Betty’s mum

Just now, Mum to a boy dancer said:

Thank you. He has great plans to bring his unicycle with him 😂. He seems to think he’s taking half the house x

Well I imagine he would have room to store it.. could ride in the corridors maybe? 😆 

I only really know about the girls house, they are generally 2 to a room for younger years, my DD thinks boys can have a room on their own if they want as less of them. There is a boys house & a girls, all have private bathrooms, access to kitchen and common room etc. Able to decorate with as much from home as they like, our has led lights and pictures all over the walls. Able to make it as homely as you want. Weekend food is brought in & the new school menu is really varied with themed nights at weekend eg. French etc. Boys seam very happy with it.  

This was certainly something that we worried about when setting out on the Vocational school route. DD would follow all the girls at these “top” associates classes, having never been accepted herself. Constantly comparing herself to them & all their glory. She was not as flexible, had never done any competitions, didn’t even own a fancy tutu. But we knew she had talent, alongside a low self esteem from judging herself against others constantly. She did a couple of associates and as many lessons as we could but living in a rural area that was hard, so we struggled and managed 2 private lessons each week with a local but amazing teacher. 
We set about the process of auditions last year and to our absolute joy she was awarded an MDS, she was thrilled but looking at the social media profiles of her then to be class mates she was still convinced she would be the weakest, but she was not by far & she is doing fantastically and her confidence is soaring. So I would say potential is still seen, just go for it... 

It is possible this is not to do with keeping silent about if you have MDS or not at a future date, but something else entirely.. last year there was no problem about sharing, I can only presume that complaints have been made to the school this year, possibly unsuccessful applicants asking why they did not get when someone that danced with their child did and they are as good as each other... not saying that happened but I could see that as a reason to ask people not to talk about it at the moment. In my view the school is very open and funding has never been a taboo subject between pupils. 

49 minutes ago, Dancemumk8 said:

Given covid restrictions we haven’t been able to visit the school or boarding houses, what are the boarding houses like? Have heard differing views!

My DD is in yr7 so this has been our first experience of boarding. She is an a room for 2, all have private bathrooms, access to a communal kitchen, common room etc. She absolutely loves it, they are encouraged to make their rooms a home from home and can basically bring anything they need. They are even allowed to change curtains etc. She has walls covered in pictures, LED strip lights even has a fridge, beanbags, plants.. it really is just like she would have at home. Boarding staff seem lovely & approachable. One thing that is so good is the houses distance from town. Pre COVID regs the girls & boys met up in Chester each Saturday after dance and are able to go off in small groups together. They grow up quickly, but in a secure environment. Any specific questions feel free to message me. I would say i can not honestly imagine anyone regretting choosing this school, I pinch myself every day when I think how lucky we are. Xx 

Don’t give up hope, offers get turned down and they offer to the waiting list. Last year they had a higher than normal amount of awards to offer, Think there are normally 7 or 8. May be a bit of a wait as it sounds like some of the other schools are not going to get offers out quite so quickly.

1 minute ago, Raquelle said:

My dd spoke to a few of the year 7s and said they were so kind! X

They are a really lovely group.. they were so exited for today.. they did not have the chance of the MDS audition last year, places were offered based on the first audition they did. (obviously they had no idea at the time this would be the case) best wishes to your DD xx

Fingers crossed for you all.. just been chatting to my DD who is in yr 7 and she said she heard there were some really lovely dancers today... the school really is everything you think it is, and more. Good luck xx 

re COVID test, I would get one just to be safe, (you can get them easily from centres a lover) they are being really thorough with pupils so would not think they will let anyone audition without. You done want to get stuck at the last minute, or worse if they are testing before audition, get there and test positive.. 

I would think with pupils starting to go back Sunday and all the logistics of testing etc they are probably run of their feet. Obviously all admin is currently being done from home, school will be back in next week so you may get more answers then.

good luck to all waiting, it really is a wonderful place. 

I am sure I saw somewhere it was 7, but I could be wrong, it is in one of these threads though.

My DS is at an independent non dance school and gets nothing like the support from the Hammond. Having lockdown school gives you an opportunity to really see what the school is like. I have been so impressed, they care about well-being along side academics and dance, keeping it all going so well.

15 minutes ago, Dancing unicorn said:

This has just made me smile 😁

I can vouch for all the above! My dd loved walking into Chester of a weekend with friends. 
There’s also the famous Christmas Carol Service at Chester Cathedral each year! The Cathedral is always absolutely packed out (and it’s not a small  Cathedral either!) the singing is absolutely amazing! 
And of course there are the Shows! Sends shivers down my spine just thinking about them! Superb!! 

Sadly we did not get that this year, but did catch the show last Feb and I was blown away.. I could not believe the standard... it truly is the most wonderful school in every way. 

7 hours ago, Flower said:

This is all really really helpful to know. How do they work the academic stuff? Is it by ability?  Do you find it rigorous? Homework?  Does she board? Anyone else able to give a perspective on this stuff from another school?

