how to approach head/reception teacher about flexi schooling next year?

[nefnaf]

I am a LP and I run my own business so I am not in a position to HE full time. However, my DC and I attend a home school group on Tuesdays that I want to continue and he sees his dad e.o.friday which his dad wants to continue through his first year at school. Which would mean in an average month he would miss 6 days, every tues and every other fri.

He is barely 4 when he starts (summer born) and I know I don't have to send him at all, but he wants to go, just not full time. And I have to work, and can't afford to send him to the childminder instead. So it's full time or flexi, no other option :(

Has anyone else had this dilemma and sorted it out so that your local primary agreed to flexi? What are they school likely to say, or object to? I'd like to be fully prepared for the conversation before I approach the head of the school he's been allocated a place at.

Any advice would be great, thanks.

wow - had no idea this would spark such a heated debate! As it happens, he already has a space in the school based on catchment. It's not the best, not the worst - I don't think it's one you would call highly competative. It has a nice garden for them to grow things in, which I liked, but there are 3 primary's within 0.5 miles from here so there's lots of choice and they are all pretty reasonable from what I can tell.

I'm on my way out to work but will have a proper read through when I get back and reply in more depth. Thanks to all for taking the time to reply!

In that case you stand a good chance, nefnaf. Just go and have a friendly chat.

I can't claim to know loads about this but a conversation with a teacher friend (who will probably home ed :) ) came to the same conclusion as Delphin - heads struggle to allow flexi schooling at the moment due to the system, whether they are sympathetic to a parents desire for it or not. I think in all honesty it has changed quite recently as much of what I've read suggests it is entirely possible. Apparently not.

"Of course if a school is highly oversubscribed and everyone in the catchment can't get a place they will go for those already in the nursery first. If you have 2 children equal distance from the school and one place it will go to the one in the nursery."

NO iT WON'T! Forgive me for shouting, but that isn't how state school admissions work. Honestly, it isn't.

"Of course if a school is highly oversubscribed and everyone in the catchment can't get a place they will go for those already in the nursery first. If you have 2 children equal distance from the school and one place it will go to the one in the nursery."

NO iT WON'T! Forgive me for shouting, but that isn't how state school admissions work. Honestly, it isn't.

If they are equal distance and there is only one place it is likely to go to the child already in the nursery - but have it your own way if you like.
The flexi part will be very much up to the Head, but you will only know when you ask.

"If they are equal distance and there is only one place it is likely to go to the child already in the nursery - but have it your own way if you like."

Could you support this view with any sort of evidence? Particularly bearing in mind that the school does not actually have anything to do with the admissions process- it is administered by the LEA. School admission is a stressful and difficult enough process without people spreading misinformation.

Delphiniums, you previously suggested that home educating parents don't know how schools actually work. I don't claim to be a complete expert, but it appears that some of us do know more about it than you do. You really need to refrain from advising anyone about such matters when you cannot get your facts straight and are not prepared to acknowledge your mistakes.

"If they are equal distance and there is only one place it is likely to go to the child already in the nursery - but have it your own way if you like."

No. Absolutely untrue. The School Admissions Codecontains statutory guidance which specifically forbids this practice. See section 1.9(b). This is not about any of us "having our own way"; it is in fact the law.

not true re nursery's
also not all schools are over subscribed.
shock horror - some are under subscribed and councils are shutting schools to address the issues of falling rolls.
in which case they would bite your handoff for any attendance.
I'm not sure also that a school would only get part funding for a part place - does anyone know if that is a fact? I'm not sure how the funding formula would accommodate it.

Delphiniums you are talking nonsense, sorry. There would never be two equidistant children because distance is measured to three decimal places. And if there were, it would be ILLEGAL to give priority to the nursery child. And part time attendance in reception has nothing to do with funding. The hideously oversubscribed primary in our town encourages reception kids to be part time until their parents think they are ready for full time.

Fine to disagree with someone, but not to invoke spurious legalities about funding and admissions when you actually have no idea what you are talking about!

Sorry apologies-I had completely forgotten that things had changed from when I applied.Old age!! However, people are under that impression.(not helped by me I agree!)
That was my point all along, poocatcher. If a school is under subscribed they will do all they can to attract. If they are over subscribed they don't need to.
OP has her place, it wasn't difficult so the Head may accommodate.
HEers don't understand it is all to do with money-of course Heads are against losing pupils as over £3000 a year goes with them! Schools still need to pay the teacher the same whether they have 15 per class or 30 a class.

"HEers don't understand it is all to do with money-of course Heads are against losing pupils as over £3000 a year goes with them! Schools still need to pay the teacher the same whether they have 15 per class or 30 a class."

Would you care to enlighten us about the way funding works for flexi schooled children? Please note flexi- not part time. There are significant differences. But I'm sure you know that.

Have the rules for flexi-schooled children changed then? It used to be that the school got full funding for a flexi-schooled child and they were just marked as educated off-site in the register. It has always been at the discretion of the head though, and I think that less heads are willing to give that sort of concession at the moment as there is so much pressure on them regarding this kind of thing at the moment.
Good luck to you OP! Hope it goes well when you speak to the head.

