Choosing a primary school/alternative education.

[MelissaClaire27]

My daughter is 2 years old and currently in nursery 2 days a week while I'm at college training to set up my own business around recycled crafts. We live in South Manchester and I am now starting to look into primary schools for her. I have also been reading about Montessori learning but there are no schools near me which offer this method of teaching. There are so many schools to choose from and I'm finding it very difficult to decide. Can anyone give me any good recommendations on schools in South Manchester and also alternative education centres or outdoor learning?

[souperb]

Hello! You might get a better response on the local area board for local people? Good luck.

[teacherwith2kids]

The firsrt question you need to ask, if you are planning to live where you are currently living at the point that you make the application abnsd are hoping to use state education, is:
"Which state primary schools do I have a reasonable chance of obtaining a place at?'

You can get outline information from the admissions book produced (electronically or on paper) each year, as it will give information about admissions for the previous year, including (usually) number who made it first preference, numbers admitted under each heading of the admissions criteria (e.g. siblings, SEN, distance etc).

Despite the APPEARANCE of school choice, it is rare to have much genuine choice. For example, where I live at the moment, if I were to be applying to a state primary school for reception, I would have 1 school close by where I would nomally stand a chance of getting a place, but 2 years ago I would have lived too far away to get a place there (although I can see the school from my front door).

Under those circumstances, the only schools I would have been given a place at were under-subscribed, poor performing schools over the other side of town.

So do not start looking at lots of schools that you might fall in love with before you have had a loiok at which ones you realistically have any chance of applying to successfully!

Obviously privates - including most Montessoris - don't have this limitation.

[MelissaClaire27]

Thanks for the help, I will have a look on my area board as I'm hoping to get some first hand recommendations. I would like to stay in South Manchester but would be happy to move closer to an area that I thought had better schools. I may look into private as I know someone who volunteers and gets free places for her kids

[itsahen]

All the schools admissions stuff is on the MCC web site but the schools in south and central Manchester are all massively oversubscribed. If your daughter is a 2015 or 2016 intake there will be more choice as 2 new schools will be opening. At present, you would basically get in your closest hopefully (catchments range from 0.2miles to 1 mile) or if you are RC, your parish school. Some CofEs require attendance and proof off ( Chorlton / Didsbury) etc and some don't. There isn't much on the local board but PM me if you want more info.
I never get why the boards are FULL of London private school threads and yet they never get moved over to local boards?!?!?!