Moving during reception year, SN child with statement, please help.

[WorriedDad23]

Hi all Mums and Dads,

My DS starting reception coming September , we were able to get him a place in a very good local school which we are very happy about it.

Just a background - DS is a SN child, he was diagnosed with Autism and we got his SN statement after he got accepted to the school . he was accepted to the school on the distance as any other child.

But due to work commitments we are considering to move to Chesham, Buckinghamshire (we currently live in Hertfordshire), I have been doing lot of traveling for the past few years for work and we feel as a family moving will benefit us to spend more time with the family rather than on the road.

Only issue is DS's school..

Few questions

1.How difficult it is to get a place in a reception class when you move?

2.Do we have a bit of an advantage with his SN statement on this matter?Can we for example say we would like him to get a place in a school we wish which is reasonably near but not the nearest ?

I know SN children has a priority when they take admissions first up for reception classes but is it the same in this case?


3.Anyone from this area has experience from local schools? I found schooling standard is pretty good in Bucks area.any input will be great.

4.What would be the worst case scenario realistically?



Thanks for taking time to read and any help is greatly appreciated.

-WorriedDad

[strawberryshoes]

Hello worried dad.

My DD has some SN and I have found the Special Needs boards on this site quite helpful, you might want to post there too.

To answer your questions:

Moving in reception year is no more or less difficult than other years - either there are places available in a school or there are not, I believe. You might get put to the top of the waiting list based on your child's statement though, and you might be able to choose a school slightly further away from your home address based on the schools ability to meet your specific child's needs. I am not far from Chesham, but over the boarder in Herts, so cannot comment on the quality of any specific schools in the area.

[strawberryshoes]

Oh, and worst case, I guess would be a place miles away in a school you dislike, or no place and homeschooling for a short while until a place comes up

[insanityscratching]

If your child has a statement then they will get the school named on that statement so you have no worries about not being able to get a place for your son. Even in a school that is full if it is deemed that it is the best school for your child your child will be admitted as an excepted admission. The statement gives you priority above all others usually as it is generally the first criteria.
Do check on the SN board because I'm hinking Bucks isn't a good LA and it might be worth staying over the border so as to remain in Herts. Ds went to school in Notts but we stayed in Derbyshire for that reason.

[Dayshiftdoris]

It's not so much the school you need to be worried about but the cross county move...

If you move county then the statement will go to panel to be considered and then reissued.

At present there is a transition programme in place to move everyone from the old statement to EHC plans (new system) and I need to check but I think moving into county are a group that will be transitioned in year 1 - because the statement has to be re-issued.

I would ring IPSEA or Contact a Family for advice before you do anything.

Also SEN criteria is no longer top of the list - the law changes on the 1st Sept (because of academies who can set own admission rules) to state no school can refuse entry on the basis that they feel they can not meet the needs of the SEN.
You are encouraged to choose the nearest most appropriate school - if you CHOOSE a further away school then you will not necessarily get transport.

You need to be ABSOLUTELY sure of what you are walking into - the law changes on 1st September and each county will do things differently.
Ring the receiving county as well as IPSEA or Contact a Family.

Don't necessarily rely on advice online - there is so much change coming at the 11th hour that it's impossible for anyone to be sure what is happening, even local authorities.

[MumTryingHerBest]

I think to gain an understanding of the educational provision in Bucks, it might be useful to have a read on this forum. Bucks is a Grammar school area at secondary level:

www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum/11plus/viewforum.php?f=12

[toomuchicecream]

As far as I know, Chesham schools are a very mixed bag. There are excellent ones, and there are several that have been in and out of special measures and are struggling to appoint teachers and leaders. You'll need to do your research quite carefully and go and look round several. Someone told me earlier this year that admissions to schools in Chesham for Reception children were a real mess - lack of places, lots of people being allocated places at schools they didn't want etc.

I agree that changing from Herts to Bucks could cause issues with the statement, although I'd heard (don't know how true it is) that Bucks is better for SEN than Herts. So have a careful look at where the Bucks/Herts border runs - places like Bovingdon and Sarratt and Berkhampstead are within easy reach of Chesham but are still in Herts.

[WorriedDad23]

Thanks for all the advice guys, after reading all your advices but home schooling is not an option with our son,

worse case scenario can I still bring him in to his current school in Herts if we move to Bucks till he gets a school? lot of travelling I know but home schooling is not an option for us.

Is there a rule which says you can't keep attending a school which is not in you county?


if above is not possible I'll scratch this moving idea , it's not worth the risk.