So how do you actually enrol a child in a school? Seems so complicated in the UK...

[bloss]

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Perhaps you'd be better off ringing the LEA. They can let you know all the schools avaible and what you should do next. And the general procedure for dealing with enrolment. I've not found it all that complicated TBH.

Put your address into upmystreet and it will tell you which schools are closest.

If you can find out which schools are closest and ring them individually that's usually a good start.

In our old area, the LEA were telling callers that all the schools were full except one when it wasn't the case. Someone couldn't be bothered to do any work. Upmystreet also didn't list all the schools in the town, it was only that I knew the area that I managed to enroll our daughter in the school she went to.

What age children and what year will they go into? If it's an over-subscribed school and you are going into one of the main admission years - reception, or yr 3 if infant/junior are seperate then you won't get in unless you move really close, like opposite - I assume the admissions deadline has already passed? Going into other years it's the school rather than the LEA that will deal with it and maybe a better chance as kids do move house/country etc...

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I'ld also recommend using upmystreet and then contacting local schools directly. When we moved the LEA told us there was a place for ds at only one school, whereas there was a much more suitable school with places nearer our house - we just didn't know it existed.

Make sure that you are on the waiting list of the schools you want.

you are correct in the year groups, so the problem could be that your dd is still in ks 1 and therefore the class size is limited to 30 places(and if it's a good school might be hard to get a place)
your ds (in theory) could get a place nearly anywhere as long as not grossly over subscribed in other years as there is no limit to ks2 class sizes....your best bet really is too have an address and(use mn search facility as there were a couple of good posts recommending two websites in the last week or two)where you put in your postcode and it has loads of info-better than up my street(although it is a good starting point).
what area is it?
try to look on the lea website to see about travel policy(re distance from home address to nearest schools)it could be important if you need to appeal to get your dd into the same school as ds
good luck with it all x

to get our DS1 into our local school we had to apply by the end of the Christmas term and we are due to hear anytime now if he has got a place.
Not sure how it works if you have just moved to an area - sorry.

LEA are obliged to offer your kids places, althgouh not necessarily at the school(s) of your choice, but until you are actually resident you cannot secure a place. Some LEA's make provision for those moving into their area so worth asking if they have sucha policy. However as your dc will be between normal intakes it may simply come down to availability.

lol, I remember when we were moving to the UK, I was in communication with the LEA's admissions officer. He told me that there were no places for DS in Y7. When I queried the county's obligation, he did qualify his statement that there were no places that I would like.

At that point, we had no decent choice but to go private.

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