Primary School Admission Sept 2011

[applecrumbleandcream]

Any help appreciated. I need to fill in my dd's on line application form for starting primary school in September but a bit unsure what to do.

We currently live well outside the catchment area for our v v popular first choice school but we bought a house in October which we are currently renovating whilst we live at our present address. If all goes to plan, we think we will probably have our new home ready in March/April 2011 to move into. The new house is 0.2 miles from the school so we are really hoping dd gets a place there. Sister lives a bit further away than that and her dc both got in, so fingers crossed.

My question is what should I put on the on line form as our address, do I put present address or the new address and put a brief explanation of when moving?

Also, what forms of identification will Education Dept need as not yet had utility bills for new place with our name/address showing or do they look at they look at address of main carer who receives CB?

TIA

I would use the new address.

That is a house you own and would be living in if renovations were not ongoing.

Change all paperwork to the new address especially CB.

IMO you are not cheating the system in any way.

The council could just as easily assume you intend to resell the new house, once (a) it's been renovated and (b) your dd has a place at the school. In fact they'll probably assume that by default.

OP,
Please do not speak to the LA admission office to ask if it is OK to put the new address on your application. The office will always keep a record of any telephone conversation you have with them. Such a telephone conversation along with the very easily checked fact that you own two properties is almost certainly going to create a situation where the LA will think you are looking to buck the system.
By all means phone up to check the dates for last application (15th Jan) and the last date that you can legitimately change the address but do not ask if it is OK to put the new address on the application form. i am afraid that is a decision that you are going to have to make for yourself, which address you put down, but at least you know the potential risks now.

I have the opposite problem, I am due to apply for a primary school place for my LO but we are moving away from my prefered option! Although having said that there is another school where we are moving to which is also great. The problem is that I don't know how to fill in the form.

We are due to exchange contracts and move house in the next month or two. We are moving to another town close by, easy for us to travel to but far enough away to cause a problem for the application.

Both schools are fab but the reason I favour the one closest to our current address (school 1) is because I would like to see more of my LO after school and help her with home work. School 1 is a village school (it's not the closest to our current address) but still in catchment. I work right next to it so I will be passing it every day. If I put this address on the form I am very likely to get a place living at our current address however when we move and I inform the LEA am I reducing my chances of getting into school 2?

School 2 is a bigger school but also has excellent Ofsed results. My husband's Mum would look after my LO in this case, not so great for relations between me and my LO . I cannot put our new adress on the application because we have not yet exchanged but that could happen any day now

I haven't read all the responses but I wanted to reply cos we had the same thing last year. We were buying a house in catchment that we hoped would be complete by admission deadline of Dec 1st. It dragged on and on and we didn't end up completing til beginning of march. I explained to the LA and they said they would accept a change of address right up to close to allocation time. WE completed on the 5th places were offered on 15th and they just accepted our new address and he got a place in the school. Was a big relief.

Caffeinated,
You have a very organised and ameanable LA then because most would not do this.
For instance one of my closest LAs the cut off date is the 15th Jan. They will accept change of address through till 28th February but after that date any change will be counted as late application. These will only be looked at after all on-time aplications have to been processed and sent out on 29th April.

Admission I guess we were really fortunate then. They just said as long as we gave them the evidence in time for them to print and put 5000 letters in envelopes we were fine.

Stine,
I think you need to exchange contracts so that you can realistically put down the new address on the application form before the cut-off date for applications. As long as you have moved in before the date of the places being allocated that will be OK.

Your LA will be using an equal preference scheme when it comes to allocation of places so one option is for you to put down school 1 as your first preference and school 2 as the second preference based on the new address. In the equal preference method all preferences are treated equally to start with, so by being relatively close to school 2 you are likely to be able to get a place at this school but still keep your options open for school 1. The LA will look whether they can offer a place at School 1. If they can they will offer that school, if they cannot then then they will look at your second preference (school 2) which because you live close to it, you will have a good chance of getting a place.

I hope this isn't too late for you OP, and is relevant, but I've just completed our application online and found a section asking if we were expected to move house, asking for both addresses.

This information is not requested on the paper app form.

Might be worth a look?

Thanks admission, I am in the lap of the Gods - well actually the lap of the LEA!!!

I soooo want her to go to school 1 though, so that I can be closer to her and I wish I could delay the house move until she gets into the school! There is very little chance of getting into school 1 once we have moved.

I must get the form in and I will be completing online so here's what I'm going to do:-
Apply from my current address (which of course I must do) and use preference 1 as school 1. There is space on the form to write why this is my preference which is because I work next to the school. Then I am going to write down my preference 2 as my prefered schhol 2 which is closest to my new address and mention that we will be moving to that house before March/April, hense my preference for my second choice. Do you think this is OK?

I wouldn't bother putting reasons on the form. The information you put there plays no part in the admissions process. I am concerned that the council may take your reason for school 2 the wrong way. Apart from that I agree with your approach.

