Primary-school places shortfall: what's happening where you live?

boffin
will they be "maintained schools"
and are they south of Milton Keynes?

Im guessing as they primary burners not an issue.

As for no ict suite eldest school has 1coputer every class and laptops on trollies which they share and libary has computer.

At her old school had ict suit and shared between 3kids per session.

I do feel they should make developers fund new schools.

just researched my area and there,s planning permission for 2500new homes with possibly primary and land allocated for seniors if needed.

I imagine planning permission, funding and building takes years .

I thourght maybe i dreamed it councils were prevented from building new lea schools and new ones would be free schools or academies.

No ones forward thinking my side of city to even suggest a free school.

At the moment people buy school places by paying overinflated prices for their houses and are quite smug mostly older established areas.

The new executive new build estate where im sure they paid high price never came with a school so either they counting to nearby villages or using private rather than attend the nearest community primary which to be fair is improving but had very mixed intake and known for being good for behavioural issues.

I see classrooms even being placed on top of rooftops seems mad.

Bristol is severe shortage got more money from departments education but hundred of kids dont get any of 3choices here for some reason london seem to get 6choices wondering if they should implement that here.

i would never trust an estate agent when looking at a house.

so many places say 60intake 30 easily can go to siblings.

I have 3 lots people have 3 locally.

primary places not announced until next month not heard much noise about seniors but some missed out 1st/2nd choices.

I think they forsee problems not for 2013 intake but more 2014 /15.

extra senior places needed here inner city from 2017 but wider city and surrounding areas 2019.

Clever LAs get developers to fund new schools.

erm baby boon? like mentioned lots of times on this thread! more housing meaning more families in the area....

2 primaries have opened with one more in the pipeline. Secondary school due to open in about 3 years or so as well.

tiggytape
LEAs were not given the choice.
Once Broon and Bliar had decided that Acdemies would patch that plaster
and Fove grabbed the idea with gusto

the "authorities" were stopped from building schools according to need - as they always used to do.
they should be allowed to again.

MN posters - if you can vote in this country, lobby your MP NOW

The Labour Govt always denied immigration levels were as never-before-seen high as they are - is that why there are no school places?

Did the Govt ignore the babies because otherwise they'd have had to admit to the existence of the parents? Sounds like it.

Re London - I'm confused. Many of the middle classes have moved out of London already, as self-payers unable to house their children affordably. We're endlessly being told the birth rate of established residents is going down. Is the shortage of school places entirely immigrant-driven? What else could it be?

where as no computers would be an insurmountable problem

I'm in Richmond. Every year there are some children who get no place at all. So the council in their wisdom have decided to give a site for a new Catholic school. This will be a school that will prioritise children from out of the area because of their parents' faith, over my child. Council are fuckers to do this

DS due to start reception in September. I don't think he'll get any place in the allocation, despite applying only for the closest three schools and he'll be on the waiting lists, hoping for a place before the summer so we can make plans.

talkin, the issue of Bunsen burners is easily solvable, by working with lab partners, taking turns for one half to do practical and other half of class doing theory one lesson then swapping over etc, it is not an insurmountable problem tbh.

Im north bristol and bit worried. Iitially shortages were specific more urban areas im outer suberbs where they keep building huge brand new housing estates and no extra schools. I brand new school has 30 intake refused to expand aking school round corner take 90 a year.

the best performing non faith schools have very small catchments.
both are seperate infant junior but have a transfer arrangement so automatic entrance to linked juniors.

The 3nearest coe schools do not select on faith its just distance , sibling and cathment.

The roman catholics take children in care and catholics 1st.

Eldests started at rc primary we not catholic but was ok not too big primary wuthin walking distance of our house shes actually baptised coe.But the coes are all out of our catchment.

The large community primaries just seemed too large.

The rc catholic had 1.4intake 45 kids which I dont recomend as 15 always get left out, split freindships.

Her new school is coe village primary out of catchment we got in midyear were quite lucky however being out catchment I worry about 2younger siblings .

It has a pan of 20per year, mixed classes as only 5classes in entire primary, small hall, 3/5classes are porta cabins, old victorian building, no feild has village common,2very small playgrounds and no ict suite or additional rooms so theres no way it could expand on current site.

But when hospital shuts down they want to build more new houses and bigger school-reckon this could take years!Knowing the council it be houses 1st schools later.

child no 2 I apply this jan and find out next year shes due to start 2014 as sept-2009 was boom year but preschools quiet so reckon 2013 will have the bulk of boom kids I could be wrong.

child no 3 born 2011 due to start following year 2015.

but eldest have to apply for senior school places end of 2017 as starts sept 2018 seems mad to worry about something 4years away but ineveitably the shortage will flow onto seniors.

the best performing state seniors are rc and coe both small intakes.The best performing academies also have small intakes which just leaves the sink comps.

