To think a Primary school 2 miles away may as well be in another country ?!

[Chillicheese123]

Hello wise mumsnetters

Had a heated debate with a friend today over text. She is not on this site so I’m pretty confident posting on here, ha.

She is moving back to the UK from UAE with a Infant school aged child. Schools over there are very different, it seems that you pick which one you like, make sure you’re work will cover the fees or you can cover them yourself, and your child gets in.

She is moving back to the UK to a suburb of Manchester, she will be living half a mile from me. She can’t afford the suburb 2-3 miles over as the houses are extortionately priced IMO and she can’t afford the mortgage on a £700,000 semi detached ! Which is fair enough because neither can I.

The thing is she doesn’t want her kid to go to one of the 3 ‘Outstanding’ schools in the area she’s moving to. She has a few friends in the more desirable suburb and she is applying to the school which their kids go to. Apparently people living 0.3 miles from it can’t get their kids in, so no idea why she thinks she will be different ?!

I’ve told her she needs to change her expectations but she is insistent she wants her dc to go to this school, it has childcare attached and all these wonderful extra curricular things and parent nights out and trips and blah blah !!

My kids school is lovely and I’m really happy with it. I feel a bit offended and I don’t know why.

Also frustrated that she thinks her child will get in because they’re starting in Sept of yr 2. I don’t think it’s fair ?!

AIBU for thinking that a school two miles away from your house in a city setting is A pointless Task ?!

the plan as of last night is that I and her other local friend will be involved in taking her now 16 month old to school if they don’t get into the same school as their sibling and have to go to the local one for reception

I’d be vetoing that plan right now!

She wants the further away school, well, good luck to her - her chances will probably be better as an in-year admission, not all parents who had that school as their first choice will keep on the waiting list once their DC are settled at another school.
It doesn’t affect you either way, I’d not be taking that personally, and I’d try to avoid getting into further discussions about it.

But expecting you to be taking her younger DC to school indefinitely? That’s too much to ask. For all she knows a place at the other school might not come free for years.