To ask if you've ever been guilty of 'grannymandering'

[patchworkquilt1]

.... to get your kids into a certain school.
To accommodate your child minder / grandparents?
How did it pan out as your kids got older?
Did you get caught out?
If so what happened?

A mum in my ds's year tried this, she got caught out and now her dd goes to a school that wasn't even in her top 3. You will need to be prepared for the possible consequences.

SoyDora- Admissions aren't based on ability.

They are around where I live. The schools can pick and choose, so many kids (or their parents) compete for places.

Firstly, go onto the website of the school you want and look at the admissions policy.

Secondly, is it oversubscribed? Where do they take from? There is usually a map associated with the school.

That is your first step.

And thirdly, although you have your Mum right now looking after your child sadly sometimes these things can stop quite abruptly due to ill health or even death. My own Mother was providing childcare for my sister (much older children.) My Mum was diagnosed with cancer and died 3 months later. My Dad then took over the childminding but the children were in year 6 and year 4 so not toddlers.

Why not contact the school and ask if it's possible for your DC to go there and explain why?

The school may well not be its own admissions authority, particularly if it is a maintained school, in which event admissions will be co-ordinated through the local authority. In any event, schools have to comply with their own published admissions criteria and can't make exceptions on a whim.

Just to warn you our local oversubscribed school does home visits for this reason

Or are people really lazy and feel entitled to a place at their nearest school or something?

People generally are entitled to a place at their nearest school, why shouldn't they be? It makes perfect sense for children to go to their nearest school so that they are in their local area, can make friends locally, and so that they aren't all getting into cars every morning and fucking up the planet. There is nothing whatsoever about this that is lazy.

OP, don't rely on the link whatsleep quoted, it only relates to East Sussex and may not be the same everywhere.

Do you get any maintenance from the children's father?

Here's what I'd look into OP.

I would get permission to let from your mortgage lender and get some tenants in your house, which it sounds like you're struggling to afford anyway.

Then move in with your mum now, ie not a couple of months before the application deadline. Get yourself on council tax, bills etc now.

I know that some councils do look at any properties you own as well but if you can clearly demonstrate that it is a buy to let then hopefully that will overcome that, especially if you show you were struggling to pay your mortgage. As a single parent they'd hopefully accept that you did this to keep financially afloat, not to get a school place.

I would say you'd have to live there for a couple of years though, I dont think you coukd move back as soon as you'd got a place.

The option would be for your mum to move in with you on week days and apply to your local school.

I have a very small portfolio of properties. Please think carefully before renting your house out. The rules on mortgage interest and income have changed. If you rent it out you will suddenly see your income increasingly massively. And what happens if the tenants don’t pay or trash the house. Deposits are only ever max 1.5 months. Unless your mum is able to let you live with her rent free and you have insurance against non payment, this isn’t a viable option at all. And even then it’s a big risk.

I think you should look into the feasiblity of childcare locally. Idk how child tax credits work. But check into this and see if it is possible to claim this with any or all care providers. Then look at how much money you will have left.

Alternatively sell your house before prices go down more, which is likely with Brexit. I know that’s a rubbish solution. But it may be your best one if the other two options aren’t viable.

I'm asking because I think I may have no choice but to do this.

Then I hope you get caught.

Just a heads up that some taxi firms won't take unaccompanied children under the age of 13, unless it's part of a LEA care arrangement so don't factor in taxis unless you've checked that this is viable.

If the schools near your mum are not over subscribed and there are places they will get in anyway.
Even if they don't get in at the time of application they can be put on a continuing interest list in case a place becomes available.
If you do lie about your address it will soon become obvious to the other parents and teachers.

I don’t know how you’d get away with it to be honest.

When I applied for me son, we were living with my mum in the catchment area of an excellent school, but in the process of buying a house in the catchment area of another equally good school.

I had to put my mums address but I have to give so much evidence to show I lived there, driving license, credit card statement, bank statement, phone bill etc. I had no utilities in my name.

A lot of the other mums slagged me off because I had put my mums address, even though I was living there.

Many schools employ inspectors to check on this sort of thing - going to every home and checking that the child actually lives there , ie asking to see the child's room. I saw a doco about it on the television.

Surprisingly there were no repercussions

Apart from to another family in catchment who potentially missed out on a place due to fraud.

I really feel for you, and would be considering the same were I you. Perhaps call admissions and have a chat? Explain that Monday to Friday your kids are with your mum for work purposes etc.

