Boarding schools for Year 8 DD to start in Year 9?

[lemonlover123]

DD is currently in Year 8 at a Buckingham grammar girls school. She scored 141 on the Year 7 Cat4 test while still in Year 6 and achieved 136 in 11+, despite being very sick on the day! However, the grammar we chose for her does not seem to be working for her. She loves writing, has won several competitions for it and has always been an early reader/writer. She also recently developed an interest in film. She constantly complains that the school is 'boring' which sounds like a typical excuse, but she genuinely seems very unhappy there. She complains about the bad teaching and stress from numerous exams at her age.

We don't want to put her straight into GCSE's at a new school, or ALevels, so Year 9 seems best. Since Year 6 she has expressed interest in boarding, but she has very clearly told us that she does not want to do any more entrance tests. DH and I know that it is VERY late, but do you have any recommendations for boarding schools that would consider her now for Year 9 based on her CAT4 and 11+ from a couple years ago?

You need to phone admissions of schools that you are interested in. You may bet lucky with a place.

@stillavid do you have any recommendations?

Have you looked at Teddies ( St Edwards) in Oxford? It has full or weekly boarding and may still have some places. Have a look at Teddies TV. Stowe School may also have space and it has a new Head of Film and Creative Media who is doing good things. Stowe has full or flexi boarding.

@IamMuttley We've actually visited Stowe School before, as well as Swanbourne earlier on and really liked it. The dorms especially had DD overjoyed. Teddies looks very nice as well!

I was going to suggest Teddies too, though there may be entrance exams. However, you never know till you call them.

Friends kids have been v happy there.

Nowhere decent will take her based on previous marks. Anywhere that offers a place with no testing will be desperate to fill places. If she’s as smart as she seems to be surely she needs to be somewhere who can cater to that. Additionally all schools will ramp up to gcse testing

I would try Oundle. It’s a wonderful school and they will offer a place on the basis of CAT scores and a letter of recommendation from the headteacher (I appreciate this might be tricky). They like to stretch but not stress the children there.

Its probably too for you but for a slightly different approach, Ripon Grammar has boarding and they have just released some Yr8 places. Its a very down to earth, non super selective grammar but we've found the teaching excellent so far.

I'd also be looking at swiss boarding schools such as Le Rosey. They are extremely high performing, and open more global doors for your daughter in the future both in terms of the IB curriculum, global networking within the student body, and broader university options beyond the Russell group.

Hysterical. It’s the most expensive school on the world. The fees are £105k a year before extras

Is she at one of the Aylesbury grammars, OP? I have a Y8 at a local grammar too.

Does she want to stay local to the area even if boarding? The problem with local private schools is they tend not to be academic as the grammars scoop up the brightest.

Prince George is said to be going to Oundle in September. They probably have a long waiting list now.

At this stage in the process, I think they'd be more likely to be visiting for Charlotte, not George (and apparently were seen in the girl's boarding house).

But OP, interesting that your super-bright child is bored at a grammar, as this is 100% our experience. I think the issue with grammars is that they are slightly hamstrung by the national curriculum, and the academic standard, whilst high, is not really that great for a super-bright child i.e. they are still the smartest by a long shot, and spend a lot of time waiting around for the less able to catch up. We were warned off grammar for our DC (similar CAT4 scores), even the super-selective ones. I struggle to identify a girls' or co-ed school which has academic challenge as a standard, but without it being all about the results (I think girls are particularly susceptible to hot-house environments)

Yes, it's a little more expensive than typical UK options by about 40k pa but many parents funding their children through British elite level boarding schools buy their children property in London at graduation which costs more than the £200-300k uplift that Le Rosey charges in tuition fees.

Rather than gifting a child a £500k flat as yet another Russell Group grad competing for roles in London, why not invest in a global elite tier education and network, and give them the tools to secure the career and property in the city of their choice across the globe?

For a bright child, not Stowe. Won’t be amongst peers there.
for midland boarding schools try Oundle or rugby depending on what’s closer. Both there are day schools or full (3 weekly) boarding and no weekly or flexi.
oundle (I’m a parent with dc there) place more emphasis on the informal interview with the registrar to assess suitability for boarding and then they speak to current headmaster to assess suitability.
my dc were offered places based on these two chats - and then a notional common entrance exam pass was required just before starting - but the offer was made purely on face to face chats with pupil and then behind the scenes chat with current school staff to check child is going to be a happy at a “work hard/play hard” full boarding school.
lists for Oundle (and rugby) fill 3 years before entry BUT you always get summer drop outs and last minute places open up so worth a call.
Oundle suits most children as long as they are self starters, diligent and want to be busy. Not a good school for people who want to push boundaries , be “cool” or eschew working hard.

close family are very pleased with St Swithuns.

A child who's been ahead of her peers in writing and has outgrown her current school is actually a strong candidate for mid-entry boarding — the fact that she's self-sufficient and already knows what she wants means she'll adapt faster than most. Oundle and Stowe are both worth pursuing: they use informal registrar interviews rather than heavy entrance testing, and a strong letter from her current headteacher carries real weight. The film side of Stowe has had genuine investment recently. I post more on how boarding life actually works for academic girls at @boardingschoolguide

Grammar schools are an excellent choice and pupils leave with great grades to go to a range of universities. Where a boarding school often makes its mark is with the extra curricular activities. You would likely find 40+ activities on offer every day with trips/ matches at weekends. This may be something that would really stretch and engage your DD and help her find more interests or deepen those she has already. Do reach out to admissions - a previous poster mentioned Oundle and Stowe admit on the basis of the interview with the Registrar so no need for Iseb. Both use CAT scores and Stowe tests on entry in Year 9 and Y12.