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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think I can get an in-year school place?

24 replies

BigFishLittleFishy · 03/10/2025 00:48

I’m looking into applying for an in-year school place as we are moving in the next few months but can’t find information on how to apply if you don’t have an address in the catchment area at the time of application! Is this possible? Or do we have to buy / rent first and then apply? AIBU to think it will be a smooth transition? Interested in everyone’s experience of in-year applications!

OP posts:

Bobbie12345678 · 03/10/2025 02:21

That feels like a very specific question to the individual school.

TheNightingalesStarling · 03/10/2025 02:49

You should be able to apply from your current address. But you would then need to take up a place within a couple of weeks.
Some areas will let you apply from the new address on Exchange of contracts or when you sign a rental contract.

But generally you can't apply until a lit nearer the time.

Ciderapplevinegar · 03/10/2025 03:22

Depends if they have space in the year group. If they do then yes, should be smooth. If not then you're not getting in. Call the school and ask.

LoftyRobin · 03/10/2025 03:26

I can't see my child's oversubscribed school taking applications from people based on the idea they might move to the area.

HeNeedsRehab · 03/10/2025 06:35

You have to take the place up quite quickly, when we did one we had confirmation of a place one week and they wanted us to start the following week.

Your best bet is to call the schools and see if they have space and how many spaces in the appropriate year group first. If there’s no space it doesn’t matter if you’re in catchment or not, they won’t take you.

Get your moving date and apply after that, they won’t hold you a space

Smartiepants79 · 03/10/2025 06:46

Contact the school you are interested in and find out if the have spaces. If they do then you’re ok. You can sort of let them
know you’re interested and then apply properly nearer to the time. You can apply from anywhere in the country in theory. Where you live becomes much more relevant if they don’t have spaces.
If the schools are full then you have a much bigger problem!

Autumn1990 · 03/10/2025 06:57

i would ring the school and find out if there are places and they will explain the application process. Where I live most schools are full. Which does surprise some people who buy houses

KnickerlessFlannel · 03/10/2025 07:00

We had to email the local authority and they gave a list of schools with spaces in our year group. We then applied from our 'old' home address with a rough date we would want the space from. They said they couldn't hold the space if someone else asked for it, but would process the application and do everything else.

Zonder · 03/10/2025 07:11

You need to speak to the LA rather than the local school. At least that's how it works in our area. You would need an address in the area.

Pipsquiggle · 03/10/2025 07:13

When I moved to my current home with my DC, my new council wouldn't officially offer my DC a school place until we had physically moved in, we had registered on the council's system and they had confirmation from our old school /borough that my DC was no longer enrolled at the old school.
Before I moved, I had various chats with the school admissions department at the LA. Essentially, they can only offer once you move in as there is movement all the time. We were offered the closest school that had a space in his year group. It wasn't a great school, we kept on the waiting lists for our preferred schools. We had to wait just over a year for a spot to open up at a local school.

LIZS · 03/10/2025 07:59

You can apply in advance from your current address. If a school has a space and no wl then they have to offer it. However the offer needs to be accepted and taken up within a few weeks. If not you can join wl and your position will update when you move. Catchments are not as relevant except for wl position or if more than one applicant is looking for a place at once and it is one of the Admissions criteria.

Pinkladyapplepie · 03/10/2025 08:13

My DD1 moved from a completely different area 150 miles and rented to be nearer family after a relationship breakdown DGD was year 2 it was October. My daughter just rang the nearby schools a month before and one had a place. She had a look round asked opinions and DGD was accepted and started after half term. I would definitely ask opinions from others in thee relevant area especially high schools. Good luck.

HoskinsChoice · 03/10/2025 08:16

My next door neighbour moved here last summer. She got a place for her elder child but not for her youngest (who was going into reception) as all of the local schools to us were full. She home schooled for an entire school year hoping that our nearest schools would take her eventually but they never did. She started this school year in a nearish school but not the same one that her elder child goes to.

So, you're definitely not guaranteed. You need to find out which schools have spaces and appreciate that the most popular schools may well be full.

Whereisthesun99 · 03/10/2025 08:41

As others have said you will only be offered a space if there is space in the year group. Our LA will take your details but won't offer you a space until you have moved and can provide proof of the move, any spaces will not be held for you . As a side note if you are needing spaces going into Y11 please be aware the subjects your children has been studying may not be offered at the new school.