Have a look at your local schools, see which ones do wrap around care, find out if your children would be likely to get a place there and work out how much you’d be paying for wrap around and how much in tax credits you are eligible for. You might find a local school is more doable than you think.

Even if the school near your mum is historically undersubscribed that doesn’t mean it will be for 2020 entry. All it will take is a bumper birth year, a new estate built or another local school getting an awful ofsted and the undersubscribed school suddenly becomes full. If you’re banking on that school and you don’t get in you’ll be even further up shit creek.

My kids go to a school in a different catchment, granted the schools are only a mile apart and the catchment are split by something silly and don't work anymore because the town keeps expanding. I didn't have any problems, just filled in a form and had to see the head of the school they were supposed to attend. We are actually closer to the school they go to than the one they are supposed to attend. Apply for a place, not sure I could live with the worry of doing it on the fly and my kids potentially having to move school.

We are in Scotland so possibly different, I was told working parents are prioritised so when I applied for dd to go to school I said that i was working and my sister who helped with childcare lived in the catchment area (true). Not sure if it helped but she did get in.

I'm asking because I think I may have no choice but to do this

of course you have a choice, don't be sodding ridiculous. if people stopped doing this shit about wanting 'the best' schools for their kids, and sent them to their catchment schools ALL schools would be decent schools. its this very nonsense that creates the issue.

Right, all of this thread seems to be focused on solving the problem of how to keep the OP's mother caring for her children outside of school hours. There are other ways though.

Firstly, I'm all for sending children to their local school for the reasons a lot of people have stated above - playdates, parties, etc. It doesn't take long for kids to start wanting to do after school activities - football, cricket, music clubs etc, and they can help keep a child an hour longer at school if that helps your pick up times. Also most schools will have a before/after school club that shouldn't cost much and can be paid for out of childcare vouchers - if you don't use your tax-free childcare scheme, now is the time to get on it. Effectively the end result is that you pay for childcare out of your pre-tax income, offsetting tax. Our school's before school club is £3.50 a day, so £17.50 a week which after tax offset works out at about £13.50. I reckon your travel costs 15 miles each way, each day would come in at lots more than that.

Once at school if you get to know other parents (much easier if they are very local to you too) you'll realise that there are other parents in the same situation as you, who may help you with lifts in exchange for you helping them. Eg I work nights at the airport, another mother of a child in my son's class works nights on a news desk. We frequently help each other with lifts to and from school.

Another idea is have you tried asking your employer for flexible working? You are entitled to ask for it for childcare purposes. They are not obliged to grant it but they must seriously consider it. One woman that I work with took our employer to court twice (first time our employer argued with the courts and tried to appeal, but she won each time and it is thanks to her leading the way that I now work 50% because of childcare.) You can ask for your hours to be compressed, for permission to work from home or for your normal hours to be slid to accommodate your school drop off/pick up times without it affecting your income. if you haven't talked to your boss about this, then go to see them armed with the facts and speak to someone in your HR department (if your employer has a HR department.

Finally, no one has mentioned the elephant in the room here - what contribution is you DC's father making to their care? He should not be leaving you struggling to afford childcare even if you are no longer together. He is still their father and should be financially supporting them.

There will be poster here more knowledgable than me about issues such as claiming support from your ex-H and claiming benefits for assisting with child care if you are on a low income. But these avenues, along with flexible working and building a local support network of other parents are much more feasible in my mind than relying on your mother who is by default an older person and who lives miles away for the foreseeable future.

Flexible working advice

If you are struggling financially and your child is eligible for pupil premium then many schools offer free or subsidised breakfast and after school club. I would go for a local school as it will also be better for you and your child to have a network of school friends and parents locally. You mum can still help with holiday childcare perhaps?

I don't know how you'd get away with this on practical terms. I was in school yesterday when parents of children due to start in August were registering. (we're in Scotland). School asks to see two forms of proof of address and one has to be your Council Tax bill. Obviously with your name on it as parent. Not granny's name with a different surname.

Here, they most definitely check. Especially for a first child in the family entering the school.

one has to be your Council Tax bill. Obviously with your name on it as parent. Not granny's name with a different surname.
What happens if the OP is deciding to live with her mum and it’s gran who is paying the council tax???
On our council tax, only H is named in the bill even. Though both of us are registered at that address....