Am so angry

[xxslkxx]

We pay council tax, income tax, all taxes for council and goverment, yet they cant allow us the school we want for our children. So tired and stressed because I didnt get a place for my child at a school across the road from us. Councils know how many children are in an area - why dont they allow for this!? We dont spring it on them yet year in year out thousands of children miss out. How about stop bailing euro countries out and educate OUR children!?

I'm sorry that you didn't get a place, how far is the school you have been allocated?
I agree that the system often seems taken by surprise, despite usually having 4 years warning of a baby boom, but the other issue is schools with low numbers who need to be filled before building a new school or increasing the PAN of an existing school will be considered.

Hmmmm ... the UK is not bailing out any euro country as far as I am aware. UK banks are benefiting from the various funds set up to support eurozone banks though ...

How can they add and take away classrooms as demand ebbs and flows? There is not much they can do with actual building size and cramming children into schools isn't a good idea. All they can do is enlarge catchment areas, amalgamate them, eliminate them or constrict them as need becomes apparent, or place children in schools where there is room as seems to be the case here. Councils don't know how many children are in an area. They have only a rough ballpark figure as families are constantly moving in and out.

I have taught in several lovely, new portakabin classrooms. They even came with their own toilets. They are, as the name indicates, portable from school to school.

I really feel for you. We did get the school we wanted but they don't want to take DS because he has some SN (which are not yet statemented) and they are worried about coping as they are completely full and have two extra bulge classes to accommodate so they are taking 150 kids instead of 90!

It's taken a while to deal with the fact that DS will stay at nursery while his friends move to schools, but what can I do? I have to consider the teachers (who have 30 kids each) and the other kids.

It's difficult but I am sure you child will enjoy the school ey have been allocated

In the area where I live there is one secondary school that every parent would like for their child- and there are enough children to fill 4 secondary schools. If all parents got their choice, then that nice, small secondary school wouldn't be so nice any longer: it would be mahoosive, crammed to the brim, have no playground/playing fields and not nearly enough lavatory accommodation. In other words it would become a school no parent could want for their child.

Choice is an illusion. The best we can hope for is to make the alternatives as palatable as possible.

We pay council tax, income tax, all taxes for council and goverment, yet they cant allow us the school we want for our children.

So do all the other tax payers in your town, the ones with no children, children at secondary school, children at uni.

I don't understand why children don't just allocated to the school nearest their house like when I was at primary school. I just went to the closest primary, and we all went to the closest secondary. Easy peasy. Life seemed much more simple then! Or does that make me sound like a grumpy old man?

"Councils know how many children are in an area" - unfortunately they don't. People move, people arrive from different countries, people switch allegiances from private to state. The system is rubbish at spotting when a crisis is arriving.

And in any case, it takes years and years, and lots of money (which Councils don't have) to plan for building new schools.

Hmm, it does seem to be a problem. I take your points.

We were unfortunate here as we moved house in August 2008. DS1 was starting reception that September, had a place at the local village school where we were moving from, but on moving here we had no choice as to which school her went to here, he had to go to the school in the area that had the worst reputation, worst results, worst Ofsted etc. Initially I was gutted. It didn't seem fair as the closest school geographically was the 'best' one with the super, duper Ofsted etc. However, after visiting DS1's school and getting a good 'feel' from it, and now after four years of living here and now DS2 is in Year 1 at the same school I love that school. It has its issues and its fair share of problems to deal with but the staff are great, they are really dedicated, the school is striving to get better. More importantly my DSs love it there and they get along great with their teachers.

I spent my first year of secondary school in Ireland in a prefab classroom and believe me, that prefab had seen better days.

In the US your child goes to the closest school unless there are reasons to bus children elsewhere such as racial integration or massive overcrowding. A child could be in a prefab for years. School allocation is so rigid and enforcement of catchment areas is so rigorously pursued that it contributes to the formation of urban and even suburban ghettos when people who want better for their children are forced to leave for greener pastures. A bad school can blight a neighbourhood for decades, depress property prices in the catchment area, lower local taxes available for school and other community purposes -- I think the fact that living in a certain place doesn't guarantee your child will go to school locally makes for a better society in the UK in many ways.

Where my friend lives in the US (NC) there has been such massive expansion in recent years that they frequently open new schools. Because their catchment areas are rigid, you have to go to your local school. So, every now and again, when the number of new housing estates produce sufficient "new" children who need schools, they do a "reassignment," and jumble everyone up and reassign their schools! So, your child might have been in a school for several years, but then has to switch somewhere else. Causes a right rumpus, but it's like it or lump it.
Mind you, the school my friend's kids were in was massive (6 form entry) and every year each whole cohort was jumbled up, so they were used to making new friendship groups regularly.