Your first choice primary school should be one you are most likely to get?

[coffeeforone]

AIBU that this is an incorrect statement? If you put your closest, most likely school as last option you still have as much chance as someone who put it first and it will come down to distance when they are allocating?

Thinking of putting 3 unlikely, better options (in order of my preference) then my very likely safe offer as 4th (final) place. Is this not sensible?

Yep you are right but there is so much mis information out there

You are correct. There are lots of very helpful threads on the Primary Education board if you are about to head into applying for a reception place!

You are correct the statement is incorrect. Your plan is sensible.

School allocation is done on an equal preference basis and only if you qualify for more than 1 school does your order get looked at.

Put the school you like best first.

Just make sure there is a school you are pretty certain you'll get into somewhere on the list even if you hate it. better a school you don't like on your doorstep than one you don't like 8 miles away.

You're right. Also well done on using all of your choices, very sensible. It makes a change from people who think only putting one school means they'll definitely be given a place there.

In terms of whether it comes down to distance, it depends on the admissions criteria for the individual school. Distance is the most common tie breaker where not all children can be admitted, but there are some who might use random lottery or similar. Make sure you check and know the criteria for each school.

You are correct.

That's the way we are doing it too. We're fairly condident of getting our first choice though unless there's lots of siblings. Although we only get 3 choices in our town.

That's similar to what I did.

I put two small schools as my first choices. We are not that close so I knew there was little chance of getting them as there would be plenty of people applying who live closer, plus all the siblings. For choice 3, I put down a school we're close to, plus has a large intake, so I knew she'd have a chance. This was our 'safe' choice - one we'd be happy for her to go to.

The final 3 were ones we'd rather she didn't go to, but were in the area so at least we could get there in reasonable time. We'd rather one of those instead of being randomly allocated somewhere miles away. This included the school that's the closest to us, which was choice 4.

She was given a place a choice 3.

Incorrect. All spaces may be filled with those who put it a higher priority than you

Lemonlimesoda
Have you got any proof of that statement? My understanding is order is not a deciding factor between which child gets a place.

Thanks all! It's quite bad that this is not clearer to all. I've had discussions with a few parents recently who understand that they look at the applications differently (e.g. start the allocations by first considering everyone's top choice only). They have made me doubt my interpretation of what I've read.

@Lemonlimesoda this is what a few people have said that made me doubt myself. Can I ask where you found this info from?

Someone said they had an email from the school confirming @Lemonlimesoda statement. Scary if the school are giving out wrong info.

lemonlimesoda

Only if you are unfortunate enough to live in a school blackspot. Or a brand new estate has been built next to the school and filled to the brim with children of the same age as your child. Or every place has been filled by LAC, children with statements naming the school, service children and siblings.

Otherwise the advice about preferences is sound. Always have a banker on the list but put your favoured schools first.

I think distance is a higher priority so if your second choice is nearer you may be more likely to get that. (that's why people fake addresses saying chidren live at granny's ect)

No no no!!

I called the school admissions team for clarity on this before doing my application (3 years ago) and they said that you are incorrect.

They look at your first choice first, then consider the ones afterwards if they still have spaces, working down the list until they can offer you a space.

So for the first choice, all children who put the school first get offered a place (assuming they have space). They do not look at any of the other choices if they can offer a space.

If they don’t have the space, they then look at the child’s second choice, which could already have filled up in the first round if enough people put it as first choice. If they have a place they offer it, if not they then look at the child’s third choice. This then continues until they can offer a place.

If you don’t put the school you are likely to get first, you might not get a place at all!

I’d seriously suggest you call your admissions team too.

Your first choice should be your absolute favourite school, even if there’s no real chance of getting in (as you never know!)
Then the rest depending on how many choices you get should be in order of your choice. Somewhere on the list should be a school you are fairly confident of getting into even if yours not a good school otherwise you run the risk of getting allocated a bad school but much further away!

Misconceptions

• putting one choice/same school for all choices means you will force them to give you that school
• schools know how you rank them and will treat you differently if not first choice
• people who put a school as first choice get priority over those you put it as third even if they live further away.

The way it works is - you out school A, B and C in that order of preference.

The LA then make a massive list for each school, everyone who has put that school in any place whether first or last gets put on the list. Everyone is ranked in order of the priority criteria.
Say school A has 60 places, the top 60 people on the list get allocated a place.
You are placed as number 63 so don’t get a place
They then look at if anyone got into another school that you placed at a higher preference. Say 5 people did - they get offered the other place instead meaning there are 5 spaces on the list and everyone gets moved up so you are now number 58 and get a place.

Say for example you are number 70 on the list for all the schools you chose and don’t manage to get up to number 60 on any of them. Once ALL the lists have stopped moving and places been allocated they will take the people left you didn’t manage to get a place at any of their choices and allocate them the nearest school that has any places left. This is most likely to be a school no one else wants and could be miles away hence the advice to always put a school close to you that you are likely to get into even if you hate it

Scary at the misinformation just on this thread!!!!
You

So for the first choice, all children who put the school first get offered a place

That's not true, and is very misleading to others who will be applying.

YouthGoneMild that is not true as it is illegal. All Admitting Authorities must use equal preference. They only use the ranking of your choices when you qualify for admittance at more than one school.

june2007

They assess your eligibility for each school. You are then offered the highest place in your list that you are eligibile for. So if you are offered school 2 on your list it is because

A) you fit the admission criteria for school 2

B) you did not fit the admission criteria for school 1

You could also have met the criteria for schools 4,5,6. But 2was higher on your list so that's your offer.

They use the information you have given, so if you have used granny's address and they find out (and they do check) then your offer will be withdrawn.

Distance is usually a criteria that comes below other criteria, so while it is a deal maker or breaker it is not the only way places are allocated, and in small schools with heavy sibling intakes and other criteria, eg baptism, it might not even get to distance.

@YouthGoneMild that is not correct. Each application is considered separately.

E.g. A child out of catchment for a school who put it first will not have more chance of getting a space at that school over a child in catchment who puts it third. (Supposing all other criteria are equal and the school admissions policy uses distance as a selection tool).

@WaterSheep You’ve cut me off mid quote there! I said... So for the first choice, all children who put the school first get offered a place (assuming they have space).

So if only 10 kids apply for 15 spaces they all get offered a place.

If 16 kids apply for 15 places, they then look at the main criterias: Child in care, SEN, staff child etc.

So one child will not get a place and move down to the second choice school, where they will repeat the process of checking if they have enough space etc.

@Lougle I’m repeating back exactly as it was explained to me by the school admissions team 3 years ago.

Why do you think it is illegal?

I’m also strongly advising the OP to call her admissions team for clarity rather than relying on my 3 year old advice and that of everyone else. Maybe different boroughs do it differently?

For most local authorities in England the OP is correct in her premise.
All the eligibility assessments are done for all applicants and all schools with no reference to the parental preferences.
Once the assessment is done the LA look at parental preference. So if you are eligible for all the schools you put down then you get #1. If you are only eligible for one school on your list you get that even if you put it at #3. People who aren't eligible cannot jump above you no matter what their preference is.