Trafford 11+ advice needed – Sale appeal? Stretford/Urmston vs Wellington/North Cestrian for sociable bright boy”

[Moonbeam14]

We live in Timperley and we’ve had an extremely difficult two years as a family. During my son’s year 5 and 11+ preparation, I had a serious car accident which caused a brain bleed, and I’m still recovering. My memory and ability to complete tasks have been badly affected, and my partner works long hours so we’ve been managing everything on one salary.

My son attends a prep school and consistently scored well in all their assessments. He was expected to pass for Sale Grammar. However, with everything going on, I think the stress may have overwhelmed him and he “checked out” during the exam.

I also forgot to submit the “extenuating circumstances” form to explain that he has ADHD and that our family had been under significant strain due to my accident. This was a genuine mistake caused by my cognitive difficulties.

Now we’re facing several decisions and I’m feeling overwhelmed:

1. Should we appeal to Sale Grammar?

Does anyone actually succeed in appeals? Would our circumstances be considered?

1. He has qualified for Stretford Grammar and Urmston Grammar, but both are 30–40 minutes away.

We don’t know much about Stretford Grammar. He’s sociable, bright, loves football and gaming — would he settle well there?

1. We are considering Wellington School as a second choice, but we’re right on the catchment border and don’t know if we’d get in.
2. North Cestrian is another option, but we don’t know what the school is really like day‑to‑day.

I’m still recovering from my brain injury and struggling with anxiety and uncertainty. I just want to make the right decision for my son — somewhere he will be happy, make friends, and be supported academically.

Any advice on appeals, school choices, or what these schools are like for a bright, sociable boy would be really appreciated.

Hello I’m local to you & don’t have a child who attends grammar school but I would do this

1. appeal to sale grammar it potentially gives you options
2. definitely consider the other grammars. I have a friend whose daughter has started at Stretford and loves it. He could tram from timperley it’s not too bad of a commute.
3. my DD was border line for Wellington this year & if we had put it first, we would have got it. We actually put AC first as she has a sibling who attends there. Birth rates are dropping so catchments are changing so if you want Wellington put it first as there’s a decent chance you’ll get it.
4. NC offered loads of spaces on waitlist this year so I think there is likely to be a bit of movement there again. Personally I didn’t love this school but I have friends who have children there and think it’s good. Did you go to the open day? They have just had a new head teacher start here who I think is making quite good changes. The old head was a bit more traditional in his methods.
5. I would recommend AC. We’ve had a good experience with this school.

good luck. It’s stressful. I thought going through the process with our second child would be easier but it wasn’t but that’s a whole other story!!
I hope you are recovering.

Sorry when I said put Wellington first….obviously if you want Grammar over Wellington put Grammar first but don’t discount as Wellington your first non grammar choice if you want that over NC. Trafford will just work down your list so make sure you include it.
Also if you email Trafford admissions with your postcode they can tell you your distance from certain schools and you can check previous years catchment distances although these do change each year.

We're very happy with Stretford. Based on my DC's experience, it's really friendly and sociable. There are loads of kids that come from Sale, Brooklands and Timperley way on the tram. I have a DC at another Trafford school and in our experience Stretford has been considerably more friendly with mixing across forms from Y7 onwards. Not sure if this is because it's a smaller school?

How about Altrincham boys?

I agree with what has been said about Stretford. Trams from Sale / Timperley make it very easy to get to. Staff are great and the pastoral side is strong, my sporty DS settled well. Friendships happen quickly as a lot of kids come on their own instead of in friendship groups from primary

Stretford and Urmston both good.