In year admissions - am I missing an option?

[lighthouse99]

We currently live in London but want to move out. We have two DC, our eldest is currently in reception at an outstanding primary school.

We've narrowed our moving options down to two towns. We love both, but one is slightly more affordable. However, most of the primary schools in the more affordable town have no primary school places available. The only ones which do have places don't seem like great schools - one is required improvement and has clearly been through a difficult time recently with a lot of staff turnover. The other is ok but not a great location (a long way from the station etc - I'm not sure it's really feasible with our current jobs).

I'm thinking through our options and wondering if I'm missing something obvious. Has anyone been in this situation and what did you do? Homeschooling until a place becomes available, private school, take the place at the required improvement school and hope it gets better?! It seems a shame to give up on this town as in every other way it's pretty perfect for us.

Or...do we just give up and go for the other town, which does have in year places available at several good schools.

Move to the town you want to move to and put your name down on the waiting list for all the schools you’re interested in. Then either take whatever space the LEA offer in the meantime - they have to offer you something, although it may be in a nearby village or town - or look at private school if you prefer, until a space becomes available.

It's a really frustrating situation. We moved, there were delays due to Covid, I was able to drive my kids to school as it was only 20 miles and I was working from home. Did that for about 4/5 weeks (they wouldn't let me apply until we exchanged which was a month before moving and still took 2 months) then got offered 2 different schools for each child, one was our third choice. Got very lucky that when I spoke to the school they found a place for my eldest so they can both attend. It's a good school but it's across town which is a pain in the arse, I have them on the waiting lists for our 2 local schools but they're outstanding so will take a long time if ever. Also as every day that goes by Kids are settling into their school and likely won't want to move.

We will have the same issues with secondaries, our nearest excellent schools are wildly oversubscribed and they don't do catchment areas. I understand not wanting to create "rich" areas but given the environmental impact I'm wondering how many kids are travelling stupid amounts of miles to schools in opposite directions of their house.

What worries me is whether DD would be ok if she starts at one school and then we move her? Would that be too much disruption? I'm conscious that she's already had a very disrupted reception year due to covid too.

I'd say she's quite a resilient and adaptable child but 3 schools before she's 7 sounds like a lot!

@changingnames786 I don't envy you having to go through the process with more than one child. We've already decided that if we move it will be in the next couple of years before my youngest is school age as it is so stressful!

@lighthouse99 so we've decided that if they can find a space for DS2 in year 2 we will snap it up, he's still got 4 years left of primary and he's still very much of the age where it's water off a Duck's back for him (resilient child!) my eldest I am going to let him decide, he's year 5 so will be going to high school next year so I just want him to decide what he's comfortable with, though he may want to move as he knows he will be allowed to walk to school on his own if he got one of the local schools ha! I think it's only a decision you can make knowing your children, my children in KS1 were very chilled out, but by the time DS1 was about Ks2 he was very attached, it was hard for him to move from his last school.

The hard thing about not being in a local school is their friends living further away, and getting stuck in about 3 different school's school rush 🙈

If you can homeschool until a place comes up that would be ideal - but if you both work, is that even an option?

I wouldn't do the poor school and then move. SEcond best option might be private if you can afford it and if there are places.

Which towns are you looking at? Beaconsfield/Penn?

@underneaththeash I could homeschool for a short while as my employer is quite open to career breaks. But only for a few months really, so it would be a pretty risky strategy!

The towns are Harpenden and Hitchin.

@changingnames786 your DS2 sounds a lot like my DD. It's encouraging that you think he'd be ok with the move!

If it's any help I went to 3 different primary schools in year 2 due to house moves across the country. I then went to a 4th primary school in year 4. I was teased a little bit due to my accent but for the most part I was fine :-) So if you do need to move her again she'll likely be fine :-)

Have you found anywhere to live yet?

Realistically, house moving can take a while. What places are available now are irrelevant really. Its what places are available when you move.

@aroundtheworldin80moves yes, it's a good point and we cannot be 100% sure that the situation will stay the same. We've just been watching pretty closely over quite a long period (all the info on school vacancies is on the council website). And we know that one town always has places available at a few good schools, though not always the same ones. But the other town doesn't. We have friends living in both places and their anecdotal experiences confirm this too.

@millicentmargaretamanda thank you, that is very reassuring.

(Also...I love your username! I used to love those books)

Go to the town with the good school Places. It isn’t sensible to keep changing schools after DCs have settled in. It’s not fair on them and every change of school puts them back a bit because each school will assess them and they will be working at different stages. You will have deliberately done this. I’m assuming Hitchin has the schools. Take Hitchin!

If you like Harpenden then have you considered Berkhamsted? Twenty minutes west of Harpenden but very similar vibe and direct train into Euston taking half an hour. There was a rejig of the schooling system a few years ago and there’s now a surplus of places.

All but one of the primary schools has places and they are all rated good or outstanding. The secondary school, Ashlyns, is also fabulous and for the past few years got more children into Oxbridge than the very expensive private school in the town.

Definitely worth a look.

We've already decided that if we move it will be in the next couple of years before my youngest is school age as it is so stressful!

This is another viable option:

Most schools give priority to siblings of on-roll children.

Stay put for now. Aim to move during the December before your younger child is due to start reception, ensuring you have moved before the application deadline and that you are in guaranteed catchment for your preferred school. For 2-3 terms you'll need to home school/accept an awful school/pay for private for your elder child. Then in September your younger child starts school and your elder child is now top of the queue for an in-year place, plus as your elder child will now be y3 the infant class size legislation doesn't apply so you have a better chance of succesz

Surprisingly it is actually Harpenden which is better for primary in year places.

My head spins with it all though. The schools with spaces in Hitchin is Mary Exton. Looking at old mumsnet threads I can see that just 5 years or so ago it was considered a desirable school. So clearly things move on quickly!

I would look at the secondary options too because it comes around sooner than you think and then the child has views themselves. A few more months of home schooling will not have a substantial impact except on your sanity.

@cattitudes I 100% agree with you! Secondary options are a big part of why we are moving.

We only looked at primaries when choosing our current area and I regret that now. We have friends who bought in catchment of an excellent secondary when their child was 2, we thought they were crazy but further down the line I actually think they had it right.

I am surprised Harpenden is the one with places. I prefer Harpenden! I’m assuming you get slightly less for your money there though. Lots of DD1s friends lived there so I know the posh bits! Berkhamsted is a good shout too.

I would be a little cautious about secondary schools in Harpenden though. St George’s is extremely difficult to get into unless you have two years church attendance and live very close and even then they have an odd admissions criteria higher which allows for a sibling of a child who attended for three years or more at any point (even if they are no longer there).

The alternative is Katherine Warrington which is a brand new school open for just over two years I think. It’s not tried and tested. It was opened because there were too many children in the area and not enough places. It’s a long way off for you but don’t expect a place at St George’s without jumping through a lot of hoops.

@zodlebud yes, all good advice. We are looking st Sir John Lawes and Roundwood Park too but aware the catchment for all of them is very tight so keeping a close eye on that.