that school won’t cut me any slack for double drop offs?

[Polkadotdash]

We moved house in the summer and we’ve ended up with three kids at two different primary schools. I accept that it is what it is and we have to just fit in where there are places. However, after a month of nearly killing myself to drop kids off at both schools, two miles apart who start at exactly the same time, I’ve asked both schools if they can help to take the pressure off me by accepting one child five mins early and maybe dropping the late mark drama for the other children. Neither school will budge. One school has a breakfast club which they’ve suggested I use for £5 a day. £25 per week, nearly £1000 per school year for five mins care (no food required). I can’t afford this.
It’s all been capped off today by one parent (who I don’t know) shouting something at me about the importance of not being late when I was trying to make my four year old run up the hill to school. I can’t put up with this for the next 5 years. What should I do? Should the school be more caring?

Also she might be driving further overall going to two schools in different directions than going to one further out.

She's been allocated space at a third school though for all the kids, she just doesn't want it. I can see why she doesn't choose that option, but it's not like she was forced into this drop off situation now.
You wrote the reply I would have written.

There was an option to not be in this situation. The OP chose this situation.

If the LA said the only places we can give you are in 2 different schools then I've already said I think the LA should be financially supporting breakfast club places.

I've also already suggested speaking to school if the children qualify for pupil premium.

As it stands the OP wants her children to be the exception to the rule. There will be many other parents doing what is require do make their drop offs. Some won't be ideal, you just won't hear about them because they're getting on with it.

She drives to one and walks to the other - I presume not for insignificant reasons...

My DC's primary had a similar system, gates were open from about 7.30 for breakfast club dropoffs/staff, but no staff supervision on the playground at any point. Doors open between 8.40 and 8.50 for children to go in, but KS1 children had to be under parental (or other non-school) supervision till they went through the door. I think they would have been amenable to letting a child in a little early in those circumstances, several children of staff used to go in with their parents and go to their own classrooms before 8.40.

Children of staff are generally in staff members classroom, I assume though.

Our school doesn't allow unsupervised chn in playground before school until year 6. We are a small school and can't provide playground supervision before school. Can you share drop off? One of you does one school and the other one drops at the other school? You're not a single parent are you?

Just call your local authority and explain. They will suggest a solution ( that does not cost you anything) and the school will have to lump it. Don’t worry, you’re dealing with two fairly inflexible schools, they can help far more than they currently are.

I do agree the whole set up in this country is wrong. People should not be forced into these situations, but they are. In the area I’m now in (where the guy at the council said to be ‘you’ve moved to the worst possible area’) around 70% of schools are managed by themselves after reception allocation. So you have what the council can offer and then you have to ring around local schools. It’s urban and there are many.
I was offered 2 schools for elder dc 1 through council and 1 by ringing. My younger dc was then offered a school in the city centre where there is no parking. The letter was worded ‘I’m sure you will turn this down’... and yes I did. As whilst my child is school age, that is ridiculous and I therefore am lucky enough to be SAHM at the moment and I can enjoy this extra time together. I will wait for the same school as older sibling or the one I’ve worked out is walkable to both as it starts and finishes 15mins before the other.
You can deem it wrong and dont accept the school further away, but it’s a very common predicament.
It’s not fair to downplay being late. Even knowing my circumstances a school continually made comments and the teacher made my dc feel rubbish. It’s not their problem you don’t get your child in on time.

If these two schools are infant and junior schools that all the infant pupils move across to the junior school, then there has got to be other parents who are in the same position. If they are not late every day then there has to be a mechanism to achieve this.
You need to do what others have suggested and write to both school' heads and ask what is the mechanism that these two schools (who are inexplicably joined together by pupils transferring from one to another) use to ensure this situation is not continuing. Ask for a reply in writing.
If the schools do not come up with an acceptable answer then you should write again to both schools to the head teacher making a formal complaint against the headteachers for not resolving the problem. That will mean that the complaint has to be addressed by the Chair of Governors or a governor appointed by them. Quite frankly as a governor I would be appalled if the two schools were ignoring this issue and making parents put pupils in the before school club so that both can be on time.That is not a service it is a money making exercise. The most obvious thing for the schools to do is to have slightly different times to start and finish so that it becomes manageable.

It's certainly not fair to put someone in an impossible situation, that is legally required, and then expect them to buy their way out of it!
They didn’t. There was an offer of a school for all three, she turned it down.

