Urgent Help - Year 9 school places for six children required asap

Rather than send them to some random school why not enrol them is a homeschool like Kings Interhigh? The fees are a fraction of a private school in the South East and as there is a few of them they could do it together and at least would have the social connections.

It may be that there are places at an undersubscribed school which may be a distance away.

You used to be able to go onto a waiting list for the school that you want, but have to accept the place offered initially. Friends' DS started at quite a rough school first but was able to change to a different school after a year or so.

Yes, one of the most helpful people on MN - has helped me in the past. Thank you @prh47bridge

Helpful 🙄

Haha, call and (s)he appears! Brilliant!

There used to be an expectation that the PAN set in Y7 would follow the year through the school. The latest Admissions Code changes that. It now only applies to Y7. However, most schools and appeal panels still work on the old basis as it provides a clear capacity for each year.

@2010louises You say, "state education follows a totally different exam board curriculum". There is no separate curriculum for state schools. The question is whether local state schools use the same exam board as the one used by the independent school. If they do, the curriculum will be the same.

The LA must find a place for these pupils somewhere, even if all local schools are full. They can't invoke the Fair Access Protocol yet as the six boys are not currently in education, but they can do so once they have been out of education for four weeks. However, you shouldn't have to wait that long. When parents apply for a place for their child, the LA should offer something.

There’s no need to be rude. Some of those children might be on bursaries, where they pay a small amount of fees. Their parents might not have a huge amount of savings. Even those not on bursaries, many private school parents don’t have thousands of pounds sloshing around, especially on top of the cost of living crisis. Perhaps they are being prudent and trying not to spend all of their savings. I’m afraid the government will have to find these children state school places, as all children are legally entitled to.

Their parents need to complete the in year transfer forms through Bromley council. Be aware they will need to transfer once a place has been secured not January though. (Think you have 2 weeks to take up a place). It's not unusual to move in term time and sooner the better as far as education continuity goes.

Whether there's 6 spaces in one school will depend entirely on availability, but they do need to find a place.

The dc are in full time education until the last day of the Christmas holiday, when the de registering process starts at the private school, so there isn't any urgency for the council at the moment.

What are the parents doing? Why haven’t they contacted schools directly? What do you expect MN to do other than stir up dramatics yet again over the 20% VAT? The discussions been done.

Directing snide remarks at the OP is hardly helpful is it?

If for example your car insurance went up 20% with very little warning you might struggle to pay it or are you prudent and put 20% aside just in case. Like it or not there are some people who really struggle to put their children through private school and this rise is too much for them.

OP this governments policy takes absolutely no account of the outcome on children like these 6 boys - or maybe it does and they intend to be vindictive because that's the way it comes across - leave your friends, your school, even your GCSE courses and take your chances with a completely different environment - because we don't like your parents choices so we're going to punish you.

(no skin in the game by the way state schools here and I am not saying state school is a punishment but that being forced to leave a place where you're happy and thriving is)

Bromley is huge, are they towards Beckenham, West Wickham, Bickley? If Bickley side, then they may be close enough to the Bexley schools too.

@prh47bridge is the person you’re after

Apologies, I'm not sure PAN applies to year 9. If that's correct, it's positive though, as it means LEAs may be able to direct schools to take children in January as they do when they create a "bulge" class.

There is an expert poster on here called something like @prubridges - if anyone knows him/her please mention this thread to them?

I’d contact the MP and ask for help. Many areas don’t have spaces in certain school years. In all honesty, I don’t know what they’re going to do. There simply aren’t enough school places.

Funny that you would have enough money to send your kids to private school but not be financially prudent enough to have the savings to cover the VAT for a term or two while looking for an alternative.

Just he away..
If you apply now, they will be expected to take up their spaces within a couple of weeks. They won't keep them until January.

On the plus side... it means you can put them on waiting lists for schools you like now, and only accept a "bad" place if it becomes necessary.

The parents need to ring or email around the schools to see where has space , it’s easiest way to do it quickly. Probably broaden their searches as well to schools further away. Then submit an application with the schools that have space on them

So do some of the non-selective state schools in Sevenoaks. We have a few students travel from Bromley/London boroughs.

Obviously Kent has the grammar system so they may not be eligible for the grammar schools. But plenty travel down from London.

Ok.
So they have school places for this term.
So FAP wouldn't kick on until some point in spring 2025 when they will have been out of school for a period of time.

Presumably correct notice has been given so they are leaving at Christmas? If not fees would be payable to Easter anyway.

They need to apply for any school within reasonable travel time that has a place and then take it up within required timeframe (eg 4 weeks dependent on the LA rules.)

Also apply for any preferred schools.
Once rejected you can appeal.

Published Admissions Number ie the number of places in a year group.

There are definitely places in Bromley, Croydon, Bexley and Southwark. Pretty sure that Lambeth and Greenwich have spaces, too.