How do you know feeder schools?

[AyeWhySWIM]

I'll soon be looking to apply for a primary place for ds but am confused about how people know which secondary schools pupils from each primary go to. We're considering moving house due to the poor secondary choices in our area but when looking for new properties how can we be more confident that they will be more likely to lead to certain secondary schools.

I'm sure I've read someone refer to it being possible to see where previous leavers have gone from primaries? We don't know people in the area we're looking at to ask in person.

Thanks!

They don't exist in my area. Application for secondary as primary is down to criteria and distance/catchment.

You could check the entry criteria for a couple of secondary schools in your area on the council website they should list if attending certain primary schools are part of the criteria.

I don't think feeder schools exist any more.

Every secondary school has a list of admissions criteria, which should be readily available.

It will include things like:

1: Children in care ('looked after children')

1. Children with a statement of Special Educational Needs

1. Siblings of children already at the school.

1. Children who live nearest to the school.

I have never seen primary school listed, although there may be a small minority of secondary schools who do this.

DS2 has just started Y7. There are 190 children in his year. They came from 81 different primary schools (the head of Y7 told me this).

I think you would be better off choosing a primary school that you like, and then studying the admissions criteria for the secondary schools closer to the time.

how can we be more confident that they will be more likely to lead to certain secondary schools

If you have certain secondary schools in mind, then your best bet would be to move close to one of those. In our area, that means within 300 metres.

Have a look at the Admissions Criteria for the secondary school. We have feeder schools (partner schools) and attending one is below catchment but ahead of non-catchment in terms of priority. If your secondary fills up from its catchment then being in a feeder won't make any difference but in our area, you are pretty much guaranteed a place from a feeder school but not from outside catchment in a non-feeder so it's worth considering.

I joined the Good Schools Guide online for one month - think it cost £10. This showed for any any secondary school which schools the children had come from and also for primary school were they went to secondary school. It was really enlightening.

They are usually on the secondary schools websites. They still count in my area and have just been given higher preference for admissions (due to lots of new houses so in catchment feeder link now stronger than just distance in catchment).

Alive and kicking in my area of Herts. You need to check the secondary school booklet as all the schools that are foundation schools or academies can have slightly different rules so you could get caught out! Also bear in mind that the rules can change every year. In year 5 make sure you have all the details to hand and your eye on the ball!

It works like this for some schools, as as previous posters have said, it will be written into the secondary school's entrance criteria. Though if you ask at the primary they'd probably know and tell you (ask the right question though - it's only the formal secondary criteria that count, not just where many of their pupils go in practice).

Do however be aware that entrance criteria for schools can and do change, and feeder schools can be removed, changed or introduced subject to a defined consultation period.

Thanks for your replies.

I am so painfully confused over what to do in our situation - there are just too many variables. I have read admissions policies but because you can't say with any certainty that you'll get a place in any given primary or whether that will lead to any particular secondary.

We are happy with the Primaries wherever we are within our options but decision is based on the following options:

1. Stay here and bank on outside chance of getting into the one secondary with a long term good record. Really uncomfortable with the other possible schools. We generally love our house but there are definite features we'd like to find in a new one ie garden.

2. look to move to a nearby village that we'd love for community lifestyle and much higher degree of certainty for a good secondary. But houses don't come up frequently and we don't have that long to go through the whole process - what do we do in the meantime?

3. move to another nearby village that isn't as nice lifestyle-wise but has the possibility of leading to an outstanding secondary but getting a place would be a gamble. Finding a house here would be easier.

If you've read this far (!) maybe the right choice stands out to you because we haven't a clue what to do!!

As previously mentioned if there is feeder status be very aware it can be removed it was removed with 18months notice here.

Secondary outstanding today could be rubbish in 5-7 yrs time. Not unheard of.

Hmm I'm a secondary teacher so have a view on local schools - despite ofsted labels there's very little variation in the general 'flavour' of schools over time. Apart from where there are radical events which obviously can't be taken into account. The ones we're preferring are long established and in settled areas.

We have feeder schools here but I don't see that they make a difference because we have 3 high schools and all of the primary schools are feeder schools for the 3 high schools, I suppose it only gives an advantage against people from out of town.

It's so horrible and complicated. Thanks for all the answers.

Have learned something new today; I had no idea that so many secondary schools included feeder schools in their admissions criteria!

The schools are supposed to make their admissions criteria available. If this information isn't published on the school website, then you can contact them and ask for it. Then you can see which primaries (if any) are listed.
Researching the leavers' destinations from each primary is less useful; even if 50% of Y6 children from a particular primary are offered places at one secondary school, it may be under an admission criterion that your own child doesn't meet.