along for the ride mum

Hi Speaking from our experience a couple of years ago I would say that yes, I would definitely want to be in London ( or nearby) the day before, you never know what the weather or traffic is going to be like . On the day of my daughters audition we woke up to a large snowfall and all trains in our area were cancelled along with many road closures. There will be several groups auditioning in a day and they try to put people who live in or near to London in the earliest group, working outwards, so that those who live furthest away have more time to get to London.The audition itself took approximately an hour and a half by my recollection so it would definitely be possible to fly home the same day, with a note of caution though as you won't know which group you are in or what time it will start. Good luck

If you have a Tesco card you can swap you Tesco points for Red Handkercheif ( I think that's right but it might be red handky) vouchers and then order your train tickets through them. It is a very economical way of doing it as you get double the value on your Tesco points

Wow congratulations! What a roller-coaster! Sorry I don't have any advise to add but good luck with it all x

Good point Angel, I can see that point of view

I was comparing it to the cost of a residential SS and the costs just don't stack up, having said that, it does look like a lovely course with a great faculty and in a great location, but how much is that worth?

I agree, it does look lovely but v pricey ! I am wondering how much other parents think is a reasonable price for this kind of thing? I am not in any way connected to this or any other dance related enterprise, just curious. In my head I have a figure of around £80 for a day as something I could live with, but above that I would really have to consider very carefully! Am I just behind the times?

If you are fortunate enough to be able to get to one, a good dance physio would be able to find out exactly why the disparity between the two sides and set you on the right road to sorting it out safely. I know it sounds expensive but I do beleive the expert opinion is worth every penny and it may not be as much as you'd imagine.

, I spent ages on it this evening! I just wanted to see what photos are required and what information I need to gather, without actually applying, but as the above post says, you can't see the next page until all the boxes are filled and it won't allow dummy answers either! I spent ages filling in every box ( and re-doing it when it didn't like my answers!) Eventually got most of it done and clicked the 'next' button to move onto the page with the photos on only to be timed out and sent back to the start. Online application forms now get my vote for room 101, but that's a whole different thread!

Wow you lot are great! Thank you for all the replies, I now enough info for several trips!

What year group will she be going into? If she is going into yr7 I would imagine that she won't be doing a great deal of pointe work and would say one pair in current use and another pair to be breaking in ( just in case) would suffice. However, I hate to imagine how many the upper school students go through! Can't help there, maybe I should start saving now though

Sounds great, thanks guys

Thanks Janet I wondered about V&A, not been for years but I enjoyed it when I was younger, I do love Covent garden and that was my first thought just thought maybe I'd do something different as both girls know Covent Garden fairly well ( although somehow I've never taken them to the dance shops)

Fine with buses and tubes!

Got to be at earls court at lunchtime, then free until about 5:30, I will have two ballet mad 12 yr olds with me. We don't mind shopping but don't want to waste time wandering, I did wonder if it's worth taking them over to Covent garden to visit the Bloch shop and Freeds but we aren't after anything in particular, are these shops worth a browse maybe? Or should we maybe go to oxford Street for general window shopping? Is there somewhere ballet related they'd enjoy?

I will be taking two young dancers to London this week and will have about 2-3 hours spare in the afternoon, of course there's loads to do but I don't want to end up roaming aimlessly. Any suggestions for two 12 year old dd's ?

I have found the iron on ones from mine 4 sure excellent. They have withstood a year of vocational school washing with only one starting to come loose ( I simply ironed on another one!). I have also used the transfers from easy2name for socks and tights and found them very good. All that sewing of labels, eugh no thanks! The iron ones really have come on a long way in recent years and bond with the fabric and stretch too

I once, when collecting dd from her associates class, saw a man walking along the road stark naked on a Saturday afternoon. I had to look twice to check and made the mistake of saying outloud "is that man naked?!" I've since seen a tv programme about him, he is known as the naked rambler and hales from Eastleigh. He has reached a degree of infamy

Are people trying to say that Children who go to WL are 'better dancers' than those who go to elmhurst or Tring and that WL is a 'better school' than Elmhurst or Tring,? I wonder who is truly qualified to make such a judgement? I know I'm not!

Sainsburys used to do a student card too, the parent has one card and the student has the other, the parent tops up at the checkout with their card, a great idea ( although I'm well aware that Asda might be preferable for students) Sending a few face masks and pampering bits can be fun, madeup as a 'girls nigh in kit' and also you can get some lovely hot chocolate sachets these days

There we are, I knew someone would know a lot me than me on this subject - hence the question mark. Thanks 2dancersmum. A girl from dd's old dance school has just accepted a place there for September and she is 16, I asked her if she had funding and she said yes, I know nothing about the balance or focus of the course though

Definitely recommend Pendley Manor and it is possible to get reasonable rates, we paid the same there that we did previously at the premier inn and it's worlds better! Just allow extra time for relaxing in the spa

Millennium?

If you are in London on a Sunday morning a visit to Columbia Road flower market is not to be missed. I love the vibe, the awesome flower stalls (of course) and the small independent shops, cafés and deli not to mention an excellent fabric/sewing shop. On Saturday mornings a visit to Borough market is a delight for foodies, culinary inspiration from around the world. Come to think of it, I do rather like markets and you aren't forced to spend anything

That's you all settled then dtadmin, I'm sure your dd will be very happy at Tring

The raging hormones of a teenage boy..... Or more specifically the moods therein encountered!