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Secondary education

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Original poster

Your 'final choice' school.

29 replies

MrGrumpy01 · 06/10/2016 21:42

I am currently in the process of applying for secondary schools. We have 3 choices in our area.

I am really not happy with our catchment school, on paper it looks great, a huge improvement in attainment in a very short period of time and it is now rated as 'good' having been pulled out of special measures a few years back. When we visited I just had a gut feeling that it wasn't the right school.

Our current first choice we are just outside of catchment, 2nd choice we are sort of in their admission zone (they cover a vast area and overlap other schools) but places are randomly allocated and we are in the final group.

So that comes to our 3rd choice, I have found a school we really like, going on previous years we have a reasonable chance of getting in, however if we don't then I am aware that I will then be allocated a place after all other places have been allocated and therefore there is a high chance I will end up in either an 'inadequate' school or an academically struggling school.

Do I just name the schools I want and hope she gets one of them? I really don't want her going to the catchment school, but it is probably the 'best of the worst', so should I keep my 3rd as the banker and hopes she gets 1st or 2nd?

Thanks. A lot is hinging on the school place as it will pretty much determine when and where we move house.

OP posts:
Original poster
MrGrumpy01 · 06/10/2016 22:23

For us we have a fairly good chance of getting into the 1st and 3rd, the 2nd choice I have absolutely no way of telling my chances as places are randomly allocated and is very much over subscribed. If anything I would drop that one and move my current 3rd into 2nd, allowing my 'best of the rest' to go into 3rd place. There isn't really anything that wrong with the 3rd as long as your child toes the line it is just that gut feeling I had about it.

Anyone selling crystal balls? I could really do with one right now.

OP posts:
Waitingfordolly · 06/10/2016 22:09

So are all your three schools possibilities to get into then, you just don't know or could you rule one out on the basis that you are highly unlikely to get it and use that space for your least worst?

PassiveAgressiveQueen · 06/10/2016 22:06

I have read other threads about this...
If you don't put the local school you most likely won't get it you WILL get the school that is currently in special measures that nobody wanted

iwouldgoouttonight · 06/10/2016 21:57

Watching with interest as we have the same dilemma. Catchment school is really not good and I don't think DD would do well there at all. Three schools we like, but all out of catchment and all very oversubscribed, so trying to decide whether to put another school as third choice because she'd probably get in there as it's quite close and similar to you 'the best of the worst' schools.