Moving from Scotland to england

[1fedupmama]

Hi, we will be moving from Scotland to England in the next few months and I was wondering if anyone has done this and how easy is it? How do you go about doing it?

Also what's the difference in schooling?
I have a 6year old (Aug birthday) who would be starting p3 after the summer.
And a 4year old (May birthday) who would be starting p1 after the summer. I understand in England they work under 'year's' rather than 'primary's' but would the change effect them any? Would they be behind? Infront? The same?
Moving is going to be a big step for us all and just want to make it as easy as possible and prepare alot for it.
Thanks.

Sorry not very specific.
I meant how easy to move schools.... I'm kind of an expert at moving home haha. Have almost everything planned and sorted except schools.

Your 6-year old will go into Y2, your 4-year old will go into Reception.

How you go about getting school places depends on where you will be living. The local council will be able to advise you. In some areas you will apply to the local council listing your preferred schools and they will offer you a place. In other areas you will have to apply directly to schools. In these areas the local council will only get involved if you can't find a place yourself.

There is no guarantee you will get a place at your local school but the council must find places for your children somewhere. The places do not have to be at your preferred schools and I'm afraid it is quite likely your children will end up at different schools unless you are moving to an area where the schools have plenty of places available. You can appeal for places at your preferred schools but most appeals for these age groups are heard under infant class size rules which means you are unlikely to win.

The allocated school(s) could be some way from home. If the school is more than 2 miles from home by the shortest safe walking route the council must provide free transport for your child. If the journey is more than 45 minutes each way it is classed as unreasonable which would give you a good case to win an appeal for a nearer school.

Regarding how your children will be affected, the curriculum in Scotland is different from that in England. As your youngest is only just starting school it won't make any difference. Your older child is likely to be behind in some areas, ahead in others. It is difficult to judge where they will be overall. Given the dire state of education in Scotland it is tempting to say they could be behind but the reality is it depends on the school they currently attend and the school they end up attending in England (this would, of course, be true regardless of the state of education in Scotland!). At this age I wouldn't worry too much.

I will contact the council local to the area we are moving to and see what they say. Thank u so much for us reply.

Your post isn't clear about how old your DC are. If they're going to be 7 and 5 in September (as I suspect because you wouldn't have a 4 year old in p1) they'll be in Year 3 and Year 1.

Sorry - the OP is clear about ages but not about when she will move. If she moves after the summer her children will go into Y3 and Y1 rather than Y2 and Reception as I said.

That doesn't affect most of my advice but it is easier to win appeals for Y3 places than Y2.

Sorry we are looking to move in the next few months, just waiting on our potential property being refurbished.
Yes come the new school year my children will be 5 & 7.
My youngest (4) is due to be registered for primary 1 (Scotland) next week.

Well as they're summer born I think you have a choice. Until recently the cutoff was September 1st, and your child had to be in school the term after their fifth birthday.
However summer born children, which both of yours are, now have the option of starting reception the September after their fifth birthday.

English school children start secondary a year earlier than Scottish children ie they do reception then 6 years of primary and 7 years of secondary, so year 7, which is the same age as Primary 7, is done at secondary school. I personally will be looking to start DD in reception in the September after she's 5 as we think it will be better for her to be older rather than younger, especially when she starts secondary. The research backs this up.

If there's an outstanding or good school in the neighbourhood you're moving to that you want to get into, and you're in the catchment area, your younger child could get a place in reception. The 6 year old would then probably go to the top of the list for a place in year 2 or year 3 as a sibling.

You need to get on to this straight away. I think the closing date for primary school applications is 15 January in most areas. You will need proof of address.
Phone the local authority tomorrow re the younger child, do your research on schools in the area over the weekend and speak to the headteachers by phone if possible on Monday to a) try and get a feel for the ethos of the school b) see what level they think your older child is working at c) whether or not they have a place in.year 2. Then submit online.
(Btw the church schools, both Catholic and Church of England take churchgoers first.)

However summer born children, which both of yours are, now have the option of starting reception the September after their fifth birthday

I'm afraid that is not true.

