East Riding Primary School Admission Cock Up!

[jojocircus75]

We live in brough and have been offered a primary school place in North Cave! ( at least 7 miles away)We have an older sibling in Welton Primary which is about 150 meters from our house unfortunately we are not in the catchment but have not even been offered catchment school of Brough. I think the new school is at least 7 miles away! Lots of people are in the same boat with some not been offered a place at all. The council have had this information over a year and knew they would be a problem. The reason this has happened is due to the high birth rate and the fact that the council gave the big housebuilder planning permission to build tons of new houses but didnt bother to sort think the new familys moving here would need schools. We have all maxed our mortgages to get our kids in good schools ( its not like we are in a different village area or trying to take the p* like some people do) its disgusting and they are not getting away with it!

The problem is that the admission arrangements were properly administered as far as I can see from your post, it was the poor management of available places that was at fault and you cannot win an appeal on that basis. Sorry to say that but that is the legal position

Assuming that your application was on time and that you applied for both the catchment school and Welton School, I would suggest that your best bet is to try with others to force East riding into putting a bulge year class in one of the two schools. Local councillors and MPs are your best bet for forcing the issue, as it tends to be those that shout loudest that get somewhere. Appeal panels do not have any jurisdiction to put in place new classes etc.

It is worth checking out the travel arrangements as I would have assumed that having given you a school that far away that they will be responsible for transport to and from school. If there are enough of you then this must be a financial reason for putting in a bulge year class.

Thanks very much for your advice much appreciated I will take this forward to the action group which is being set up

North Cave is a good school - so try not to worry about that. The council will HAVE to provide transport. I can totally understand your frustration, especially when you'll have two children at different schools.

I teach in the East Riding (no where near Brough!) and this year our Reception numbers are the highest we've ever had. Usually we get about 33-38 but we have 53 starting in September!

Good luck!

I know North Cave is a good school, but how can I put a 4 year old in a taxi.transport etc, its cruel. Also with having an older sibling in a different school, what about logistics such as childcare, afterschool clubs etc its hard enough being a working mother at the best of times but this is just makes things harder, to me its another sign of this country punishing the hard working, law abiding familes

Hi Jojo
I can understand your upset. I am am now living in Gilberdyke but my family have lived in North Cave since before time began. I also run my own child care business from there which means I spend a minium of 50hour a week in the village. I put my daughter down for a place at North Cave school as soon as she was born. she has been brought up in the villiage and all her friends and family are here, not to mension I can not afford the childcare to send her to the school she has been alocatied. I have just spoke to fish and they said she was the only child who appiled to North cave that was not allocated a place. they also said that out of the 20 children in this years in take there were 5 from the outer catchment area. According to them this 5 had all requested a place and had better reasons than myself for there child to attend North Cave. Eive is 1st on the list to attend if a place becomes avaible. After reading your post can i just comfirm your child is to attend North Cave school but not at your choice and that the school is over 2.5miles from your cacthment area. Many Thanks Emma Todd