When they built all the houses the promised a senior school.
I asked mp at last election heard nothing since.

even contemplating sending eldest to school outside the city if needs be and log comute.

Boffin
primary or secondary?
and I'd be interested to know more - bearing in mind the Dfe link above

nailak
when I was at school there were no computers. Does not make it right today.

Extremely worrying.

How are they fitting in all these bulge classes? At our primary school which is one form entry, there is literally one room for each class, no other space anywhere!

I've just helped to set up a new LA maintained school. They are still happening.

talkin what about it? our local secondary got an outstanding ofsted,

When I was at school, in a grammar, we had one bunsen burner between 3, it was fine, didnt effect our results.

I think it's siblings ranked by distance if oversubscribed.I believe this happened at our local Catholic school last year and it came down to measuring " Catholicism" cue mad scramble towards mass attendance for families that got older siblings in on distance alone on low head count year and are worried about the younger ones.

I'm in Sutton - which is fairly widely acknowledged to have great primary schools and one of the few London boroughs with superselective or partially selective secondary schools.

We are around 800m away from our nearest primary school. We are 600m outside of the admissions distance for Every.Single.Primary in the borough. Fortunately, DD did get allocated a place at one of our choices in the end, and so long as sibling priority remains, we should be fine.

Most primary schools now have at least one bulge class, there will be a new 120 intake primary opening this September (on the site of a high school that was relocated and the site due to be sold for housing development...). At least 3 other primary schools I know of are being permanently expanded by this September and there will be 7 bulge classes in total.

According to a consultation meeting I attended last year, the council's approach for creating additional spaces at secondary level when the time comes relies entirely on establishing bulge classes. This will be difficult, as almost without exception, our local secondary schools became academies last summer. I have no idea what will happen tbh.

iggity
LEA / maintaned school extensions are NOT the same as new schools in the middle of the gaps in the canvas.
ONLY free schools and sponsored academies are allowed into those gaps
the LEA must twiddle its thumbs (by law)

msbossy
depending on your LEA, by 2015, they may not be responsible for any of the schools in the area - the Dfe directly will - so no wonder they will not answer.

nailak
which is all well and good - but what about acces to Bunsen Burners at Secondary level

I feel frustrated. Catchment carries a higher priority than siblings here, and they keep moving the bulge class around, so you either opt for your catchment school whether you like it or not (and still have to pray they get in), or risk having children at different schools.

What is the LEA doing? Well, they won't tell me! The LEA can't tell me where the bulge class will be in 2015 when DD2 starts, so I can come up with a strategy for them to both be at the same school...

And don't get me started on the fact that neither of the two outstanding schools that are 5 minutes walk away are our catchment school - the satisfactory school 15 minutes walk away is our catch(using a funny-shaped net)ment school.

Shocked to read some of these posts.

What happens if there are MORE siblings than places? Is it then done on distance?

Our local primary has always been well attended. DD1 only got a place because 2003/4 was a low birth year here. We're less than a mile away.

Of the 60 place intake, 2/3 are siblings. I'm relying on this to get DS in next year! My neighbour 4 doors away didn't get in last year, as they were oversubscribed by half again. Her DS got in to our other local primary. He's still on the waiting list for the original one though, and if a place comes up she will move him.

There are fewer than 300 families in a 460 place school.

Thankfully our school has more than enough space to expand if need be, and it wouldn't surprise me if they have to in the next few years.

I have to say, despite my borough being in one of the most deprived areas, Newham has dealt effectively, other people are talking of up to 8 bulge classes, we have 30. I know no one who wasnt offered their first choice primary place. If people move house, after a couple of terms they normally get a place in a nearer school, even if the distance closer is like 700m.

they have used creative solutions, such as playground on the roof, and funky designs, staggered playtimes and lunch times, multi function spaces to deal with some of the issues of space and crowding mentioned here.

I am happy to live here, and think many opportunities are provided for primary and under 5s

Have just been to look at primary schools today - North East England. Two catholic schools, both undersubscribed. I think there are two extremes though - some hideously oversubscribed and some struggling to fill.

Sorry Talkin, didn't answer your question. One school is a faith school and the other is being opened by an Academy Trust. Don't see any mention of them being free schools but not sure if 2nd one is an academy.