Tricking the system - how to manage the 'catchment' area?

[kajoh]

Hi parents and care givers,

We are currently renting and thinking of keeping it this way until DS1 is accepted to a good primary school. For the year of primary school application we are planing to move right across the street from a school that we picked as a primary school for our DS1. Ideally we would like to be in the catchment area 4 months before January 15th application deadline and to stay there until our DS1 starts the school in September.

Are there any other parents who secured a placement in a good primary school this way? Did it work out? How long have you stayed in the rented property? Anything you would do differently?

I know this might sound crazy to some people but given that for a nursery local authorities sent us to a nursery that is 3 miles away from where we live, I am not taking any chances with the primary school.

Thank you for your advice.

NiceTabard,

At the end of the day, though, the ins and outs of what the council will accept as a new address are not written down in quite that form - otherwise people would simply analyse them to find the loopholes. They reserve judgement - and apply common sense.

There is no way that you can assume that you will get a place at any school. Only those that have a statement of SEN naming the school or are Looked after children or previously looked after children will be more or less guaranteed a place at the school.
However if you rent and move to a home very close to the school then you have as much right to a place at the school as anybody else. You need to move at least a year before the cut-off date for on time applications, which is the 15th January and you need to stay in the home for at least a year after child starts school. For you that will be longer as you have a younger sibling. Most LAs now have a list of homes that they know are rental and are near the "preferred" schools, so any move to one of those houses will start alarm bells ringing and red flags being waved but if you have been in residence for over a year then that should not be a problem providing that you stay in the home as above.
Do check the admission criteria, as some schools do have funny but perfectly legal admission criteria which could disadvantage you, so check that out.

Even the concept of a "catchment area" doesn't apply in many areas any more, yet people still think it does.

Round here I know people who are generally sane who put down one school on the basis that "if I only put one they have to give it to me".

I don't understand why people don't start by reading the rules for the school and area they are in. It seems bizarre to me.

so just had a quick look at ours and it has loads of stuff to do with property, when you must move in by, when you can't move out before, what evidence you need to show what you are up to and so forth.

it is surely best to check the rules for your school and LA before doing anything else.

OP - I can understand why you want to get your child into a good school - we all do - but to move to a location just for a few months to get your child into a school and then move out of the area is appalling. Schools should serve the local community and by doing this you are denying a child who actually lives in the area a place at their local school. Just not on.

If you do move, then make it a semi-permanent move, not just one to 'trick' the system.

We have 20 of 30 places going to siblings this year, no-one can be sure of a place this year unless they are camping in the school playground.

THis would be in London OP? In certain Boroughs you would be fine, at the moment anyway, our Borough for example refuses to check even if there has been blatant "trickery". This might change in the future with enough parental badgering of the LEA I suppose.

anyway, our Borough for example refuses to check even if there has been blatant "trickery"

In that case parents who have been deprived of places should be able to appeal on the grounds that the admission arrangements have not been applied correctly in that no attempt has been made to check for fraudulent applications. Some appeal panels would uphold such appeals.

I think that some parents will be doing this, our local paper has been full of letters from angry parents on the issue.

Keep in mind that parents who have lived in the area for years and hope to get their children into their local school will not take kindly to being tricked out of a place for their child. They will quite rightly report you.

I think it depends on the area. I'm my area (lancs) I've had friends move legitimately the week before with no questions asked.... Even in popular schools. Our lea doesn't admit that frauds a big problem even though it does happen frequently. I've seen loads of people move but as our area isn't known for this sort of renting for schools, it never seems to get investigated. Of course op, your area may be different so its important to research. Tbh as a renter with no hold on a previous property, why would you choose to rent to be near the school? Lots of people who rent change properties frequently and I can't see how they could prove any dishonesty? Different if holding onto main home or whatever. I don't see that as cheating to be honest.

Sorry, that should say why wouldn't you choose to be near a school.... Of course you would.

The LA don't have to prove dishonesty. All they need is reasonable suspicion and they can take action.

I don't remember being asked how long I had lived at my house or whether I rented or owned it when I applied for a primary school place. And I live in a very over subscribed part of London.

I can't see why this could be seen as anything other than legit. The OP isn't going to lie about where she lives. She has just made the smart move of moving close to the school. Any family could have done the same thing. How is it dishonest?

well, well, I take it all back. My London Borough have been very certain about their unwilliness and inability to check for fraud in applications. However parental pressure has won them round; a child's place has been withdrawn at our local primary school, and 5 more places at the school are being looked at. A high proportion for a one form entry school. This was parents identifying the potential fraud and informing the LEA.

We live about 200 m from the school and were 22 on the waiting list, so you can see the scale of the problem. It's a shame scams in previous years aren't being looked at, to kick some of the siblings out.

Thats good news Greeneggs, :)