Her timetable at the moment consist of about 4 hours each day of dance, and then the normal academics alongside. Academic classes are small, with only 21 (I think) in her year, so not split yet. Dance is by ability and not all 21 dance as some are drama students, I think about 15 yr7s dance. They have no PE & have subjects like healthy dancer where they learn about nutrition etc. She does board, which she totally loves, the boarding house is walking distance from Chester town center, they are allowed into town at weekends to shop (in small groups) So basically on a school day they get on the bus from boarding house at 7.45, eat a really good breakfast at school then the school day is a mixture of academics and dance. The academic day ends at 4, they then have another 2 hours of dance, then dinner and back to boarding house for 7, homework until 8, then free time until lights out at 9.

In total she gets about 18 hours of dance.. I hope this helps.. 

My DD is yr 7 at The Hammond and I could not praise this place enough, the balance between academics and dance I feel is just right (she would however dance all day) the school is warm and nurturing, but from what I have seen so far they also push the dancers a lot, there are assessments and personal targets. Ballet classes are split by ability not yr group (I do not know if this is standard) and although the main dance focus is ballet, they do learn other genres of dance & personally I feel, particularly in this climate it will pay to be a versatile performer, at the end of the day we want them to get work doing what they love. Just look at what BRB are doing lately, quite a move from your traditional ballet roles. My DD totally lacked confidence in her ability, and The Hammond has changed that already, I do not know what the future may hold but I am so glad their is no assessing out, as I want het to be in control of when she moves on (if she does) 

Wanted practice tutu to fit petite 12 year old.. Preferably black but may be swayed by other colours. 

On 01/01/2021 at 13:10, TwirlyWhirly said:

Hi All! Happy New Year! I have a question for you all too- trying to do Hammond video. In the stretches there is one called 'External rotation of the hips (supine)'. When I try to look it up on youtube I get exercises for weight lifters, arthritis sufferers but not ballet in spite of different search terms. 🤣 Is this stretch the so-called frog one??

Have posted some information on the other thread for this.. 

On 01/01/2021 at 13:10, TwirlyWhirly said:

Hi All! Happy New Year! I have a question for you all too- trying to do Hammond video. In the stretches there is one called 'External rotation of the hips (supine)'. When I try to look it up on youtube I get exercises for weight lifters, arthritis sufferers but not ballet in spite of different search terms. 🤣 Is this stretch the so-called frog one??

My DD is at the Hammond, she has said the exercise they do by that name is this here. 
https://theprehabguys.com/vimeo-video/supine-hip-external-rotation-stretch/

I have 9501 in Indigo age 10 or 9502 in Lilac. Worn for auditions last year and looked lovely

Can I have these please xx

Wonder if you can still access the talks if you have not been able to book on a Masterclass. At least that would be something.

1 hour ago, ButterflyBallerina said:

It is for year 7.

 

Unfortunately I still dont think we will be able to accept the place even with the generous fee remission.  

I'm hoping to speak to them today . 

 

Well good luck for today my DD is going into yr7, fingers crossed for you & hope your chat works out as you hope. However I appreciate it is a big commitment in this current climate xx

13 hours ago, ButterflyBallerina said:

We have received ours, offering fee remission xx

Congratulations 🥳 you must be thrilled... what yr group? 

11 hours ago, Ellera said:

Sadly I think it is going to be a long while until we hear.  I am hoping the June date was left on the forms from a previous year, but that is probably very wishful thinking!  I suspect there will be a big meeting after 4 June to look at who has returned forms, and then it sounds as though fee remission (bursary is a much nicer word) will be offered firstly on basis of the audition marks.  So again difficult to know what chance there is when we have not been told where dc's are on the reserve list. 

 

Important however to remember there is always hope, evident from many reports of generous bursaries and last minute offers of mds awards in previous years, so some will be lucky.  It is all a painful & difficult process, but I have stopped feeling so stressed about it all.  Chance of a lifetime, but not the be all and end all.  As others have said, there are many other paths to take.  On the positive side, I get to keep a beautiful daughter and a beautiful place to live if this path does not work out. 

 

It has really helped to follow this forum, realising many others are going through the same thing, and to be offered the hope and support of wise words and stories of success.  Thank you.

 

Good luck.  Here is to good news in a few weeks time.

I don’t know if it has been discussed on here or not, but I know some schools will let you know where you are on the list... Has anyone asked, I think in this situation you could try your luck. I am sure the school will understand if you want to get a realistic picture of chance etc. (Although surprises can still happen down the line) I got the impression from your post you were looking to move closer to school for the place, if this is so then a really good reason to ask for more information as moving obviously needs a lot of planning (I may have totally got the wrong end of stick) x

@Milzmam if I hear anything more I will post it here... But yes it looks like they are on it. I for one would not want to be co-ordinating all of this. I work I a boarding school myself and i can assure you that just adds another host of issues to planning for a return. Take care & don’t give up....