Original poster

BigFishLittleFishy · 03/10/2025 15:18

Thanks everyone - really helpful as a I’ve made some calls and you’re right that we do have to move first and be in catchment area as decisions are made quickly (like within 14 days) and you have to take it and start by the date they set or lose it. It looks like we may have to start in any school they offer and if it’s not our preferred school can be put on a waiting list until a spot becomes available - as some have said many schools are oversubscribed and won’t offer a place until we’ve actually moved in catchment area (and provided evidence we’ve moved in and moved out of our old place)! It’s a real process but feeling more hopeful now!!!

Has anyone done in-year transfer and got an into their preferred school? Or if you were put on a waiting list how long did you have to wait? I’m now wondering if we settle kids into a school we’re offered but then a spot becomes free at our initial first choice, how disruptive that may be to move them again? (Kids are 12 and 13 for context)

OP posts:

Snorlaxo · 03/10/2025 15:20

They have to offer a school place but it’s really area dependent. My kids went to a popular school and there were many on the waiting list from year 7 and never got a space.

HappyGolmore2 · 03/10/2025 15:22

There's lots of movement between our local schools, kids moving across or out of catchment, you;d be surprised. good luck!

Runningismyhappyplace50 · 03/10/2025 15:43

It really depends on the area you are moving to.

Secondary schools generally have more movement than primary schools.

I’m not sure I would want to move DC twice at that age and some schools start GCSEs in Y9 (subjects are chosen in Y9 at least, so DC may be restricted in their subjects).

Pipsquiggle · 03/10/2025 15:48

@BigFishLittleFishy We were on a waiting for just over a year when a space in one of our preferred schools came up.
Just make sure you are on top of your admin.
We were no. 2 on the waiting list for virtually the whole year - I knew the person who was first on the waiting list......... They forgot to renew their interest on the waiting list.
There was a certain date when you could renew, if you didn't renew, then you would have to reapply again or they would automatically close down your interest as you had been on the list for over a year.

The lady who was first on the waiting list just assumed you stayed on the waiting list and it rolled over to the next academic year.

My DC got the spot because I read the small print and renewed at the correct moment.

FurForksSake · 03/10/2025 15:58

Where I am with secondary you’re going to be waiting a long time for one of the good schools. There are several which are not well thought of that you’d get places at and then sit on a waiting list for potentially a very long time. Local people accept places at worse schools and will go on waiting list for better schools as well as people that move in.

if you know where you are moving you can see what the catchment school is and then ask the admissions team / council how long the waiting list is.

lanthanum · 03/10/2025 16:19

Our county has a list on their website of all the schools and year groups, showing which had spaces in September (except for a few which control their own admissions). If you can get hold of something like that, you'll at least have an idea of where there might be spaces, although things change all the time. If you haven't finalised where to live, it might influence that decision. Good schools in urban areas are less likely to have spaces than those in rural areas, because if numbers in the catchment drop, the spaces will be filled by those from outside it. So you might find that being a few miles out of town means you are more likely to get them in to a decent school straight away. Ask questions, though - it might be that there's actually only one space, which might be gone by the time you move, or there might be a big new estate about to create an influx.

Isitmybathtimeyet · 03/10/2025 16:33

It will vary wildly by place. We moved to a city with quite a few excellent schools (deliberately) and had a choice of school places, all great schools. It was painless. But I’ve heard horror stories of people moving to other places and waiting months for a school place. I think you need to be guided by what the local authority is telling you.

As soon as we had our new address we were able to get a list of schools with places to visit, and then express a preference. We were also incredibly lucky that it was an LA that allowed secondary applications on the basis of a future address (with adequate proof of that) so we were able to make an on-time application for our year 6 even though we moved in December.

TheNightingalesStarling · 03/10/2025 16:49

Waiting lists are held in order of criteria, not length of time on list. Theres a lot of luck in In Year admissions. On one of our moves, DD was added to the (long) waiting list on the Tuesday, a place came available on the Wednesday, and as her sibling had been admitted the day before, she was the top of the list over people who had been on there months.

However on another move, she was out of school for half a term for any space, not just at a selected school (was admitted to the same school as her sister on appeal)

Original poster

BigFishLittleFishy · 03/10/2025 17:44

Thank you all! I found a list of schools on the government website in the area we’re moving to and we have a preference but the other schools look okay too - there is a comparative chart of exam results, % etc but they are all currently showing as zero - guessing as it’s the start of the school year and everyone’s recently joined. Been advised to apply in March which is a bit away so fingers crossed but feel much more prepared to tackle the process now, sounds like we will need to be flexible and expect the worst and hope for the best!

OP posts:

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