This seems to be the present situation:

'Flexi-schooling
5.6 Flexi-schooling is normally an arrangement whereby a child is registered at a school but attends only part-time and is home educated at other times. The Government has looked at this issue and takes a different stance from that of the previous Government. It does not believe that a hybrid arrangement between home education and mainstream school is adequately provided for in law, or in the school funding system, for children of compulsory school age. Where parents decide to educate their child at a school, parents have a legal duty to ensure their child attends regularly. If they fail to do this they may be committing an offence. Schools are funded to provide full-time education for all pupils (age 5-16) on their register and therefore are accountable for the standard of education their pupils receive. A flexi-schooling arrangement means some schools would receive a full unit of funding for certain pupils for whom they do not provide full-time education, and in some cases, may provide very little. (Revised March 2013)

Everyone – even those in the ‘business’ of flexi-schooling, who had collectively been poking the DfE with a big stick and probably over-selling it as the Next Big Thing for education (and especially themselves) – seemed surprised when the Government decided to ban the practice overnight without prior consultation. But what Balls gave (and how unusual was that in itself!), Gove was able to easily take away in a simple cut-and-paste exercise, only keeping the ‘cut’ and omitting the ‘paste’ element. Graham Stuart MP, Chair of the Education Select Committee, claimed to be as surprised as anyone else and duly promised to take the matter up with Elizabeth Truss, but he obviously didn’t manage to change any ministerial minds.

The DfE move appears to be all about money. Given that the aforesaid flexi-schooling adherents had been pointing out to schools that they could get money for nothing by providing part-time schooling while still retaining a full-time capitation allowance, it was only a matter of time before flexischooling’s ‘cut’ potential was identified and an all or nothing approach introduced via a convenient re-interpretation the law. Whether or not it will backfire and cost the government more in the long term is open to debate, but what is clear from the outset is that many families will be inconvenienced at best and devastated at worst by having their currently successful arrangements unilaterally withdrawn.

On a positive but pointless note, the Select Committee’s Support for Home Education report has been issued which appears to say much the same as the guidelines about how LAs should behave well and within the law/guidelines (but don’t). Same old, then, but no more flexi-schooling.'

It is up to the Head teacher:
'The Legal Position
It is an offence for a parent to fail to ensure that a child of compulsory school age regularly
attends the school at which s/he is registered. However Flexi schooling is legal providing the
parent are able to obtain the agreement of the head teacher of the school at which their child
is registered. The Education Act 1996 states:
"The child shall not be taken to have failed to attend regularly at the school by reason of his
absence from the school (a) with leave" Section 444 (3)
The term ‘leave' is defined as:
"In this section 'leave', in relation to a school, means leave granted by any person authorised to
do so by the governing body or proprietor of the school." Section 444(9)
In practice this refers to the Head teacher. To arrange flexi schooling therefore you should
prepare a proposal and set up a meeting with the head teacher. Whether or not it is allowed
is entirely up to the head teachers discretion. The head teacher will probably want to discuss
the proposal with his/her senior staff, form teacher and possibly the school governors. The
Head will probably contact the LA for their opinion as the head teacher may not have
previously encountered flexi-schooling and will want to discuss the legal implications. '

Which I have said all along-everything boils down to money.

Since holidays in term time used to be up to the Head's discretion, and has been taken away, I bet it is only a matter of time before they lose discretion on this too.

I think you missed the bit about 'of compulsory school age' in the DfE doc you quote! The op's child will be only just 4 at the start of reception, and therefore only reach compulsory school age at the beginning of yr 1. Part time attendance is really quite normal for the beginning of reception, indeed many schools mandate it for some of the first term. It has zero impact on funding!

It is still at the discretion of the Head-they generally go part time to fit in with the school. OP doesn't have to send him at all until he is 5 yrs-it is just that other options will cost her money so she wants the free option, on her terms. Nothing at all wrong with that, but it will be entirely up to the Head.
We seem to be arguing over silly things. She won't know until she approaches the school and we can't second guess a Head we don't know. Seeing as she has the place and it isn't over subscribed she stands a good chance.

Ok, delphiniums. You were comprehensively wrong about school admissions. You are currently wrong about flexi school funding- but that's OK because "you bet" that the discretion Heads currently have will soon be taken away.

Is there anything else you don't know anything about that you'd like to make alarmist definitive pronouncements on?

Oh, and I forgot to add that you don't appear to grasp the difference between part time and flexi time.

You do not have to send your child in full time until compulsory school age. Obviously it is a good idea not to antagonise the school unnecessarily but it is not up to the head's discretion! For a summer born child you don't actually have to send them in at all until the last term of reception if you so choose, the school won't like it but it cannot withdraw the place.

You may not like it or think it is unfair, but that doesn't change the rules!

If you look at my first post you will see that I have only made one point and am suddenly supposed to be an expert on flexi education among other things.
Of course she doesn't have to send him to school but she is choosing to do so-having chosen she can't just pick and choose which hours or which days-it will be up to the Head to accommodate her wishes or not. If she doesn't like his/her decision she can not send him at all and wait until he is 5 yrs.

I don't think it alarmist Martorana, from my cut and paste it appears quite likely the option will go -I only said it was my bet. I don't understand why you are being antagonistic. I hardly dare say a word or you will jump down my throat.
I have apologised for my 'senior moment'-it had completely slipped my mind that admissions had changed. I applied to separate schools-that is how it was then.

Good luck to OP-I am sure that she didn't expect her question to get so heated! It was a fairly simple one. Ask the Head-he is under 5 yrs and it is quite likely he will accommodate your wishes is my bet-if I am allowed one. My bet doesn't mean he will!

Delphiniums- possibly because you repeated your "senior moment" several times with utter conviction despite being repeatedly corrected. And because there is no suggestion that Head's discretion about "education off site" will be removed- as confirmed by the Dfes clarification in aNovember 2013.

This is a stressful subject and parents can get very anxious. Idle speculation is unlikely to be helpful. Facts are.

In answer to OP -there is no real answer. I have know someone do it with first choice school and a very helpful Head, I have known someone have to search for a school that would, I have known someone who couldn't manage it at all. I have never known it be turned down for medical reasons.
The only real advice is to be very friendly and reasonable. I would say that his age is in your favour.
It is at the discretion of the Head. Everything else on here is not really relevant.