The OP can apply for her child to start Reception a year late but the decision is for the admission authority (the school or the local authority depending on the type of school). The admission authority must consider each case individually rather than implement a blanket policy but they do not have to comply with the OP's wishes. Some LAs will allow delayed entry on request, others will only allow it where there is significant evidence that the child has developmental delay.

Even where the admission authority allows the child to enter Reception a year late, it is important to check what will happen on transfer to secondary school. Some secondary schools insist on returning children to their "correct" year group, resulting in them missing either Y6 or Y7 completely.

The OP can defer entry until Easter. That is her choice. Beyond that it is up to the admission authority.

The research backs this up

The research certainly suggests that summer born children perform worse at school than children born at other times of year. However, research on the effect of delaying entry for a year is mixed.

The 6 year old would then probably go to the top of the list for a place in year 2 or year 3 as a sibling

Possibly but many primary schools only prioritise if the child has an older sibling at the school.

Then submit online

The OP cannot follow the last paragraph of your advice at all. She is in Scotland. Unless she moves to England in the next 5 days (which she is clearly not planning) she cannot apply for a school place in England. She has to apply to the local authority where she lives. Local authorities in Scotland do not handle applications for places at schools in England.

she cannot apply for a school place in England. She has to apply to the local authority where she lives.

I'm guessing OP is in the army or similar. There must be some provision for people who know they will be moving into an area to apply for schools for their children. One of my friends at my heavily oversubscribed secondary had applied from abroad. OP is not in England and cannot apply to another English local authority.

Some LAs will allow delayed entry on request, others will only allow it where there is significant evidence that the child has developmental delay.

There's a whole other thread atm about summer born children. I thought it was clear cut now but the thread has moved on and you're right, I think, it's up to the local authority. There is not a single word about summer born children in my LA's published guidance for applying for admission. Needs clarifying.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/3473165-Summer-born-babies-am-I-wrong?pg=1&order=

I'm guessing OP is in the army or similar. There must be some provision for people who know they will be moving into an area to apply for schools for their children

If the OP or her partner are in the armed services then yes, there are special rules which would allow her to apply as soon as she knows what her address will be. It also means her younger child could be admitted even if it takes the class beyond the infant class size limit.

There is no general provision for people who are moving into an area who are not on Crown service. Some LAs will accept your new address on the basis of a solicitor's letter confirming exchange of contracts or a signed tenancy agreement but they don't have to do so. If you are moving within England you can, of course, apply through your current LA for places in the area to which you are moving but your chances of getting a place at a popular school are low and, if none of your preferred schools have places, you will be offered a place where you live, not where you are going to live.

There is not a single word about summer born children in my LA's published guidance for applying for admission. Needs clarifying

A few years ago the government announced an intention to change the Admissions Code so that parents of summer born children could choose to delay entry to Reception by a year. However, the changes have not been made.

Sorry just caught up on the replies.
No we are not in the army, just moving back towards family, my partner is originally from the area we are moving to.
I know which school will be our catchment (was my partners primary school)
I have looked on the local councils website and looked at the forms etc but think I'm going to have to actually go to the council office or fill these out on the phone with some help as they are a little confusing.
This is the first time I've ever had to move schools or nurseries so even after reading about I still do not have a clue.
Thank you all so much for your replies, they have helped in different ways. I now know roughly which classes my children shall go into when we move, I understand it may take some time to sort out and may not be able to do this until we move.
We are calling about our possible home on Monday so after that I will call the council and ask some advice from them.
Thank you all again.

so trying to move from Scotland to England but I’ve never done this before I’m a single mother there’s no court order in place to say there are anyone else involved with the child but social work are aware I have parents support and my aunties support but I won’t have that if I move to England but I’m in a toxic house environment which they know and my friend down south has always offered me and my son a safe place to stay but social work denied me having that option but I don’t know if they have a say considering it’s for my sons safety? But how do I prove that?

@Randommum20 you're going to need to put your post in a separate thread of your own, few people will open this was as several years old and they would reply to the original poster anyway not yourself.
Hopefully you will then get some helpful advice