How to build a balanced six-school plan

A useful six-choice plan is not six versions of the same gamble. It combines genuine preference with realistic score references, travel practicality and the child’s fit with each school.

1. Start with genuine preference

List schools the child would honestly attend. Choice order matters in posting, so do not place a less-preferred school first merely because it feels safer.

2. Compare the latest reference ranges

Previous-year score ranges describe the students admitted in that posting exercise. They are useful references, not promises. Demand, vacancies and tie-breakers can change the next outcome.

3. Build resilience into all six choices

Keep ambitious options, but include schools where the estimated score sits within or better than the previous range. Stress-test the list one or two points worse than expected.

4. Test the daily commute

A school journey happens hundreds of times a year. Compare actual public-transport routes, transfers and walking—not distance alone.

5. Look beyond the cut-off point

Review subject offerings, Applied Learning Programmes, Learning for Life Programmes, CCAs, school culture and the child’s reaction after an open house.