To think SOMEONE should be contactable in the school office over summer?

[Lmnop22]

I am moving house this week to a new area and local authority. my DS is due to start reception this September.

I was unable to apply for a reception place in the new area until I had a date to exchange contracts in order to prove I was in the very small catchment area for the school I wanted.

I didn’t exchange contracts until mid July when the summer holidays had already started. I immediately made the application for the Reception place and the council offered me the place a couple of weeks later. I accepted.

Then nothing. I have had no response to my email accepting the place. I have called the council and they say their part is over now and I’ll “hear from the school” but the school is closed over summer and there are no staff. When I told the council this, they said “oh yeah there won’t be anyone in until September now”.

So do I have the place? Do the school have my DS on the register for September? What uniform etc do I buy? How do I organise breakfast/after school club provisions?

Am I being unreasonable to think a member of staff ought to monitor emails and/or voicemails over the summer and communicate with parents in my position?

I expect you'll find there are people back in next week.

But if your place has been accepted then you're surely fine to crack on and buy the uniform etc!

dont stress about uniform
its just a jumper surely

pr a week or so before the school opens they’ll be someone in the office.

I expect they’ll be in the week before term starts.

Of course there should be - but if the school are having to choose between manning the phones over the holidays or buying textbooks I know where I’d rather their priorities lay.
Private schools are expensive for a reason.

They will be back after the bank holiday. It may be worth emailing in as sometimes the phone lines are out on an automatic answerphone

Reception is almost always a staggered start -usually half days for the first couple of weeks. So your DC won't miss out on any settling in and you'll have plenty of time around the edges to get uniform, etc.

Can you see the first day of term on the school website? Some schools will have an inset day on 2 September this year but that means staff will be in, so again works in your favour. Just relax for the rest of the holidays.

Try to connect with other parents. Many schools have a Facebook page etc

• that will help with the logistics like uniform more than getting a hold of a receptionist. I've done similar moves and I know it's frustrating but you have the place confirmed so just focus on reassuring DC how great it will be.

Try them next week, staff usually start showing up at the end of August at the schools near me, so not unreasonable to wait till next week and start trying to contact them.

If the council have confirmed the place, yes you have a place.
most info should be on the school website, such as start times, uniform etc.

Schools can't afford to keep people on the payroll in the holidays just to hang about and answer the odd email. Nobody, including teachers, gets paid for the holidays. However, there will definitely be people in the few days before term starts, so you will be able to speak to somebody before his first day.

I think this is what makes me nervous. I was offered the place and I used the council’s “response to offers” email to reply but then I heard nothing to confirm it.

The standard letter they send out says that the school will now send out a welcome pack but I think that’s because it’s the letter they send out in April when the on time applications are processed and schools are open.

Just keep thinking I’ll drop my DS off on the first day and they won’t have his name down and it’ll make him feel left out.

There's very few FT staff in schools now as they just can't afford it. It will be bare bones staffing to prep for Sept and they won't have time to answer calls in reception if that's not their normal role.

If you look on the website, see if there's an admissions officer and try and work out what their email address might be and contact directly.

Staff will be in before the first day of term! Local parents can let you know the uniform, or their website?

I am happy to buy the uniform - really need to sort out breakfast club and after school club though so was hoping to speak to someone.

It’ll be difficult to sort with work at very short notice

council offered me the place a couple of weeks later. I accepted.

So do I have the place?
yes, you have the place?

Do the school have my DS on the register for September? What uniform etc do I buy? How do I organise breakfast/after school club provisions?
You check their website?

Reception usually have a staggered start, so they won’t be starting on the first day anyway.

How do I organise breakfast/after school club provisions?

Some schools don’t take reception children for afterschool clubs-does yours definitely do so?

I second the Facebook idea-there’s bound to be a new starters group somewhere.

Most schools do a phased start for reception. So half days for a week or two, and not until second week of term (home visits etc happen in first week).

We had a similar when DD2 started Reception. We were invited in on the Inset day before term started, met the teachers and got all the info then.

It's highly likely there will be 1/2 inset days at the start of the new term, where school will be contactable. If I was you, I'd buy all the generic uniform bits now (shoes, trousers etc) then make contact on 2nd September if you can't get through to anyone before. As a PP said, it's highly unlikely reception will be in FT from day one anyway, so you should have a few days to get sorted (and he can always wait a few days for his school jumper). Breakfast club etc is trickier but at this point an extra week probably won't make much difference.

So do I have the place? Do the school have my DS on the register for September?

I refer you to your earlier paragraph:

the council offered me the place a couple of weeks later. I accepted.

That’s it, OP, job done.

Look on the school website for information for new starters, there’s usually a section with all that, including any general letters sent out (if any). There will also be all you need to know about uniform and school
lunches etc.

I know it feels daunting to you, facing your child’s first school, but to them it’s what happens all the time. Don’t worry, it’s all going to be fine.

do you work or have the taken the time off?
who looks after your dc if you are working?

At my DC school, the wraparound care is a separate company on the school site, who do holiday club as well. Do you know if this is the case? They should be contactable if so. If you go on the school website you will find the information either way and an email might get to them if you send one.