No school place offered

[Hodel]

...any idea what happens next? We thought we had been extremely conservative. We only put the closest schools as our preferences and used all six choices, including two that took everyone who applied last year. We are less than 0.3 miles from nearest and under 0.5 mile from another 3. Not sure what this means. Surely they are going to have to set up buldge classes?

They can try. Ultimately the parents could take the LA to court if they are unhappy. It would then be for the courts to decide whether the LA's provision complied with the law.

But you couldn't put a 4 yr old on a commuter rush hour train alone. They would get trampled. They would on a bus too and I'm sure any parent that tried to do so would be reported to SS
Stupid London rules.

Interesting reading all your posts! We are in the same boat, 6 local schools, not one offer. Cant even get through to LEA as the normal phone number goes straight through to voicemail?! Have left messages but heard nothing yet. Richmond borough refuse to give you direct email addresses, they just have an online form which no one ever answers. I had to send some details to admissions department earlier in the year so I had an email for the lady there who was helping me. I have emailed her but no response as of yet.

I think to go on the waiting list for a different school you can just call them and they will process it and confirm to you that you are on the list. Thats what I c an gather from the letter anyway.

I am also led to believe you can accept a place that is offered and stay on or request to be put on a waiting list for other schools which you would prefer. So effectively, anyone can go on the waiting lists and at any time, and the place they will get is completely determined by distance it is not 'first come first served', which sticks a little as it seems unfair that you could be waiting for months and be pipped to the post by someone moving into the area in august.

I guess you just have to hope you are offered one of the earliest places that become available before anyone else gets a chance to bump you down the queue.

The system in this country is a total joke. Lots of other European countries you go to the closest and thats it. Makes total sense. Then you know where ever you move to you are in effect deciding the school at that point rather than all this stress down the line. [rant over]

Sorry
Re applying to a school other than whats you originally applied for - ...just call 'them' and they will process it... - I meant call the LEA (if you can ever get through!!), it may be different in different boroughs though.

Yes, you can accept a place and stay on the waiting list for other schools. Most LAs will automatically put you on the waiting list for any school that was a higher preference than the one offered and will keep you there until you get a place or ask to be taken off it.

The waiting list is determined by the admission criteria. In most cases that means they are determined by distance but sometimes a child moving into the area will fall into a higher admission category and so will go ahead of you even though they live further away. And some schools use a lottery rather than distance.

If your nearest school was good when you moved but had become a sink school and was about to drop into special measures you wouldn't be a fan of a system that made you go to the nearest school.

I don't know what line our LEA would take if parents wanted to take their child to school by train rather than bus. The geography of our area and local public transport provision makes this pretty unlikely, and the assumption that most (not all) parents would use the bus doesn't seem unreasonable, but I guess it would be up to the parents to persuade the LEA to pay for train fares.

Just found out on continuing interest list I am no.6 for my first choice school and no.7 for my second choice school for reception in September both schools have a 3-form entry.
I didn't get any of my 4 choices selected from my 'nearest' schools but I have been allocated a notoriously bad school that has a new 'inspirational' head.
Just wondered what my chances were of getting in for September or beyond as both of my choice schools run an after school club but the school I've been allocated doesn't allow them to go to the after school club until 5 yrs and I need to go back to work as I'm on my own with no nearby support network. Quite scared actually.

Thanks for your response tiggytape, I'll speak to DS nursery today and ask them what are my chances ( historically). Yes both schools have a 90 pupil intake.
I have listed him for another school but all the schools with vacanies are 2.5miles away in the thick of morning town traffic.There are no direct bus routes and do worry how I'd cope if the car stopped working.
The other two schools are a mile away walking distance.My closest school 669 metres away has listed me 20 in the queue!