Is this fraud?

[cloudbusting123]

This is a question for a friend not myself:

Friend (Anna) and husband (John) are in a bad relationship, she has two DC (10 and 7). Friend has been trying to leave husband for a while but has not been in a position financially to leave.

Anna’s sister has just bought a new house with enough room for Anna and her two children to live in for the next year whilst she gets on her feet and long term looks to move to the area that her sister is in.

Annas DC (10) will be applying for high schools whilst they will be staying at their sister house.

Is it ok for Anna to apply for high schools in that area as they are staying with Anna’s sister or would she need to apply under the address that John will be residing in? The local high school is in walking distance from Anna’s sisters house but would be a different catchment area from John’s house.

It would make more sense for her to apply in that area as she is looking for a house there but she worries that this might be fraud?

Geniune concern for Anna (and not for me) so please don’t flame me!

AIBU - this is fraud

YANBU - no that makes sense

If she was staying for a fortnight to be there on the right date it would be fraud, just like using a grandparent's address to pretend to live there. But if it's a long term move of a year then it's legitimate

Most Local Authorities and/or schools will do address checks - especially if schools are oversubscribed. Children must live regularly at the address they are applying from.

She needs to be living there and on the electoral role.

It's not fraud unless she tries to conceal the truth. To cover herself, just explain the facts on the application. That way the people who decide on admissions can disqualify the application if they feel it is invalid and allow it if not.

well it doesn't sound as if the year sorting herself out is likely to return to her former address. Why would she apply stating an ex-partners address where she no longer lives?

Why doesn't she just move out immediately.
Start paying rent to her sister. Get on that electoral roll and apply legitimately from that address.
But .
A child has 2 parents.
Doesn't the father have to agree also about choice of school unless there is a court order ??
I don't know. Just wondering if problems might come from the father rather than the new school.

Address is still very important. The other factors which are higher cover a minority of applicants. Then the majority are based on catchment area.

The father doesn't have to agree for the place to be given. He can file a court order if he's not happy with the decision, but going to school locally to the residential parent is a logical choice and not one a court is likely to be able to find issue with.

What nobody seems to be saying is - why is she thinking about this now? She doesn’t have to apply until September / October and the school place will be allocated on March 1st next year. She should decide where she’s living, get her address changed officially if she moves and then apply for schools in September / October. There’s no need to be anxious about it now? Just make a decision and do whatever is needed - or decide to stay where she is and do nothing?

When she makes the school application she needs to use the address which she is residing at, if she moves out before offer day she needs to tell the admissions team.

But what if the father says he is to be the residential parent?
Then the child's address for school application would be the present address wouldn't it?
The mother can move to live wherever she wants.
But can she unilaterally decide to move the children with her
When they have previously been living all together with both parents?