Why did op turn down the school for all 3

She said further up thread

Yabu. It is your responsibility to sort out the situation somehow for your kids: you are the parent. It is not for other people to find the solution or have their arrangements/children’s learning disrupted for your convenience. There are lots of suggestions here. Sort this situation out and next time life throws you up an inconvenience, step up.

Take the path that does not involve spending money and that means least risk. When dropping your child off a few minutes late each day, point out to anyone that comments that your only other option is leaving an unaccompanied young child alone in all weathers. Also cover this point in an email to the school and advise you cannot do any more. The receptionist will get weary of looking indignant over your late drop offs after a short while and you'll just be waved through. In time, this will all be over and not seem very important at all.

Long story short - sod them all. Keep your kids safe and do the best you reasonably can without spending money which could be better used elsewhere!

If you get childcare vouchers, it won't be £1k per year as they help towards the cost

pumpkin1209

Think yourself lucky, then. My son's school charges £4.50 per day, and I have to use it every day as I start work at 8

So haven’t rtft as it’s 14 pages but if you’re still there OP and this hasn’t aready been covered then it sounds like your 2 older ones are in the same school and your youngest is 4. So get the oldest 2 to school on time and do what you like re the 4 year old - they’re not compulsory school age. So the school can not like them being late but they can’t do much.

I had a similar situation got the MP involved to my resolution

@newmumwithquestions, if you can't read the thread, at least read the OP's posts. The two oldest ones aren't at the same school, it is the oldest and youngest who are at the same school.

Op should've accepted the school for all three. She didn't and now she is having issues which she must have predicted. It's going to be a bit stressful for all concerned rushing and being late. I find the School gate thing odd.
She should just take reception one into breakfast club for 30 mins and get her money's worth and then take other two.
Don't understand the issue re breakfast club- if she's a lone parent and works surely she will get tax credits to help with 70% of childcare costs.
Most people I know who work have to use some sort of childcare, it's just the norm.
School places are extremely limited in some areas, it's not as simple as just moving somewhere and getting a place. The LA will try and get them all in where possible but it's not as simple as that. Trying to get 3 kids in the same school is a nightmare!!! Add in the fact that academies now try and cherry pick children and refuse others - it's very difficult.

OP you say your Yr 3 is on the waiting list for the other school but that you don’t much like that one (The one your YR and Y6 go to) and that you much prefer his school. So you’re not going to Appeal to get your Y3 into their school? You’d very likely win the appeal due to exceptional circumstances and that it’s not an Infant Class Size Appeal so they can take another child over the 30 pupil limit it is in Infants. If you’re not appealing, you can move the other 2 to his school as it’s Juniors only and you can’t pay for Breakfast club what is the solution you are seeking? You just want to be able to be late every day or get free Breakfast club?

Also having read, you were offered a school for all 3 but declined as it was too far away and your kids wouldn’t make local friends? That’s far better (even short term) than
being late everyday and in Prinary school it’s the parents that facilitate play dates etc anyway, not like they walk about themselves and go visit friends. At Secondary school that changes.

Personally I think you need to move them all to the school that has 3 places or pay the £5 a day for breakfast club. It’s money you’ll have to find as a necessary cost. If you’re on a low wage you’ll get up to 70% of that back anyway in Tax Credits.

What do you do at home time? How do you managed to pick them up without being late for one or do they go to after school club.

A reasonable accommodation is to allow a child to be persistently late - it's a known quantity, it can be allowed for and worked into a routine, no problem.

The school already offers a reasonable accommodation, and that is by having before school care. The OP is choosing not to use this, and instead wants either a free pass to be late everyday, or the school to provide free childcare for her. This is a situation of her own making, because she was given an option of all the children at the same school, and she chose not to take it.

MaisyPops She doesn't need the breakfast club, she needs 5 minutes flexibility. That is my point.

"Schools are there for children" I don't know that I can agree there.

I doubt it would open any flood gates, most parents probably want to get their kids to school and get on with their day.

"There is a reason that there is a set time to be on time and it's fixed so that school can begin without people turning up whenever it suits."

Well someone turning up 5 minutes late isn't exactly whenever it suits. All I am asking is is there any flexibility. It seems like there is not. I'm glad I am not in the OP's situation but hope this will change for OP soon.

Micke "How is it better for a child's education to be in a car for 30 mins, vs being 5 minutes late at the beginning of school?" Excellent point, of course it is not.