Which kind of primary school is best for a child with selective mutism?

[jenrose29]

The two primary schools I have applied to for my daughter, who I suspect is soon to be diagnosed with selective mutism, are very different and I am unsure which would be best for her. One is a small village school, only ten children are admitted into the reception class. However, reception, year 1 and year 2 all share a large classroom. DD's birthday is in September and she is very advanced, so not sure if being with older children too might give her confidence as she realises she is clever and might come out of herself a bit more? The second choice of school is a large school in town, there are two reception classes which each have around twenty children. The classes tend to be divided by ability, and as my daughter hasn't spoken at all in nursery she has been assessed as knowing nothing; therefore she would most likely be placed with the youngest children where she would be held back. Which do you think sounds better for a child with SM?

www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2124284/The-children-choose-stay-silent-The-sad-surprisingly-common-plight-youngsters-selective-mutism.html

www.smarttalkersblog.com/

www.talkcoach.co.uk/

"I won't know if she has been accepted into both schools until the end of the month"

I had assumed you were talking about state schools - in which case she won't be accepted into both. You will only get one offer of a state school place. If your first choice school offer a place then you won't get offered your second choice as well even if they have a place. Which did you put as first choice when you applied or is one an Independent school?

As far as I've been told, she could be accepted by all three and then I have until May 11th to accept/decline a place, then secondary offers are made to others - i.e. if I turn down the first choice someone else will be contacted to take it up.

Jenrose,

I would read the admissions booklet for your area VERY carefully to check whether that is really the case.

The large majority of areas (I had thought it was the whole country now, but not being an expert am quite happy to be told there are a few areas still with the 'old' system) have a single co-ordinated admissions system, in which only one offer of a place is made to a single child. It is designed to reduce the number of cases in which one child has several school place ofers while others have none.

In this system, yes, a child might 'fulfil the entry criteria' for a place at more than one school on your preference list. The co-ordinated admissions system then looks at the order you placed those schools on your application form and offers you ONLY a place at the one you put highest EVEN IF you 'could' have got into them all. The place you 'could' have been given at another school had you placed it higher is given to another child for whom it was the highest placed option with a space for them - ie it is not 'held open' for you. You could only choose that place over the one you have been allocated IF that school has spare places after allocations are complete OR if you go on a waiting list for it, which may or may not result in a place.

As I say, this should be outlined in your admissions booklet.

Just as an example (it's not where I'm from, or where I teach, it just came up in Google), here is the relevant part from the North Lincolnshire admissions booklet:

Offer of a school place

1. All preferences for individual schools will be treated equally. (This is known as equal first preference)
2. For each preference expressed, the admissions authority for that school will determine whether a pupil is eligible for admission to that school.
3. Where a preference is expressed for a school which is oversubscribed, the admission authority for that school will apply their oversubscription criteria

4. The council will make a single offer of a school place to all pupils for the highest ranked preference where the pupil is eligible for admission.

1. Pupils not resident in North Lincolnshire, who have made application for a North Lincolnshire school, the offer of a place will be made by the council where the pupil resides.
2. Where the council cannot offer a place at any of schools named on the common application form the parent will be offered a place at the next nearest school with places available.
3. All parents will be given their statutory right to appeal against any decision the council makes and information about how to appeal against any decision made by a governing body.

Checked with one of the MN admissions experts and got this reply:

"The equal preference system is compulsory throughout England. And all LAs are required to operate a co-ordinated admissions scheme which means that each applicant should only receive one offer which should be at the highest preference school with places available."

So unless you are elsewhere in the UK or further afield, then you will only receive one school place allocation.

Uh oh, I hadn't realised that and neither had anyone I knew. The larger school which she prefers is the second choice on the list so will have to keep fingers crossed that she isn't accepted into her first choice then. It's almost 4 miles away and only accepts 10 children into reception so her being accepted may not be that likely anyway.