School refuses to do a tour

[Pointlessuser]

Am currently looking at primary schools, we have 2 local primaries that we are looking to send DS.

The closest one is a primary school which seems nice but had a bit of a bad ofsted report although it’s been a few years since they had a full inspection.

The other school is a separate infant and junior school but they are next door to each other. We had an open evening at the infant school and really fell in love with it, however when we asked the junior school next door if they also had an open evening or if we could book a tour to look around, they told us that as the children automatically go from infants to the junior school they had no reason to have an open evening and also wouldn’t offer us a tour.

DS is my first child so never had to pick a school before but it doesn’t seem right that we can’t see the school that our child is going to be at for 4 years, I understand that it won’t be for a couple of years but if we don’t like that school when it comes to it, we either have to take him out and away from his friends (which I don’t think is fair) or just have to stick with it.

Am I being unreasonable to push for a tour? I feel like it’s a big decision to make with what feels like only half the information but maybe this is normal and it’s a case of DS being my PFB.

This is just raising a few red flags for me and I’m starting to think that although a lot more inconvenient I may have to look further afield for schools.

Honestly I think you are overthinking it all. What would you expect to see to make you happy? If they have a Christmas fair go to that and have a nosey then.

The other way of looking at that is, your child won’t be going there for 4 more years so anything you see and like or dislike now may not be relevant by the time you get there. If you love the infant school, go there. Worry about JS later.

What are the other junior school options in your area?

If you like this infant school there’s no harm in starting with that and assuming your child might move for the next stage, if there’s another junior school you like. In the meantime you should have ample opportunity to assess the follow-on junior school.

(You don’t need to worry so much about leaving school friends - little children are tremendously adaptable, and new challenges can be great.)

I am not sure its worth going for a tour just yet - a lot can happen in 4 years.

And do check if it is definite automatic entry.

I work in an infant school. The junior school of same name is right next door, in fact the playgrounds join with no barriers.

Almost every child at our school does go into the juniors and I know, as a feeder, we are high on the entry categories. However, it isn't automatic. Parents have to apply to the junior school in Year 2. They usually go on tours of the juniors at that point.

There was a similar set up in one of my local schools. Infant school was amazing. The primary school did give me a tour when I asked and it was just a bit shit so we chose a separate school altogether. The two schools were run completely independently so if it’s the same set up it’s essentially not the same school so you are not being at all unreasonable.

Honestly I think you are overthinking it all. What would you expect to see to make you happy?

All schools are different and of course it’s important you’re happy with the choice. What a bizarre comment

It seems a bit of a waste of time as it could well be a totally different school in 4 years time. Do they not have an open day, Christmas fair or something you could go to?

There is no benefit to either the school or your child in offering you a tour so finding the time for it is going to be very low on their list of priorities. They already do induction/transition for the children they know they will have.

Usually with infant and junior school set ups like this their ethos and ways of doing things are so closely linked that there won’t be much else you could learn from seeing the junior school too. Even at primary schools where you can see all the classes on the open day it’s not worth much because so much can change in 7/8 years.

It is definitely automatic entry, that was confirmed when we went to see the infant school, they are completely different schools independent of one another, run by separate headteachers etc.

There are other schools about a 15-20 minute drive away and from the ofsted reports look good but haven’t been to see them yet. The open evenings are next week so think I will go to them, they are just a bit more inconvenient for us.

Schools can often change massively in four years, especially if the head changes (new heads mess shake everything up on principle usually, to make their mark...).

Tours only tell you how well the school markets themselves really, especially if it's a day devoted to tours rather than a fairly spontaneous one (the best tours are done by the kids if it's a school with children old enough, ones done by the head or deputy are definitely the school's best side...).

I didn’t think about any Christmas fairs, that’s a good idea and I’ll have a look to see if they do anything like that.

