Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Will this work? Primary School Application

71 replies

TeenTimesTwo · 07/01/2019 14:54

Will posting on here to remind people to apply for English primary schools by 15th January work?

Will it also help to say:

  • check the admission criteria, don't just assume that because you can see it from your bedroom window you will get a place
  • use all the spaces on the form, you might as well
  • put a 'banker' on somewhere (a school you expect to meet the criteria for. If you don't you could end up with a school you still hate, but miles away)
  • don't put the same school down multiple times, it won't 'show how keen you are'
  • don't lie about your address - it's dishonest
  • put them in your true preferred order (no the school doesn't know where you place them, and no they can't take offense and not offer just because you put them second with an outside chance school first)
  • and finally, if you have chosen it because it gets brilliant y6 SATs without looking at how they are achieved, don't come back in 7 years complaining how hard they are pushing the children to get those results.
OP posts:
megletthesecond · 07/01/2019 14:58

👍I'm past this stage but I was fascinated by parents who refused to accept that's how it works.

mamaslatts · 07/01/2019 15:01

Hope it works. Particularly the last one. Outstanding school (last inspected 2012) got its sats by doing little else in Y6. Very sad.

Original poster
TeenTimesTwo · 07/01/2019 16:42

Exactly mama . Some people are so focussed on the results they don't look at how they are achieved. Then there are threads about how y6 is all SATs and nothing else. You need to dig deeper to see how results are obtained.

OP posts:
Noodledoodledoo · 09/01/2019 00:00

Also remember you are expressing a preference, not making a choice!

Original poster
TeenTimesTwo · 09/01/2019 08:02

That's true.
And if your preference is for 6 over subscribed outstanding schools 10 miles away, don't be surprised when you get the requires improvement school 6 miles away rather than the oversubscribed good school next door.

OP posts:
IceRebel · 09/01/2019 08:08

Can I add "ignore all people who say they only put down X, the most amazing school and got in"

Then fail to tell you they live next door.

bluechameleon · 09/01/2019 08:19

I had a phone call from my son's school yesterday to check that we knew about the deadline as the council haven't had our application yet. I was impressed with that, I didn't know they chased it up before the deadline. They haven't had our application because we still haven't decided!

Original poster
TeenTimesTwo · 09/01/2019 08:22

That's great blue . I guess your son is in Nursery there (I'm wondering how the school know about him). I know our Primary does that for its Nursery children, and for the secondary applications.
I don't think it should be relied on though.

I think it is hard for parents of summer babies. Their little ones aren't yet 3.5 and they have to realise they need to apply for schools.

OP posts:
TheMincePiesAreMine · 09/01/2019 08:24

Worth a shot! I'd also add that putting down just one school does not increase your chances of getting into it. It only makes things a lot worse for you if your child doesn't get into that school.

YouWinAgain · 09/01/2019 08:30

Remember to state you have an EHCP if you have one and to send it off to the council, it's not considered evidence if you haven't sent it off to them - I also put a banker down (only get 3 choices here anyway) of another nearby school just in case.

pixilatedpenguin · 09/01/2019 08:38

If you have an ehcpI thought you didn’t need to apply in the same way as the school should be named as part of the ehcp process? @youwinagain

YouWinAgain · 09/01/2019 08:41

In my LEA you have to apply through the same means but just put the one school down and state you have an EHCP then send it off either via email or post to the council.

Nicpem1982 · 09/01/2019 08:42

Dont be afraid to call your admissions team at the la to help you complete the form.

Ours gave me a list of the 10 schools with in 2 miles of my home and the distances theyd excepted upto for the last 4 years.

There were schools there i hadnt considered.

tillytrotter1 · 09/01/2019 08:51

and finally, if you have chosen it because it gets brilliant y6 SATs without looking at how they are achieved, don't come back in 7 years complaining how hard they are pushing the children to get those results.

This is so common, the results are everything, something to brag about, but the cost is rarely ever considered.

pixilatedpenguin · 09/01/2019 08:53

Oh ok it must be different for different leas we didn’t have to apply at at all as the school was already named

fourplusfour · 09/01/2019 08:56

@nicpem1982 10 schools within 2 miles - we have one, the next nearest is almost 4 miles. It is a great place to live though and luckily a really good school.

TheVanguardSix · 09/01/2019 08:59

Also remember you are expressing a preference, not making a choice!

Great advice and all people ever need to know, really.

Nicpem1982 · 09/01/2019 09:00

@fourplusfour - yes we viewed them all before completing our preferences were lucky as out 'banker' is a really good school and we live less than 0.1 away from it so even if we get out last preference were im good shape.

Weve put one outsider, one really good one we love that we should get based on previous years and then the banker

Ninoo25 · 09/01/2019 09:32

When do you find out which place they’ve been given?

Nicpem1982 · 09/01/2019 09:41

April

SnuggyBuggy · 09/01/2019 09:51

My DP and ILs keep asking me if I've put baby DDs name down for the primary we want to send her to. I am I right that doing that is no longer a thing and you just have to wait to fill in the application?

2cats2many · 09/01/2019 09:54

Also putting the one school that you really really want six times on the form does not increase your chances of getting in to said school.

Be realistic as well as hopeful or you may find that you end up with no choice.

Trampire · 09/01/2019 09:55

Also don't think you'll get 5 or 6 preferences.

In our LEA it's just 3.

Trampire · 09/01/2019 09:57

Snuggybuggy you're right and your DH and inlaws wrong.

You don't put your child's name 'down' for a school unless it's some hugely competitive private school (even then I'm not sure that it works that way these days).

SnuggyBuggy · 09/01/2019 09:59

That's what I thought, I keep telling them and yet they still keep asking me Grin