lapindebois wrote:
But if her child is really really bright then I would have thought a mention in advance that a scholarship discount might make the difference between accepting and not accepting a place is at least worth a mention - it could possibly tip the balance between which of two very bright children the school offers the scholarship to? Also worth noting that some schools offer a sort of 'boosted' scholarship for kids who are v bright and not quite bursary level - less discount than a bursary but more than a normal scholarship.
I would say a lot depends on the area and what the state alternatives are like. I'd have thought the OP stood a much better chance of swinging a discount in a grammar area where the indies have to really fight for the bright kids.
Thank you Lapin..that is the exact scenario I had been pondering. Do we let them know in advance, that any potential acceptance, would depend on this, and if so, how? Without coming across as some smug optimistic of course! Is it something regularly encountered in terms of indie applications, particularly in an area where GS places are coveted by most?
Bursary is not an option, but just because a child is coming from a prep and the family's gross income exceeds the income threshold, certainly doesn't account for the many other variables that can make affording another 7 years full fee impossible.
As for considering GS for our daughter, we are just not sure that the ones we have looked at, are somewhere she would thrive and be happy. That is what's ultimately important for us. With GS there is an element of taking the child that suits the school, the child that can deliver and dole out good grades with minimum input and support, but we have seen a couple of schools, that we feel can deliver something beyond this, albeit both very differently. It's definitely not based on some misguided premise that, if we pay for it, it must be better. There are other issues we need to consider, not SEN as such, at least not in significant measurable cognitive terms, but there are other issues that might make a large GS unsuitable. It would be an easy decision if this wasn't the case!
We've now looked at over 10 indies, and there are two that we particularly like, and are within reasonable distance. One is selective and scholarship is a longer shot..but would be our number one choice. The other is much less selective, fees more manageable, and scholarship perhaps more easily attainable. However, HT does not think there would be sufficient academic stretch, which does worry us somewhat, but there are plenty of other positives for us to consider it as an alternative choice.
So that's where we are at for now. Of course a few short months from now, our presumed array of choice might well be very different!