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Admissions, school visits, fees, waiting lists and offer decisions — discussed by parents going through it now.

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Music Scholarships

Grade 5 violin + Grade 6 piano at 11+ — competitive for a music award?

DD will be Grade 5 violin and Grade 6 piano by audition time. Not stratospheric, but committed. Where does that realistically sit for a music award at top London day schools?

2027 entrymusicscholarship
Music mum5 weeks ago0 replies
Prep → Senior Transfer

13+ vs 11+ exit from prep — does the maths actually work?

Trying to model the maths: stay until 13+ at a slightly stronger range of schools, vs leave at 11+ now and start senior sooner.

11+13+
Logical dad5 weeks ago0 replies
Siblings & Priority

Sibling priority — does it actually mean anything once the school is oversubscribed?

Younger DD up for 11+ at her older brother's school. Registrar said 'sibling priority is meaningful but not a guarantee'. What does that actually mean in practice?

2026 entrysiblingspriority
Sibling mum5 weeks ago0 replies
Bursaries & Fees

Scholarship + bursary stacking — is this a thing or am I dreaming?

Heard from one parent that some schools stack academic scholarship with a means-tested bursary, others don't. Anyone clarified this with specific schools?

scholarshipsbursaries
Stretched in SW5 weeks ago0 replies
11+ Applications

Got a reject from first-choice school, totally blindsided. What now?

DD got an unexpected reject from her first-choice school last week. Two offers in hand, two waitlists. I'm a mess, she's surprisingly fine…

2026 entry11+offers
Crushed in NW317 May0 replies
Senior School Visits

Co-ed vs single sex — did the open day change your mind?

Went in dead set on single-sex. Came out genuinely unsure after visiting two co-eds. Anyone else have a similar wobble?

co-edsingle-sex
Wobbling parent16 May0 replies
Siblings & Priority

Older sibling didn't get an offer — does younger one still get priority?

DS didn't get an offer from a school we love. Younger DD is 4 years behind. If we never enrolled an older sibling, do we still get any sibling consideration?

siblingsregistrations
Disappointed parent15 May0 replies
11+ Applications

ISEB Pre-Test vs CAT4 — does either school actually tell you the score?

Trying to work out how schools weight the ISEB Pre-Test in their decision. None of them seem to publish anything useful.

2027 entry11+iseb
Anon dad15 May0 replies
Sixth Form (16+)

16+ entry — does it actually exist beyond Westminster and a couple of others?

Looking at sixth form moves for DS. Lots of schools 'accept external applicants for sixth form' but in practice take maybe 4. What are you seeing?

2027 entry16+sixth form
Anon SE parent14 May0 replies
International Families

How do schools actually verify overseas school references?

Genuine question — when you apply from outside the UK system, how does a registrar evaluate the reference from an overseas school they've never heard of?

internationalreferences
Zurich-based13 May0 replies
SEN Support

Looking for schools that genuinely 'get' ADHD — not just say they do

DD has ADHD-inattentive, diagnosed last year. Academically bright. Looking for senior schools where the SENCO actually drives the support, not just signs off the policy.

senadhd
Anon SEN mum12 May0 replies
Music Scholarships

Music scholarship audition — what schools actually look for beyond the grades

We're prepping for music auditions. Beyond the obvious — passing your grade pieces — what have schools actually picked up on in the audition itself?

musicaudition
Anon parent10 May0 replies
11+ Applications

Writing the letter to the Head — would a member read mine?

Third choice. Placing far too much weight on the letter I know, but would value a thoughtful second pair of eyes. DM welcome.

AdmissionsPrivate DM
Priya23 Apr0 replies
International Families

Relocating from Singapore for September 2026 — entry points still open?

Husband's job moves in June. We have Year 5 and Year 9. Which senior schools are actually still registering at this point?

InternationalEntry points
S. Lim20 Apr0 replies
Siblings & Priority

Sibling priority — does it still hold at oversubscribed schools?

We have a strong sibling link but the school quietly moved to a 'sympathetic but not guaranteed' line. Experience welcome.

Siblings
Freddie19 Apr0 replies
Senior School Visits

Taster day vs open day — when is the taster actually worth it?

We have three taster invitations and two overlapping open days. Which sit of each actually changes a decision?

Taster days
M. Clarke19 Apr0 replies
Prep → Senior Transfer

Late prep moves in Year 7 — is it ever the right call?

Our daughter is thriving but not stretched. Considering a move mid-prep. Experienced parents: when does this work?

PrepYear 7
Natasha18 Apr0 replies
Bursaries & Fees

Bursary applications — how early is too early to ask about quiet support?

Looking at 13+ entry for 2028 and want to understand the bursary landscape before committing to a round of registrations.

Bursaries13+
J. Wren18 Apr0 replies
Sixth Form (16+)

Sixth Form — IB vs A-Level for a maths-leaning child.

She's strong in maths and further maths looks like a better fit than IB HL. Any parents whose children made this call and regretted it either way?

Sixth FormCurriculum
L. Armstrong17 Apr0 replies
SEN Support

SEN — a registrar who actually reads the EP report.

Three rounds in with schools that ask for the report then never mention it. Looking for names of heads and registrars who handle this well.

SENRecommendations
Kerry17 Apr0 replies
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