Primary school -advice on choices

[DyeInTheEar]

I'm pretty new to Cambridge and about to do our primary school application - we're in the catchment for Newnham Croft which looks really lovely - though DD doesn't go to Little Croft (could that be an issue?).

I don't know what to put for 2nd and 3rd choices though. Also - does anyone know if the sibling policy means you can have a very over subscribed year?

Thank you!

Hi, I know newham croft quite well and it will be like,most good Cambridge schools be oversubscribed! So it will depend on how many siblings there are. It is a small school. Your next choices would prob be park street ( very small school), fawcett ( better chance of getting a place) or the new school at trumpington meadows.
Good luck!

I know nothing of Newham but a little of Park Street, if it helps. You will probably find the chances of getting into Park Street limited if your child is going in as a reception class entrant unless you're in catchment as it's generally oversubscribed. It's a very small C of E school so religious applications take priority over non religious ones.

You'll probably be in with a chance either immediately or on the waiting list if you're applying for a year other than reception or as an in-term applicant because there's a reasonable amount of movement in and out of the school. That's not for bad reasons but because of the area. A number of the pupils are from university families or those whose work brings them into the middle of the city to live but who aren't going to stay for more than a couple of years.

I don't know what the school is like now but it was a very good one with excellent academic results and an extremely good, nurturing and caring environment, an active PTA and a very warm feel. If it is still as good it'll be very much worth putting down as a second choice or placing your DC's name on the waiting list.

Thank you for responses - very helpful. Not sure why I'm feeling so stressed about it - though I do feel like we can't go wrong school wise where ever we wind up - all schools in Cambridge seem really good. But just don't want a long school run if we can help it. Off to see Newnham & St Paul's this week.

Someone told me N Croft was on 3rd Head in two years or something -is that true?

I don't know much about Park Street but that won't stop me from joining in :)

I would be very surprised if religion plays any part in Park Street's admission process. As a church school they, I think, can set their own admission criteria but most church schools (in Cambridge) don't; they rely on the local authority to set the 'rules'. Exceptions are the catholic primary schools who do take into account whether you go to church or not.

What is more important is how close you are to the school. I know a few children who go to Park St who do not live in catchment but they all live quite close to the school.

Most primary schools in Cambridge are becoming oversubscribed now (for demographics reasons) so your 'choice' is limited. If you're in catchment you're likely to get in but it's no guarantee. Schools that are considered to be very good attract more families into the catchment area, meaning not all of them can get into the school. I don't know if this has ever happened in Newnham or not.

WRT siblings, I know families that have a child in one school, have moved out of catchment and then couldn't get their next child into the same school. Conversely, I know families who have done the same and still managed to get their child's sibling into the same school. It depends on what the applications are like each year.

Not sure about the head, there was some discussion on here a while back about Newnham.

Suffice to say, you're doing the right thing by visiting the schools to see what they're like. That's probably the most important thing.

HTH :)