Richmond Primary Schools Waiting Lists

[HexGirl]

Has anyone had any luck getting through to the admissions team to find out where their child is on the waiting list yet? I've called twice now and keep getting the automated message that they anticipated the waiting lists would be available from the 10 May.

I know they must be up to their eyeballs but it would be quite nice to speak to a real person!

Our first choice was definitely our closest geographically BUT it's a CofE school so that pushed us down the list of priorities.

I would have said that we were pretty much equidistant between our second choice and the school that we have actually been offered but it came down to 1/3 of the children in an intake of 30 being siblings at our second choice and the school that we've been offered being the only under subscribed school in the area. Whilst the catchment area for our second choice was about 900m, I think when it came down to it all successful applicants were within about 700m. Problem is your place on the waiting lists can shift down as well as up if someone moves in to the area closer to the school you want or has another reason why they would take priority. We've already shifted up one place on our second choice school but could easily go way back down again over the next few months!

I'm not sure if published lists would work - it's such an emotional thing to go through and could cause issues.

I'm in a similar position to some you although I have the dilemma of being offered a place at a nearby catholic school which wasnt on our list (we were offered none of our choices) but not being catholic means we will get no priority for a sibling in 2 years time. no good then unless I want to go through all this again and end up with the kids at separate schools. Have no choice but to appeal for what thats worth. Just found out we are no.61 on the waitlist for our closest school!

Have just had an email from a lady at the council asking are we Catholic, and would we consider our local Catholic School?! It all seems so ridiculous to be getting asked questions like that at this stage.

We are not catholic BTW, nor do we want to send our Children to a Catholic school.

Teddersmum, the school you're taking about has a bulge year.. I find it awkward that they added a bulge class in an RC school and now are placing non-Catholic kids who weren't offered a place at all. I'm wondering how many kids will be catholic in the bulge year.. a handful, perhaps?

I can't read these stories anymore, my anxiety level is skyrocketing.

I am not in Richmond (I wish:o) but we are in the same position too. Due to high sibling intake we didn't get our catchment school or any of our other options and were offered a place at a school we hadn't looked round. Luckily the school is fine we have been offered but I can't help feeling sorry for my youngest who has attended the attached pre school and built up friendships etc to not be given a place at the attached school. I actually think it is a bit cruel tbh and I think those of us who live in rural locations surrounding towns and villages are getting the raw end of the deal

Sorry can I just add, lady at admissions was asking if we would join waiting list for local RC school, not offering a place.

Does anyone know if the council look at "changes of address" in the first 6 months or so of starting? I was really disappointed to not get our nearest school and shocked that the catchment had more than halved (even when you consider a recent bulge year), having been pretty consistent. I over heard a mum in a local coffee shop boasting that she'd rented somewhere on the door step of said school for a few months, just to get in. She figured a few months of wasted rent was worth it given that was the siblings sorted to...

To be honest, I find this disgustingly devious and if I was on the council, I'd be thinking about how to manage this? While I appreciate the reasons for the sibling rule, I'm guessing the church schools don't follow the same precedent and perhaps each application should be considered on its own merit?

There is something very wrong with kids not knowing where they could be spending the next 7 years of education. My heart really goes out to all of you, particularly when you have these vile individuals getting what they want by what I consider cheating.

While I'm ranting, given the numbers that may be waiting without places, why don't the council ask those with places who are hanging on in case they get a higher choice place to reconsider? Surely if you're offered a place in your top few, you should be happy and take yourself off any waiting list to give sme other poor families a break?

COLLIS waiting list has moved 1 place up.
I think if people refuse to take the catholic school place in Teddington then they are More likely to add a place in a community school.It is outrageous that they added the place there anyway fine if it was over subscribed on catholic places but not if they are going to fill it with local children who are not catholic .Also no chance for sibling places and it is very catholic prayer tables in the class rooms etc etc.

playgroup, from what I understand, creating a bulge class in Teddington is going to be difficult. Stanley is already a 4-form entry, Hampton Wick has just expanded to 3-form, and Collis is 3-form with a 2010 extra class. Sacred Heart is a 1-form so I guess that was the reason for adding the bulge there this year?!

Does anyone know how many children are with no place at all in Teddington? We're moving there next week and the thought of waiting for the entire summer to find out where we'll end up is not very comforting to say the least...

I have heard on the grapevine it is at least 10.However I do not know any of these people personally but heard this from other people.

