Godolphin and Latymer or West London Free School Secondary

[Marie44]

Hi parents, desperate to know what other parents think about choosing between an independent Godolphin and Latymer school for girls or the state West London Free School? My DD got an offer from G&L, and she'll definitely get one from WLFS next week. Really don't know what to do and wonder what other parents are thinking. Of course, we are aware of the differences (fees against state, girls' against co-ed, etc.), but we would love to know what everyone else's view is. Also, is anyone here in the same situation?

WLFS isn't an average non-selective secondary school. The school was set up by a group of middle class parents to provide a free alternative in Kensington, one of the most unequal parts of the UK, for families who would otherwise have sent their children private and they had been more active than most schools in tilting their input towards the 'right kind' of families with their feeder school criteria.

They claim 63% 7-9s and 25% at 9 in the GCSEs last year. They set in math and science so a high achieving girl might spend half her time with mostly the same group of high achieving students. We'll never get the data, but I suspect that their top set in the sciences compares favorably with G&LS and their top set in math outperforms the bottom set at G&LS.

I love this, thank you so much. We accepted GL. My daughter had offers from City, SH and FH (academic scholarship), but GL felt right for her. I was veering towards City, but she chose GL. She currently attends an outstanding state school and has worked hard at the 11+/. She isn't big-headed at all. I only learnt late in Year 5 how academically bright she was from other parents. I feel more reassured having read your message thank you.

I have no skin in the game other than to say G&L is a fabulous school. However you seem to be focusing a lot on sixth form, somewhat unnecessarily given your daughter is still in, presumably, Year 6.
Lots will change between now and the time she needs to start thinking about 6th form. If she’s going to get a string of 9s at GCSE, she can pretty much get in anywhere, private or state. She may well chose to stay put.
And G&L (or wherever your daughter ends up) can guide you on all that closer to the time.

@CotswoldsCamilla Many thanks for your comment. I'm actually focusing more on the secondary as I agree, as you say, a lot can change in 5 years (my DD is about to finish her primary and start secondary in Sept this year). 6th form was mentioned in the comments, so it just gave me something else to think about for a moment. Is your DD a current G&L student?

She is not but I have a lot of friends and some family members with girls there. Ironically my niece was in SPGS and her mother told me after she left that on reflection, G&L would have been much more suitable for her. I would not have hesitated to send mine to G&L but academically it would have been a bit of a stretch.

@CotswoldsCamilla That's good to know, thank you. I think the great thing about G&L is the pastoral care, and if there are any struggles at some point, including studying, hopefully the school will provide some assistance. My DD is self-disciplined and has no trouble at all with her studies, but she comes from a state primary. So, it may be a bit difficult for her to adjust at the beginning, but it doesn't have to be a bad thing, only exciting.

I thought I'd chime in as a mother to a DD in Year 7 at G&L. I also have a stepchild in state school at a large comprehensive that sets them from year 7, and she is in the top academic track. I adore G&L, as my daughter is totally thriving there. The level of education is top-notch, the pastoral care is very attentive and the sports/extra curricular options are incredible. We also were deciding between City and G&L and in the end DD and I both went with our gut and could not be more thrilled. My stepchild is well attended to at her excellent comprehensive, but there is just no comparison on the sports/music/clubs front and it was very important to us that our DD be able to take advantage of that. We are by no means wealthy (G&L is by far the biggest financial commitment in our lives!), and it's not a problem at all. There are a broader range of backgrounds represented than at my DD's pre-prep and her classmates are from all over the world. It's a very special school. Hope this helps!

@Pizzaandmovienight Thank you for your insight. Would you be happy to also share in terms of how much pressure there is on the girls when it comes to studying and workload at G&L? Would you say it feels quite intense, or is it generally manageable? I don't have to ask my DD to study or do homework, as she knows it's got to be done and doesn't mind. She likes studying.

Also, how do you find the day-to-day experience for the girls, particularly in families where parents are working and busy? Does the school provide a good level of structure and support, or is there a lot of parental involvement required?

I completely understand that it depends on the child, but it would be really helpful to know. Thank you.

Sure! It’s completely manageable. Maybe 30 mins a day max. The school asks the girls for a good deal of independence from day one, but once my daughter understood she had to be on top of assignments (all assigned via their iPads) she took to it really well. Many parents work and they give plenty of notice for events that parents might be invited to. I find it so much more manageable as a working mum than primary school. Another thing to note: they do not give grades/marks in Year 7 and continue to focus on improvement areas only in Year 8. The girls get detailed feedback on assignments and occasionally have a marked quiz, but the ethos is that there is plenty of time for grades and ranking later in secondary school and they want to focus on helping the girls discover their interests first.