Fraudulent application - number 1 on waiting list

[Baggin123]

Late June we reported a fraudulent application to the local authority admissions team. One boy has received a place in reception on the back of using his grand parents local address. We have identified the parents real address online by using electoral register and supplied the admissions team the information. The address used was the same address used to secure the boys place for nursery which is attached to the school. The electoral register shows the real address but also shows the Mother as a recent addition to the local address. So she is actually present on both addresses. This suggests they have been very clever to make sure they have covered their tracks.

The local admissions team thanked us for the information and said they shall investigate. However, everything time we ask for an update they say due to confidentiality they can not comment on the results of the investigation or even confirm they are still investigating. The only change we have noticed is on the electoral register the Mother is no longer present on the grandmothers local address, which seems odd.

Does anyone know how long the process takes to identify the fraud and then withdraw a place? We are finding this frustrating because our son is number 1 on the waiting list for this school. We are concerned because the Mother previously won her son a place in the nursery attached to the school using the grandmothers address and has had a year of the school thinking she lives at the local address and probably has had time to put her name down on utility bill and other documentation. Despite this we are confident they still live as a family unit at the address that would not win their son a place.

Any insight shared would be greatly appreciated.

[SloanePeterson]

You've gone to a lot of trouble to try and trip these people up haven't you? While it's really shitty that your son is in a waiting list, why do you want to oust this little boy from a school he's familiar with? It all seems very personal. How do you have all his information in the first place? For all you know, a child in care could pip your child to the place at the last minute anyway. I do know how frustrating it is waiting for a school place, believe me. My eldest child didn't attend reception because we were allocated a very very bad school and I chose to wait. Did I try and pry into the current class and see who was there fraudulently? Did I hell.

[lougle]

Fraud is fraud. The only person denying a child of security would be the mother who applied fraudulently.

[Snapespotions]

I agree, I would be very uncomfortable going to such lengths to kick another child out of a particular school. Is it possible that there could be genuine reasons for the mother to have moved in with her parents?

[Sunna]

I think it's unlikely that they will move the child now, even if the application was fraudulent. It wouldn't be in the child's best interests and none of it is his/her fault.

[areyoubeingserviced]

OP,
How do you know that the child is not in the care of his grandparents?
Tbh, your post is quite scary , you appear to be obsessed with this matter.
Someone else may pip you to the post

[GalaxyInMyPants]

If there's genuine reasons for the mother having moved there then an investigation should uncover that.

I would report anyone I thought was trying to get a place fraudulently if it was affecting the chances of my dc getting to the school I wanted them to and I reckon 99% of people would.

Dd didnt get into secondary school (grammar) and the school is notorious for fradulent applications. The amount of kids who in year seven "move" to a town 20 miles away is untrue. If I'd had specific names I'd have reported them.

[LIZS]

You do come across as overly invested in this. What would happen if your ds got in by another leaving or no show first ? Would you continue to make this child/parent's life uncomfortable or is it just because you perceive him as having your ds' rightful place?

[tumbletumble]

If you reported this in June and nothing has happened then I think you have to assume that the place is not going to be withdrawn, possibly because they were unable to prove fraud. What is your alternative plan for when school starts?

It's really frustrating for you, but there isn't much you can do about it.

[Toohotforfishandchips]

I am behind op on this one. I live in an area where people do cheat and it denies people their place. The only way to stop it is to report people who do it. The LA must then investigate and would normally do home visits etc but people are clever and plan their strategy months in advance. If my DC were in this position I would be exactly the same as OP if I was desperate for a particular school. Luckily we got in ours. Others didn't. We all know that at least one family will have cheated as one gets found out at least every year. They do withdraw places. It's sad for the child but the cheating parent knows the risks. No advice OP but hang on in there

[LIZS]

I don't think anyone has said op shouldn't have reported, the concern is more that she has pinned her hopes on a particular outcome.

