St Anthony’s hosted a Senior Schools’ Information event yesterday morning. The Hall was packed to the gunnels with families from Year 5, and some from Year 4, keen to learn more about the 11+ and 13+ application process. Six senior schools were in attendance, including Wetherby Senior, Mill Hill, Merchant Taylors’, Harrow, Bedford and Highgate. The aim was to give parents an understanding of the different types of schools such as single-sex, co-ed, boarding (including full, weekly and flexi models), and rural and urban settings. The representative from each school was allotted ten minutes to give a broadbrush impression of their establishment, focusing on the admissions process, academic and co-curricular life, exam results and university destinations. I think it is noteworthy that Wetherby Senior boasts some of the best value-added results of any school in the UK. It was good to hear that 13+ schools such as Bedford, Harrow and Mill Hill want their pupils to enjoy the full prep school experience up to and including Years 7 and 8. There was an acknowledgment that boys benefit from studying for the Common Entrance curriculum in a smaller and more nurturing setting. Such an option no longer exists, of course, for schools such as Highgate or MTS where entry is at 11+.
Following the presentation, parents were given the opportunity to speak with school admissions’ officers on a one-to-one basis, in a style similar to a university fayre. The Senior Schools’ event supplements a comprehensive programme of support offered to St Anthony’s boys and parents preparing for the 11+. I am delighted most families in Year 5 have met with me to clarify the process and devise an outline strategy. In a few weeks’ time, Year 5 boys will be invited to attend weekly enrichment sessions in English and Maths with the aim of re-enforcing fundamental skills and building confidence in advance of sitting practice papers. There will also be packs of work sent home for boys to work through over the summer holidays. Boys applying for boarding or St Paul’s or Westminster are required to sit for the ISEB Pre-test, and they will be prepared for these assessments here at St Anthony’s. All boys will be invited to attend these weekly morning pre-school sessions irrespective of whether they are sitting the Pre-Test or not. They will all benefit from extra tuition.
The most important guiding principle at the 11+ (or 13+) is finding the school that will enable each child to reach their full potential. Open day visits are essential so that families get a ‘feel’ for each school, at the end of which everyone will have formed some sort of judgment about the ethos and culture, which will be manifested in how the pupils present and engage with their peer group and with visitors. Comparisons are invaluable, which is why I advise booking as many open days as possible, and a crucial bit of advice is to learn to trust one’s instincts. Choosing a school is not wholly dissimilar to buying a house and you will know when the fit is right – that feeling is obvious, as is the inverse which is just as helpful. I know it can all seem rather daunting but my colleagues and I are here to assist every step of the way and we are all aligned on one aim, which is the very best outcome for your son. Hold steady and, as I often say, Garde ta Foy, Keep Faith.
At Senior House Assembly, School Chaplain Monsignor Phelim talked to pupils about his experiences as a naval chaplain during the Falklands War of 1982.
