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  1. We are keeping everything crossed that they are able to return in September. In the meantime, though, the online provision is fantastic. DD is making progress in dance and academics with daily live lessons for both and we have no concerns about either. She just really misses her friends and actually being there!
  2. The MDS calculations mean that the families of most students are paying as much as they could possibly afford. The calculations don’t take mortgage payments and other commitments and I know of families that have really struggled, despite being funded by MDS. Given that many households are facing a drop in income, this could mean that more than usual are in need of additional support. Are all UK based upper school students also on MDS? Often bursaries are given to upper school as a priority. Hopefully most parents will take the same view as Nala: that their £36 might go towards an emergency bursary for a student that might otherwise have to give up their place.
  3. Period pants mention stress incontinence as one of their uses in the advertisements. If she goes to the loo before class, and was dealing with little leaks rather than a full bladder you might find they would be enough. I can’t find any mention of how old your daughter is, but could she ask to go to the loo before starting the petit allegro where jumping might cause a leak? I’m sure her teacher would be sympathetic.
  4. We let DD’s MA place go well after the deadline, having previously accepted it. We just really struggled with the decision for DD to go full time. RBS were lovely about it, and her MA space was released to another girl in late May, so don’t give up hope if you haven’t heard anything.
  5. Thank you! I should clarify before I cause some serious postman stalking... our yes wasn’t this year! Sorry, I should have been clearer!
  6. We had a full A4 envelope for a yes. The school is still active online, setting work for students and in regular contact with parents, so hopefully the closure won’t affect results coming out. Good luck!
  7. I completely agree. It would be terrible to see schools struggle during this time, and in the same way local schools need our support, the vocational schools do too! I just hope emergency MDS recalculations, or something similar, can be done for those whose livelihoods have been affected.
  8. I don’t think the fees refund scheme covers this anyway. The wording deals with illness and injury, and if the school is closed because they have a case of an infectious disease, but not because of government instructions or a global pandemic! School staff will still need paying, so I’m expecting we will get a bill next month to cover the summer term. Even with MDS it’s going to be a difficult one to receive. I worry for parents that have been forced to take unpaid leave or the self employed 😢
  9. Oh my word the poor panel! Imagine watching every video individually. I can’t imagine they would do this. Hopefully it will all be back to some sort of normal by May, though.
  10. I think the link between MDS and classical dance may account for the disparity. WL and Elmhurst are specialist ballet schools, whereas the courses at Tring and Hammond are dance. The MDS descriptors target classical ballet, so the higher level of funding at schools where students have chosen to specialise down this route makes sense.
  11. Depending on the age of your daughter, the Royal Ballet School have junior associates in Leeds, Manchester and Newcastle for Years 4-6. Applications are open at the moment, I think.
  12. There will always be people who judge. It starts with feeding and sleeping patterns and what type of nappies we use, and continues far beyond our children reaching adulthood! Your DD has found a job she loves, that her training has enabled her to access. You don’t need to explain or justify her decision to anyone, just glow with pride that she is in gainful employment in a field that is scarily hard to break into, seeing the world, and doing something that makes her happy. There is no such thing as a waste of training, as the skills gained will serve her far beyond the classical ballet world. Huge congratulations to your DD!
  13. How did you get on? It’s such a rollercoaster getting results!
  14. I suppose in a way it’s like an internal promotion at work... you have more time to prove that you are what they want, but also more time to prove that you are not! I think at some schools their own lower school students go directly through to finals, but they will take the dancers they want from the auditions without any priority given to their own. Do lower school students receive tailored audition preparation in the same way that JAs do for WL auditions? Or do they go in blind like all the other candidates?
  15. We had all sorts when DD was a JA. Labelling anatomy diagrams, annotating ballet photos, writing about the emotion in a piece of music... a really wide variety that got her thinking beyond the studio. She loved it!
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