amos73

Congratulations everyone, and sorry to hear of the nos. (And lovely to hear of people getting places off SWL, DD has been on SWL twice now but nothing has come of it either time. Would be lovely to think one day she might get the Royal call up if she keeps trying for Mids etc!)

Thursday be the magic day the Royal email dragon rouses itself on ...

Such a fab post, Pupsmum. X Just to add our experience - DD got a no for JAs for year 5, then SWL for year 6 but place didn't come up. At the same time got a yes for two other associate schemes, Tring CBA and YDA. She auditioned this year for vocational lower schools, got finals at 3 out of 4, and funded place to start in September at one of them. She has definitely learned as much, if not more, from her nos as her yeses.

Wow! Just your dd. Hope it all goes well and she has a great time xx

I agree with ballet mum20, at this age for year 7 entry the over riding factor is physique as vocational Schools believe they can train the right physique.

To all the newcomers, I can only say that yes any associate course does impact family finances and life, particularly hard for the sibling/s who don't dance whose weekends get taken over by ballet, often much to their dismay. We did it for two years but has been worth it as DD is starting vocational school full time from September.

Sparkle123 my DD goes to YDA associates, it is a fantastic associate course, 3 hours every week of body conditioning, barre and repertoire, with brilliant teachers. She has done other associate courses and really if you want to try and train vocationally it is worthwhile to do them, as your dd will be with a selected group of kids who are serious about training and have been chosen on talent and potential for further classical training. You would still continue to do your regular classes as they are a supplement to these. It does open your eyes to the talented children beyond a local dance school too. Good luck with your decision.

Just wanted to big Emma Northmore up - she is a fantastic, caring and enthusiastic teacher who gets great results with children. My DD has been taught by her for group classes and one-to-ones and also did her fabulous Easter Ballet Boost Course at Pineapple.

Hi new123, I felt much the same as you when dd auditioned for tring cba, it was her first audition ever and her first foray outside of the little dance school she attended. In the waiting room lots of very confident looking kids doing full on stretching, my dd looked at them, gulped and stared at the floor for rest of the wait. But she got a place there and another associate scheme and through talking to people at the asociates I realised how her dance school really wasn't punching at the right weight for a child who though shy and quiet really wanted to try and go onto vocational school. So we did move school and she has recently done auditions for lower schools and is starting vocational training in September. She still doesn't like being one of the loud showy people in the waiting room but that's just fine. I would say though that moving schools was only a good thing. Good luck with it all!

Yes, balletqueen. Hope your lovely dd has a fantastic induction day - let me know how you get on. Will definitely stay in touch and can't wait to hear how your dd gets on now she finally has the chance to dance full time. xx

Dd had induction day at yda yesterday. She loved meeting her new schoolmates, and trying on the uniform (though not the regulation full sole canvas shoes ????). It was interesting to hear from other parents of students there about the things to expect in terms of students adjusting to full time training and being organised re all the different clothing requirements for different days and classes. Oh the endless opportunities for lost possessions there will be! Particularly nice to meet current year 11s and hear about their experiences during 5 years there and their exciting upper school destinations. Think it properly hit me for the first time what a wonderful opportunity dd has to pursue her dream.

Just thought might be nice for parents of new students starting vocational schools to have a post to share experiences on!

Can't really answer your question but your description of your DD 'brain is very busy so just doesn't pay enough attention to what is going on around her, no common sense' etc etc. sounds JUST like my DD, who is starting vocational school in September.

I agree, and this would apply across the board to all of the schools, so they are all prone to the same pressures in terms of reporting these results for a small cohort.

I think because the OP on this thread said specifically they were unhappy with the academics at the vocational school their child was at though it is relevant, as unfortunately the only way to look at the issue of academic attainment is through the admittedly flawed % criteria.

All the vocational schools have small year groups so this would be the case for all of them and should mean it is possible to directly compare the results of the diff vocational schools with each other.

Yes, the criteria I gave is simply the way all Schools are measured if you look on the local authority tables. It doesn't mean that is all that the students achieved! Every school is measured at ks4 on the basis of % of students achieving 5 a-c GCSEs incl English and maths. Of course that is not all the students will have taken or passed but it is the accepted benchmark used to compare data from secondary schools at year 11.

Btw I wasn't implying my dd was naturally blessed and gifted, just trying to make the point that anyone could get injured or fall out of love with dance, who knows what will happen over the course of their training and so academic stability seems vitally important to me!

It doesn't have to be that a vocational school can't achieve good exam results. YDA are a non academically selecting school with excellent vocational training and their GCSE results in 2015 were top of the London borough of Hammersmith with 89% achieving 5 or more a-c GCSEs including English and Maths. Ballet is such an unpredictable career path even for the most naturally blessed and gifted I wouldn't be comfortable not taking academics into account.

Hi. Just wanted to say that I don't have experience of this either but I think that Shygirlsmum has made some good points. In terms of your question would you be able to bring them home and give them enough good quality training I guess it would depend on where you are, what there is near you and how far you could realistically travel regularly to get good enough training? The amount of hours a week are also relevant by lower school age in that getting 3/4 hours a day of dance training, 5 days a week, is not impossible but is difficult outside of a vocational school so you would need to think carefully about the logistics of that. Having said all that, if the school is proving very expensive and you don't feel it is giving your child what it needs that is something that can't be dismissed. I don't think a lot of people realise that the means testing of MDS awards can mean you still have to pay an awful lot towards your child's schooling, so I totally appreciate your situation. I suppose the main thing is working out exactly HOW you will provide enough high quality training, and if it seems possible then it might be the thing to do. Good luck, and I am sure there will be people on here who have personal experience of this they can share with you.

Really pleased ballet4boyz wonderful news

With MDS I thought you have to submit evidence of all income etc and assets, P60s, even pensions etc?? Is that not the case? So the parental contribution can still be quite substantial unless you are on a very low income?

Congrats ballet4boyz! I don't know if it is offered to all but I do know they have school funded bursaries at Hammond alongside the MDS awards so I would ring them right now and see what they can offer! x

Ah Lema, so sorry to hear your news. I have been following your daughter's journey since last year when she got finals at all the schools after starting ballet only recently, and was really hoping to hear she had got a place. Although reserve does mean it is still possible. From what I have heard there has even been movement this week with people turning down Elmhurst who had got WL etc. which would mean I guess some reserve list places would come up at Elmhurst, which again could have knock on effect on other schools. Just to show that I don't think it is all done and dusted yet, so don't give up hope quite yet.x

Great news Angel - persistence has paid off!