Thanks for all your advice everyone. A quick update from me (OP).

I have changed my address with HM Revenue & Customs for Child Benefit payments to the new address and also rang Powergen (the gas & electricity company) so all post from them is now sent to the new address.

Although moving there at present is completely out of the question as suggested, it does seem the best option, I am asthmatic and this weather is bad enough for me without being in a damp & unheated house.

I have completed the online admissions form to show our current address and chose prefence 1 school as the school we will be moving near. I have added a note about our situation and when we will be moving in etc and I think at this stage that is it - all I can do! As Stine has said we are in the lap of the LEA!!

If you aren't going to put it as your address on the form then I wouldn't worry about changing CB etc over for now as it won't make any difference to your application.

Also, all the additional info stuff really is rubbish and has no bearing on your application whatsoever.

Good luck getting the school you want.

Monty - why do they ask then for additional information if they don't take any of it into consideration.

I have no idea, honestly. The only relevant part of the form are the bits that affect the list of criteria.

Lots of people put droves of info about convenience for work or close to Granny for pick up etc. None of that can legally be taken into account and is therefore ignored.

Putting a moving date may be relevant if they allow such changes up until a certain date. However, this will vary from LEA to LEA. You need to check this with them now that you have put your current address on the form. Some LEAs will not consider any changes to address after the closing date, others for a few weeks and others, it seems, up until just before they send out offers.

I would think very carefully about 'officially' moving in before the closing date and notifying them of the change again before the closing date.

I've just checked again on the online admissions form and it doesn't actually ask for 'current address', it asks for 'applicant's address' and as the new house is one of my addresses would I be right in thinking that I should really amend the on line form to show the new address not the old one as it is my address (or am I splitting hairs?)

You are splitting hairs.

The admissions booklet from your LA will almost certainly make it clear that you are expected to put the address where you are actually living. Otherwise someone who rented a flat close to a popular school whilst living elsewhere and with no intention to ever live in the flat could legitimately put that as the "applicant's address". Unlike your situation, that would definitely be a fraudulent application.

OK thought so, thanks. Never seen an admissions booklet though, will have a look at the council website and see if they have one to download.

apple,
the admission booklet will be on the council website, it has to be by law, though sometimes it is not the easiest thing to find!

We are in a similar position, myself and dp own a property each. We were living at my property at the point of filling in the online admissions form. I completed the form using Dps address as his address stands us more chance of getting dd into out first choice school.

Im am now in the process of changing all our addresses over to his properties address and we will be moved in completely soon (kind of between both at min). I worried about putting a different address to where we were actually living at the time but decided as that is where we will be when dd starts school and my house, by then will be rented out, that this was the best option.

I hadn't thought about the child benefit so will have to do that Monday as I want everything sorted address wise by 15th Jan.

I would have put the new address on the form and changed relevant bills etc to that address as long as that is where you plan to be living when your dc starts school.

You are in a better position than the OP as you are at least, from the sounds of it, spending some time at your long term address. However, I would give you the same advice I gave the OP - move into your partner's house by 15th January. The council is likely to check your application against council tax records. As you are presumably paying council tax on your house this will raise questions, even if you are having the bills sent to your partner's house. If the council investigate and conclude that you and your child are not actually living at your partner's house they will put your application at the bottom of the pile, meaning your daughter would be likely to end up at an unpopular school which could be miles away from either address. The fact that you plan to be living at your partner's house by the time your child starts school will cut no ice with the council.

Can I just ask, what then happens after the 15th January? What I mean is, what is the first thing the Admissions office do once all applications are in and how soon do they start checking addresses are legit?

I've already put both our names on the council tax at my dps house (it was rented out, then empty whilst being redecorated for us to move in so the council tax already had dps name on it).

I notified the council that we have moved out of my property and that it will be being rented out, I told them we moved out the 21st December. I am only at my address soring out decorating and carpets etc, not now sleeping there.

The only thing I think I need to sort is the child benefit and electoral register.

I also wondered what they start checking first / how they decide on places after the 15th. Also with our choice being an RC school when do they check the baptism info is correct?

Apple,
There is no set routine, it will differ from LA to LA. The period from 15th Jan to the date of the actual allocations being confirmed is used to input all the data - the actual lists of pupils in order for each school are computer generated.
If there is any suggestions of wrong doing in terms of addresses then they do tend to be investigated immediately. As you can imagine the majority of such allegations are received after the allocations are released, and are from disgruntled parents who did not get the places they wanted.
I know of at least 1 LA that runs the parental name and address against the rates list prior to the allocation date and checks out any anomalies. If you happened to watch the TV program about admissions in Birmingham a few months ago, you will have seen officials from the LA checking out addresses by going to visit early morning and evening, though I am not sure what they were basing their visits on.

I would, without a shadow of a doubt, use the address that will be my permanent residence

i would change all paperwork to suit

at the moment it is just paperwork, by the time the notification happens you will be living there

I also know it is not legal but I think in this situation it is fair