[MumTryingHerBest]

LIZS Mon I don't think anyone has said op shouldn't have reported, the concern Not sure I agree with you:

SloanePeterson - You've gone to a lot of trouble to try and trip these people up haven't you? While it's really shitty that your son is in a waiting list, why do you want to oust this little boy from a school he's familiar with?

Snapespotions I agree, I would be very uncomfortable going to such lengths to kick another child out of a particular school.

areyoubeingserviced Tbh, your post is quite scary, you appear to be obsessed with this matter.

LIZS You do come across as overly invested in this. What would happen if your ds got in by another leaving or no show first ? Would you continue to make this child/parent's life uncomfortable or is it just because you perceive him as having your ds' rightful place?

Every one of these comments are saying that the OP shouldn't have reported the family. If that is not what your are saying, are you simply objecting to the way they went about it, in which case I would be very interested in hearing what you think they should have done. I think simply accusing the family of fraud without having anything to support that accusation would have been worse, if that is what you are all suggesting.

[MumTryingHerBest]

LIZS the concern is more that she has pinned her hopes on a particular outcome. I'm not sure how you have made this conclusion from there post, perhaps you can clarify?

[Toohotforfishandchips]

Mumtrying I agree with you.

[Purpleflamingos]

It isn't always about the parents location.

One lovely family got into our oversubscribed primary because the grandparents were offering free childcare before and after school and during the holidays . It was a permanent arrangement since the end of their daughters maternity leave. The LA and school accepted that this was the situation.

[Toohotforfishandchips]

But purple that would have been on appeal? They can't have used that address if the child does not live there. That would be classed as cheating

[Greenoes]

Are you certain that the Mum lied on the application? When choosing DS's nursery and school I realised that sending him to school near our home address wasn't feasible. Myself and his Dad work shifts and have no real control over when we work (our rotas are computer generated) and would often clash. If we were both working, my parents would have had to have caught 2 busses in order to collect him from our local school then wait at our house until one of us finished work (12 hour shifts).
When I applied, I was honest and asked for a place at my old school near my parents for the reasons stated. It was still the same LEA but 10 miles away from our home address.

We did the school run like this with the help of my parents for 2 years until our house finally sold and we moved to within the catchment area (we've since moved slightly out of the catchment area again but there has never been a problem).

From someone else's point of view, it could have looked as though I'd used my parents address but I didn't - I was just very honest about our situation.

[Toohotforfishandchips]

Greenoes that is fine as long as there are spaces. You can state a preference for any school anywhere but you only get a place if you fit the criteria. You would get in some less popular schools in our LA like that but others you need to be within 5-10 min walk to get a place due to distance criteria. Using any address other than where the child lives is against the rules.

[kilmuir]

Good for you OP
Why should they get away with it?

[OwlCapone]

why do you want to oust this little boy from a school he's familiar with?

Why should a child miss out on a place at the school because another child effectively stole their place?

[xvxvxvxvxvxvxvxv]

Wow. Verging on stalking. For all you know he may spend more time living at his grandparents. Unless you've got CCTV recordings of how often he enters and exits their front and back doors?

[NigellasPeeler]

agree it all sounds very stalkerish -

[Lucy61]

No one stole anything! You don't know what this child's circumstances are. There could be social services involvement, special needs or a variety of other reasons. He's not going to be moved at this late stage, and of he is moved, there is no guarantee your child will be next in line.
It all sounds a bit nasty to me.

[Toohotforfishandchips]

I am surprised that so many people seem to think fraud is just fine. The OP clearly has her reasons to believe the address has been used wrongly. It is for the LA to investigate. Free GP childcare etc is not a reason to jump the queue for a popular school. If the child eg is adopted or is subject to a care order or SEN statement then the LA will establish this. Otherwise the rules are there for a reason

[Toohotforfishandchips]

Lucy61 at our school children have been removed for this very reason after the start of term

[hollie84]

You must know a lot about this family to be sure the child isn't living with his grandparents, isn'd adopted, isn't a looked after child, doesn't have special needs...