It's annoying but I wouldn't write off the school on this basis. Do you know any local families with kids there? I second the Christmas fair suggestion. We are in a similar situation with DD about to go to juniors next year. They are offering tours to parents of year 2s after lots of requests. We didn't bother viewing the school before applying for the infant school as it was our only realistic option and the infants was great. A 15/20 min drive sounds crazy to me when you have a good infant school and no reason (at the moment) to avoid the junior school.

Instead you would rather it is inconvenient for them. You are going to be labelled as THAT PARENT before your dc even starts at this rate.

Anything could happen in the years your child is at the infants. It's quite an unusal approach you're taking. I never even considered the junior school when I was applying to my children's school, apart from looking at their Ofsted quickly and asking around neighbours in the local area to parents whose children attended.

I work in a separate infant school too. No prospective parent ever asks us about the juniors, when they're applying for an infant place. Generally the juniors is not as well thought of as us, partly because, well, it's the juniors so of course it's less "cuddly". The work is harder, the staff are stricter. That would apply anywhere.

If either head leaves things could change drastically. You have no control over that. The 2 schools may amalgamate or be absorbed into a trust. You can only plan so far ahead for your child. You only SHOULD plan a couple of years ahead. Your child could turn out to be gifted, they might turn out to have a SEN, they might have mental health issues etc etc You can't always predict these things, and your views on a particular school may change according to your individual child's needs as they develop.

Just choose the school that is best for your child NOW.

@CurlyhairedAssassin i understand your point, the only reason that I wanted to look at this junior school is that the other local school and the 2 further away are schools that go from reception to year 6 so to me I felt like I am picking the school for the next 7 years.

But I completely understand all your points about the schools being different in the future, I feel like it’s the first big decision I’ve had to make and I just want to make sure I make the right choice and my DS is happy but understand that I’m making a mountain out of a mole hill.

Drive? You go to the school that is nearest where you live! Honestly, how bad can a Primary school be???

It’s always good to look at schools to see which one you think would suit your child but at the end of the day when you apply you are only getting to express a preference not a choice. All schools will have admissions criteria, which you can look up on their website but ICS legislation is clear that there can only be 30 children per Qualified teacher for KS1 and this alongside the application of the admissions policy is what will determines if you are offered a place. If a school is further away from your home , this may adversely affect your application- but this is something you would need to check as it varies from school to school. Read the admissions policy of the school carefully. Appeal panel member here.

I think the OP means the schools further away are more inconvenient to get to, but she will go to the open evenings anyway. Not that the open evenings are inconvenient so she is asking for an alternative.

A few of the parents in DDs class talked about visiting the junior school before applying to the infants. It didn't really occur to me but it's probably a good idea!

I teach in an infant school and our partner junior school doesn’t do tours for parents of Reception children. Nobody has ever asked! The children won’t be going there for another 3 years, so huge amounts could change by then anyway

If you like the infant school and they are run by the same team I'm not sure what you expect to gain from seeing the junior school.

I did go to the open day for our primary school but only because it was on my day off, if it had been and other day of the week I wouldn't booked leave to go or anything. It was all very nice but I knew that from popping in at their May fair and chatting to other parents. Seeing the infant school will have given you plenty to go on.

I guess there’s nothing you can do, it doesn’t make sense to do open evenings for that school if it’s an automatic thing. The schools a 15/20 min drive away will you get a place? Where I live you’re lucky to get into a school within 1mile or so. Many schools are heavily oversubscribed

If you like the infant school and they are run by the same team

In all likelihood, they will be run by a completely different team. Ours has different leadership, teaching staff, support staff, governing body etc

You are 4 years away from needing a junior school. Calm down and focus on where he'll be attending reception.

YABU

This

You are massively over thinking this.

We read the local ofsted reports, all good and outstanding, and applied for the schools in walking distance, the closest at number 1, job done.

There were no open days/evenings and I didn't even consider asking for tours of primary schools

Either way, you really don't need to be fussing about the junior school now.