The new Head of Bristol
Cathedral School has a simple message for the parents
of children who missed out on their first choice of
independent school: Don’t
Panic!
Last month (January), hundreds of 10 and 11-year-olds
seeking places at Bristol’s independent schools
sat the Joint Entrance Examination.
In the last few days, their parents will have received
the results. Inevitably some children will not have
gained the marks needed to get into the school they
had named as their first choice for September this
year.
 However, Bristol Cathedral School’s Head, Mrs
Anne Davey, urged parents to stay calm: “Obviously
you will be disappointed not to have secured their
first choice, but it almost certainly does not mean
you will have to give up on finding an independent
school place for your child in Bristol.
“The first thing you should do is reassure your
daughters or sons that they are not a failure. Then,
as a family, you need to start thinking about which
other schools you would like, and start making some
phone calls to those schools to find out what to do
next.
“You may be pleasantly surprised to find that
places remain open. There may even be some bursaries
still available to help reduce the school fees.”
Mrs Davey added that one of the benefits of the Joint
Entrance Examination system is that it allows headteachers
to speed up the allocation of school places, without
children having to sit a separate examination for every
school they are interested in.
Bristol Cathedral School, which has a co-educational
sixth form, recently announced that from September
2005 it would become fully co-educational, welcoming
girls from the age of 11 as well as boys. The school
also has plans for a new £3 million building,
with work expected to start later this year.
For families interested in a place at Bristol Cathedral
School, an  interactive BCS Alive! event is planned
for next Wednesday, 9 February. Youngsters will be
able to try their hand at a number of fun events, such
as Majestic Music, Scintillating Science or Horrible
Housing (history), while their parents talk to the
Head and other staff.
The following schools participate in the Joint Entrance
Examination system:
- Bristol Cathedral School (for girls and boys)
- Bristol Grammar School (for girls and boys)
- Colston’s Girls’ School (for girls)
- Redland High School (for girls)
- Red Maids’ School (for girls)
- Queen Elizabeth’s Hospital (for boys)
Parents interested in a place at Bristol Cathedral
School or in attending BCS Alive! should contact the
Head’s Secretary, Mrs Jane Richardson, on 0117
925 4545.
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