I can but hope they will put another class in Collis but I doubt it. They have to fit these kids 170 unplaced kids somewhere also it is the only school with the space they could fit another school in their playground.
No doubt next year they will expand to 4 form anyway (I am just speculating but demand is there)

there are 4 or 5 with no place on this thread, and another 2-3 of us are moving to the area soon.

(we just dropped our offered place in Ealing, probably making someone else happy, but now we're left to wait...)

We have now been offered a place at Stanley, will probably take it and wait it out on the lists of schools we want, but what would happen if we turn it down? anybody got any knowledge?

That is great teddersmum
The local authority have now done their duty according to the admission code and offered you a school place albeit not your first choice and that is it basically.If you decline the offer they do not have to offer you an alternative .Obviously you can still wait for your higher preference school.

I know lots of mums who have nothing but good things to say about Stanley school. And think it's the Teddington underdog.

Stanley is a much better school than Collis - if you find league tables important. They have more pupils achieving level 5 in English and Maths (8th in Richmond borough), Collis is about 12th I think and the CofE is about 14th if I remember correctly.

I've also heard that there's a "yummy mummy", competitive atmosphere at the Collis school gates, whereas Stanley mummies are more down to earth.

Good luck wherever you end up anyway!

Hi, can someone clarify this: if we accept a school place in June that was let's say 3rd on my preferred list, can I remain on the wait list for other schools and still have a chance to be offered a place by September? (we're a late admission case).

And if yes, how does it actually work, I accept the place at school A and then I get a call from the council to let me know about the new place that came up in school B? Or is it the schools dealing with wait lists directly?

Thanks!

Yes you can accept and stay on a waiting list for preferred school - Council deals with all the lists and places etc. So if you're top of waiting list and get offered a place and accept, the Council offers a place at the school you were in to the person on that waiting list.

And as I understand it, you basically HAVE to take the offer they make, like it or lump it (unless you consider home education or private).

Hi all,

Sorry to hear about all the trouble with waiting lists in the Richmond area. I really hope it works out and you get a place at one of your prefferred choices.

Apologies for the slight segway but I am currently pregnant and living in the area and was thinking about schooling etc. generally how close do you need to live to a school to be in with a realistic shot of getting a place?? Seems like it is a bit of a nightmare

hi squealyb
To answer your question regarding distance to preferred schools .The distance varies from year to year and it depends on where you live /your religion/what school you want/number of siblings.
The best advice is to visit the ones you like the sound of and then live as close as you possible can to your first preference school in some parts of the borough this can be as close as 400m.

Thanks playgroup! Forewarned is forearmed and all that.

We are in Richmond, and are one of the families without a school place (the catchment for our nearest and first choice halved this year).
We just found out today that or DC had moved 2 places DOWN the waiting list as 2 children, new to the neighbourhood, have very recently moved closer to the school. I didn't realise his could even happen and am totally disillusioned at the whole system and pretty upset. Has this happened anyone else?What hope have we now of getting a school if the council permit this to happen?
I have also heard of quite a few families (as DollyDiamond has said above, we may be talking about the same school) renting short term and now that they have places have moved away, it all seems really unfair and I do question the council's vetting process.....

Yes, it can be the case that you can move down the list as well as up if someone moves to the area who lives closer/ meets the criteria etc. It is a pretty horrible situation but if it is any consolation I have heard that the majority of families do eventually get what they want although it can be pretty nail-biting and can happen as late as in the first couple of weeks of term.

I'm trying to psyche myself up to contact Richmond again to see where we are for our first two choices but I have this awful feeling that we'll have moved back down again!

Hello, apologies for restarting this thread but I just wondered how everyone's schools turned out last year. Please reassure me that you all got offered at least one local school!

I've been offered nothing for DS1, despite living within 600m of 3 community schools and I've just found out I've dropped 2 places on one of the wait lists so feeling thoroughly depressed.

`i'm curious how much things change on the waiting list too. I'm seventh on the list for my first choice, but I can't see seven children dropping out before September, as the schools intake of 90 has 49 siblings this year!

Sorry to hear you don't have an offer yet kittybloom, but hold on in there as the council is obliged to offer you something. If the waiting lists don't shift far or fast enough then they will need to put in a bulge class somewhere.

Whereabouts are you? RISC has published ( here) lots of comments from parents without offers, who mostly seem to be in central Twickenham, so there are certainly others in the same boat.