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Original poster

Primary school places !!!

500 replies

Mrsmost · 12/04/2012 21:10

Is anyone getting nervous for the primary school places next week? It's all I can thunk about now , the 18th simply can't get here soon enough , I would be happy if my DS got any of his 3 choices but does anyone have any idea of his chances if getting in one of them if they are all within a radius if one and a half miles from our home. My ideal choice would his first choice which is a catholic school which is 0.6 miles from home but is always oversubscribed, we attend mass every week and had all forms signed by the priest etc but don't know how much of a chance he has if getting it , any advice would be great as am worrying alot now the date is getting nearer.

Thanks for reading and sorry for rambling xxx

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SparklyGothKat · 19/04/2012 12:57

Ah so we met the criteria for all schools but as second school is nearest they gave us that one? I'm fine with the second school as it is just around the corner and I won't have to drive to the 3rd school every day. Grin

SparklyGothKat · 19/04/2012 13:05

Only thing is now I have 4 kids at 4 different schools. Roll on sept this will be fun. Grin

Horsmonden · 19/04/2012 13:06

More than 800 children didn't get their top three in Kent - is anyone else in Kent? You can post a message bbc.in/ISKm2u

SchoolsNightmare · 19/04/2012 13:07

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SparklyGothKat · 19/04/2012 13:10

Yep I understand now. Just thought it went in rules lol

SparklyGothKat · 19/04/2012 13:24

What's the continuing interest list? Do I need to do anything if I choose to accept 2nd school? It says about opting out, so guess I'm on the list for 1st school? I've never had this problem as the older ones got their 1st choice and then we moved and were able to get them into a school straight away. And the secondary schools were under rule 2 and a statement, so got straight in.

Scoops1 · 19/04/2012 13:43

Hi,

We didn't get any of our six choices for Islington and Camden. We live in Islington. They have offered us a school in Angel, a tube journey away. I'm keen to know where you stand if you don't get any of your choices and refuse the school offered as it's too far away for your 4 year old to go.

titchy · 19/04/2012 13:52

DO NOT refuse the offered school. The borough is under no obligation to offer you another school and you may well end up with no school at all. Accept it in themeantime, then make sure you're on as many waiting lists as possible.

Islington to Angel doesn't seem too far though.....

SchoolsNightmare · 19/04/2012 14:06

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kels1977 · 19/04/2012 14:06

Can anyone advise of the sort of distances for the schools they are getting refused for? My closest were 0.34 and 0.41 miles and I got refused both (even though furthest intake distances for last year were 0.7 and 0.9 respectively, so seems to be half that this year). It just seems so unfair. Guess I'll just have to go on waiting lists and try to be grateful I at least got a place (even if school did seem awful and is further away) :(

SchoolsNightmare · 19/04/2012 14:09

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gleemama · 19/04/2012 14:38

Does anyone know if you can go on the waiting list of a school you haven't applied for ? We only put down two, we find out next week but I'm convinced we will get offered our second choice. Would be overjoyed if we got our first choice but I don't think that will happen. Am now thinking I would rather DD went to a school we didn't apply for. Can we do this, and if so will the people who did apply go above her on the waiting list ? Thanks.

4goingon14 · 19/04/2012 14:42

Gleemama - Not sure if the rules vary between councils but on the letter I was sent it says that I need to let them know if I want to go on the waiting lists for my higher ranked schools. It says that I can apply for a further 6 schools in the borough but it will be considered as a late applicant.

foxy123 · 19/04/2012 15:03

Just wanted to say I have to go through all this next year and after reading all your posts I'm dreading it already :-(

Bumberlina · 19/04/2012 15:04

Ladies ( and gents), this is my first post having just joined mums net today - hoping you may be bale to help me.

School places have been a disaster where i live - we found out our places on 30th March. The distance this year at my sons school has fallen from 4.2 miles to 0.53 miles... in one year. So many, many parents missed out on the place at their chosen infant school.

My sons infant school is not "linked" with the adjacent junior school. They are on the same site, share playground facilities, agree calendar dates together (sports day, parent evening etc), but are two separate schools. So, you are not guaranteed that your child will move from infant to junior. Worse still is there is no sibling link if you have one child in junior and one ready to start infant. And this is what has caused many problems. Parents now, this year, have one child already in the junior school but have not got the infant place for their youngest and have been given a school 6 miles away... How can they get two children to two schools at the same time six miles apart?

So, I am trying to make a stand to get our two schools linked - at least just as feeder schools. This will bring a sibling link.

I'm after information/examples of other schools across the country that are linked as nothing other but as feeder schools. So act and are run as separate schools, but just for admissions count as a feeder/linked status.

If your child?s school has this set up, would very appreciate any details as this may help my build my case.

Thanks so much

welovesausagedogs · 19/04/2012 15:05

You can go on a list for a school you didn't apply for but you will be lower down on the list than those who did apply for it and didn't get in.

SchoolsNightmare · 19/04/2012 15:14

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sammygster · 19/04/2012 15:55

I wish you all luck. My son wasn't offered any of the four places by Wandsworth Council and then said we had to go on waiting lists - we were finally offered a place at another school nearby (after 3 months - one which we would never have selected) and sadly are still waiting to get into a decent school....he starts year 2 in September. It has been a total nightmare and I feel he's suffered and that because we can't afford to move we've let him down. To be fair to pupil services, they have been nothing but courteous and helpful, despite me sobbing down the phone. Will have to go through the whole nightmare again next year!

Scoops1 · 19/04/2012 16:00

Hi,

I know it's sensible to accept it but I don't want to accept a school that I have no intention of sending her to, event if it means she has to defer entry. I'm going to visit to show willing it but it looks like a right dump. Which is the reason why it's undersubscribed.

MrsMcNulty · 19/04/2012 16:06

We missed out on 1st choice by 48 metres! Would have got in last year but number of siblings has doubled - damned baby boom!

Do you think it's worth going on the waiting list for 48 metres? Got 2nd choice which is OK but not great, so would like to get 1st choice if we'd be in with a chance...

HalleLouja · 19/04/2012 16:07

Sparkly read this about what HCC have done with the extra places.

I think you automatically get on continuing interest if you didn't get your first choice but check with Herts CC.

Gigondas · 19/04/2012 16:07

I would - that's about 2 houses so chances good may be high up list

MrsMcNulty · 19/04/2012 16:27

Thanks I might ring LA tomorrow and ask how far up list I would be, don't have room for the stress of long anxious wait but if we're close to top of list may give it a go

BarefootBaritone · 19/04/2012 16:30

We have to wait til tomorrow for DC1. I read and re-read the para that says "letters will be sent out on the 20th April" hoping it would say somewhere that they would email us too (as it has all been done online). But i suspect if it doesn't explicitly say it they won't.

Did this happen when we were kids? I'm sure thirty i mean fifteen Wink years ago you just went to the nearest school and that was that? Or is that because they didn't care about H&S and class sizes then and just took all comers?! (I'm so old.... :()

My mum doesn't remember anything remotely like this. She reckons they just got a letter saying "Please make sure BB turns up at XX primary school at 9am on the 4th September"!

NKffffffffb942df10X12641d77b87 · 19/04/2012 16:37

Live in NW5.

Got sixth choice on our list of six.

The state education system is brilliant.

Keep the faith.