Son cannot get a place at his Brothers school.

[Cymba]

Hello, have browsed here for some time but never joined. I just wanted a little bit of advice so thought I would post.

My youngest son goes to private nursary as I am doing a degree and my husband works full time, just before Christmas it suddenly occured to me that he may not get a letter (like my eldest child did) about school admissions as he attends a private nursary. Sure enough I ring the LEA to find the dead line was a week earlier.

So now my older childs reception class is full (30 places) and my youngest has no school place at all yet as they apparently didnt recieve my appliaction (I am told this wouldn't have made a difference once its late, its late).

As the class size is 30 legally they can't take anymore children so basically I have been told even if I appeal I will lose.

I will appeal on the grounds that it is psyhically impossible for me to get my children to 2 seperate schools on time and that my oldest child has SEN and moving schools would cause serious disruption to him.

Just looking for any advice on this, thanks

I do not understand the logic of putting posters for school admissions in schools- if they haven't yet started, how on earth would you see them?

There has to be a way through the class fullscenario as there were 32 in ds3's class in Reception (and is now though he is leaving at Easter for SNU).

No letters here in Lancashire. Posters everywhere though and we had to go and pick up an application pack from our first choice school or could apply online.
The schools also have posters up which me with 2 preschoolers won't have seen, but parents with siblings to apply for would have.

At least you know.... our letters were all sent out today and the witch at the town hall wouldn't say whether they had first or second class stamps on so it could be a bit of a tetchy weekend here!

The issue isn't about whether you should have had a letter unless every single other potential applicant got one and you didn't. This issue is that you missed the deadline for applications. If the LEA has an admission policy which has not been correctly applied then you have a reasonable chance at winning an appeal. But I very much doubt that the LEA will have set their policy in such a way as to put a huge onus on them to inform you of the need to apply for a school place.

Your child will be top of the waiting list. You will get a place. If your child is young enough within the school year you will even be able to keep him at nursery until a place comes up.

Am amazed that none of your child's friends parents hadn't said anything though. It was a very dull topic of conversations for the month or two around application time I seem to remember.

If you get the Ben Rooney book I am sure you would be able to put together a pretty good appeal.
Just because there are already 30 in the class doesn't necessarily mean you are sunk.there may be spaces in say a yr 1 class and they could have 2 parallel reception /Y1 classes for example,if the appeal panel feel your DS's need outweighs any detriment to the other childrens education.
From what you have said though you will be probably top of the list and a place will come up anyway.
Our LEA don't post out forms - I'm not sure how they would be expected to know where all the 4 yr olds lived ?