some sensible conversations. No 6th form at her school, so has to move somewhere else but she's not bothered by that as there are some excellent options. We're manchester so have been looking at loretto and xaverian, anyone else on here been looking there too?

Will the IB decision affect all state provision of it?

DD was interested in both a college and school offering it....

Yes, from what I've read the extra funding that state schools get for the IB is being cut so it will impact all state schools who offer it. It's only the "extra" funding which is £2k per pupil apparently, so schools could continue to offer it, but I presume it would be difficult for them to fund if it takes more teaching time and no schools are awash with cash are they.

No, loads of school based 6th forms round us are closing for finding related reasons. They weren't offering the IB anyway but already say that post 16 provision is too expensive to keep offering. I cant see that any would plough on with something like IB with a huge funding cut.

The college open evening was before this announcement- I wonder what they'll do and how they'll communicate their decision?

DS has mocks coming up after half term so we worked on his revision timetable this weekend. I say "we" but it was mostly me getting happy with spreadsheets. He doesn't have a lot of time so I'm getting him to RAG all his subjects to identify focus areas. The school has RAG sheets available to students but not to me so I made my own. I do love spreadsheets... DS sat down with a revision guide and did a bit of physics, so that's a result.

How is everyone getting on? My DS has had one assessment then two weeks of solid mocks straight after half term. He keeps saying he is failing, when I keep wondering how on earth the government thought so much content in GCSEs was remotely reasonable. So far DS has managed probably an average of 2 hours revision a night after school and about 3/4 hours each weekend day and so far at least he is keeping up his hobbies which also take about 10 hours a week in total but it is brutal. There is just so much content and DS is disabled so writing is tricky, which probably means revision is eating my time more than perhaps it should. Oh well in three weeks time this set of mocks will be over and we’ll have another 3 months before the next set!

Not much studying been done here so will have to see how it's goes already half way through Mocks as split either side of half term parents even 2nd week of December so will know results by then. Outside clubs taking up lots of time but she is enjoying them will decide what to do if mock results are not great. About Currently trying to decide where to go for 6th form. Do e one open evening so far.
@whereonthestair does your son have use of a word processor for exams?

Yes DS has a computer, he can even do French accents on it which always amazes me. He writes some questions, types others but it’s his normal way of working so fine apparently, and given we were told he’d never be able to even write his name when he was 3 ish it’s quite remarkable. He also gets extra time and rest breaks. They go some way to levelling the playing field but aren’t quite the advantage others may think as the time is needed, which goes for revision and homework too, and unfortunately we can’t make the days 25 % longer. It will be what it will be though, and when it’s rubbish I remind myself this is a child who was never supposed to write. He’ll be great for the progress scores for the school as came into secondary behind on everything but barring a disaster will get 9 decent passes if he manages not to fall asleep in an exam.

DS is apparently doing about 1.5hrs revision per school night and 2 on weekends. Wether this is happening or wether the revision is of any quality remains to be seen. I have said if the November mocks aren't showing the results they should I will have to be a lot more on his case than I am now.

We just have one open day left and it is for DS's preferred college and also the one that will be far the easiest to get to so I really hope it lives up to DS's expectations.

We have 2 weeks of mocks starting 17th November.
Some revision is definitely being done this half term week, but not sure how much. Mock results due in December will advise me of whether the revision has been effective.
predicted grades based off mocks due in December so they can do their 6th form applications.

Their school has not been performing well at GCSE although looking at this years performance tables they did a bit better in 2025 GCSEs. This has resulted in them adding a 2nd mock cycle in March.

We have just one more open day too.

@Ifonlyoneday sometimes it ain't good when schools have great GCSEs results. DDs school has always done2 mocks 2nd in Feb also got a week of revision classes over easter half term. Dreading this year as last 2 yrs the school has improved and added extra revision classes.
@whereonthestair Good to hear he has been given things to help in the exams to make it fairer. Didn't find out till A Levels that my DS qualified for a word processor as he struggled to write.
@Littletreefrog hope the open evening goes well and he likes it.

Not much revision being done here either some maths - mostly instigated by me - and DS1 is taking his actual maths exam in a couple of weeks! I am told they can retake in the summer but am desperately hoping he can pull a C (in Wales so still letters) out of the bag to reduce the revision load. Not looking promising though. Think DS1 is slightly despairing of the amount of work so choosing to do as little as possible- I do not understand this logic in the slightest but worryingly his younger brother claims it makes sense….
Slightly freaked out by the fact you all seem to have had most of your open evenings etc. We have not had any! The school sixth form one is at the start of December and think all the college ones are next term.

We don’t have the option to stay at the current school, only one school in our area has a sixth form as part of the school, our son’s school used to but they closed it as everyone goes to sixth form college. Which is what DS will do. In reality we have one choice as we would need the council to fund transport to any other college (due to disability) which they won’t want to do. It makes the decision making easy though, now DS just has to get the predicted and then actual grades

We are looking at same options. DD seemed bit phased by the size of both Loretto & Xaverian albeit I was the other way and reassured by visits. I liked Loreto most as did most parents I have spoken to but Xav closer. But need to get the grades..

@Littletreefrog I’m quite intrigued by the seemingly overly harsh approach.
I seriously can’t decide whether a more soft approach works or very blunt reality.
The best 6th forms here all require 6/7+ in subjects you want to do.
The more vocational ones 5s
Very vocational ones 4s
But the kids taking vocational courses will prob learn and earn a trade.
Maybe is a genuine desire to get kids to face up to reality .. all be it at 15
Our ‘good’ school are providing lots of support but a lot the kids seem to think it’s a breeze right now. Mine included

dd is staying at her Indy but we’ve applied for a scholarship into the sixth form. She did get a place at a very oversubscribed college but she was put off by the size of it. It has 2000 pupils in years 12/13!! Her school has only 1200 from age 2–18!!

We've been to see one 6th form which is a great school but the grades are not quite as good as Dd1's current (admittedly highly selective) grammar school and the journey is slightly longer. As she already travels nearly an hour a day, I don't think she'd want to increase it. But it was helpful in helping her decide what she wants to do. Her own school's open day is next week.

Annoyingly the other 6th form we wanted to go and see has its open day on the same day she has another commitment. This one is definitely a bit less academic but in a really nice area so that makes it appealing.

We may put it down anyway as a back up in case but realistically I think she'll stay at the grammar.

@eurotravel the harsh approach of some 6th forms is interesting and I think goes up from the academy approach at secondary. There are a few around us - the London Academy of Excellence springs to mind -that have strict dress codes and attendance and are in reasonably deprived areas but get amazing results. I have a few friends whose kids have chosen them, they tend to be very good for Stem subjects.

Definitely Loretto! The comute will be a shock after being able to roll out of bed and be in school in 20 minutes, but it will be character forming :)

@postitnot interesting that Loretto seems to get everyone’s vote albeit loads will go Xav on distance from round us & bus every 3/4 mins. On the face of it the same. Over 2-3000 students. Both just 6th forms. Both outstanding. Similar range of subjects. Same contact hours. Ish Both have med / vet streams .. No one can put finger on it.