No info at all from school re starting reception. That's crap, right?

[herbaceous]

I'm currently composing a stroppy letter to head of DS's new school, about the fact that we have had no information about the start of school, such as term dates, inset days, rough timetable, curriculum, uniform, lunch arrangements, whether/when he'll do PE/music, what he needs to be able to do, what he needs to bring, or even when the school day starts. Their website is two years out of date, and thus useless.

This is shit, right?

There was a meeting for all new parents, at which you could buy the uniform jumper, but as there were 120 families, one person selling, and five minutes to do it in, no-one stood a chance.

We met his teacher for a grand total of ten minutes, and there was no chance to meet other classmates or for him to look around. It contrasts so starkly with some friends' experiences of home visits, information packs about stuff, organised picnics for new parents, etc etc. I just feel we're leaping into the void.

Honestly, not getting a school you like is painful. I presume you are on all the right waiting lists, so for now you just have to make the best of it. If his teacher is lovely that's great - definitely the most important thing.

It will be worth remembering that the chaos at the parents meeting will partly be down to all the parents being new and nobody knowing what to do. Give the new head teacher the benefit of the doubt too, she is the one who will actually be in charge of the school, but until the end of last term she will have had a job and responsibilities elsewhere. How things have been so far will have been down to the old head, who (not rightly but realistically) probably wasn't too bothered about what would happen in September since she wasn't going to be there.

Go with the good advice you have had about the basics, remember that you are happy with his teacher (the most important thing) and see what happens once the new head has been in place for a while.

I absolutely agree with you Herbaceous there is no excuse for this lack of information. Despite the somewhat defensive and placatory posts from others such as PastSellByDate this is YOUR child that you are handing over to this large institution and of course you want as much information as you can to reassure yourself and your child that all will be well. It is outrageous that this has not been forthcoming and, from the point of a view of a primary Headteacher, does not get the vital relationship between home and school off to a good start. Other posters can guess but you need to know what is going to happen and when. Good luck with your letter I hope you get the right response.

And this school got "good" from Ofsted?

Sounds appalling - my school (where I teach) does stacks and stacks for new entrants coming in, in order for the transition to be as smooth as possible. What a shame that your ds starting school, which is an important milestone for them and us, is fraught with tension and irritation.

They give out a load of guff on one of the aged newsletters about the importance of the relationship with parents. But thus appears so far to be mere lip service.

And it's not ad if this type of basic admin would come as a surprise. Each year there are new starters. It's not like anyone needs to prepare something fresh - just update the existing pack.

Anyway. Letter written, with a 'did you know' angle, rather than 'I hate you all'.

Given that they are changing the logo on the school jumper and it is not available till September I don't think your son will get told off for not having one at the beginning of term.

In any case Reception often starts later than the rest of the school so you may have a few days before the start of term to buy the jumper before he even starts. Latest birthdays sometimes start before others in Reception so your son may be one of the first ones to start but probably a couple of days later than the rest of the school at least.

I feel for you - this is exactly the kind of detail I hate being without. DD started Reception last year and the school were great but it was stressful nonetheless.

Letter now posted.

To add to my joy I just drove past his site to see how the summer improvements promised for the playground were coming along. They're not. Still lots of portakabins, tired Tarmac and a taped-off climbing frame. Bleak.

herbaceous - difficult though it may be, you really do need to give the place a chance. Your ds is going to be there for a little while so you need to make the best of it. I presume you are staying on the waiting list for one or more of yr preferred schools?

You said that you liked the Reception teacher - she will be your main point of contact with the school.

Just calm down for the next couple of weeks and contact the school on Monday 3rd September when everyone is likely to be back in school for the training days.

Please be careful that your negativity about the school doesn't get picked up on by your son.

I may be neurotic, but I'm not a total half-wit. Of course I'm not letting on to DS my fears. As far as he's concerned it's a fun new chance to meet new friends, and learn new stuff. I'm hoping we will get a place at one of our preferred schools, but if we don't we're stuck with this one.

I have been nothing but positive about his new teacher to both DS and the head, in the letter. I can't believe there'll be any repercussions on him from me writing a letter to the head, and if there are, the place is worse than I thought.

Details of jumpers, shoes, choirs etc will all come out in the wash. It's the general air of not giving a shit I find difficult to excuse.

I really hope your son gets a place in one of your preferred schools.

Last time I asked he was 14th on the list for one, and 35th (!) for the other. The council cocked up measuring distances, so there's been a lot of reshuffling. I've asked where he is now, but the council is about as efficient as the school, so I have yet to hear back.

It's all a bit crap I think.

There's unlikely anyone available in the office over the summer but I would go in (if you can) on the Monday of the week he starts. Even if school isn't open to children, most have someone in the office that day, ask your questions and explain that you feel that you haven't had enough (any) info.

I wonder if the change of head thing has caused some issues? Giving them the benefit of doubt there.

If it's any consolation, the building works not having been started yet is pretty much par for the course.

Last year, I was promised informed that the loos in my classroom would be ripped out and renovated the first two weeks of the holiday. I went in during the last week and they'd barely started, other than to create a lot of dust (and remove all my carefully-placed dustsheets). They were still working on them on the INSET day before the new term, but the flushing mechanism for the cisterns hadn't arrived and there were no doors. The cleaners hadn't been in either, so I was unable to set up my classroom for the new term as there were building materials and tools dumped all over, inches of thick dust and furniture all in a pile "out of the builders' way" in the middle of the room.

I was told to "chill out" by the caretaker. I wouldn't mind but I could quote you numerous similar tales over the years. The bottom line is, contractors are inundated with schools wanting work done in the summer holiday and over-book themselves.

I once spent the first 6 weeks of term teaching behind plastic sheets covered in dust ... and I'm half expecting the same in September

They turned up to build our new staffroom extension in the second week of September.

Having had our kitchen rebuilt in November, that was supposed to be finished early December and actually ran on into February, I know all about the tardiness of builders! I'm not actually blaming the school for that, but was hoping that a cheery new playground would make me feel more positive about the place...

An update - I posted the letter over two weeks ago, and have yet to have a reply, either as a phone call, email or letter. So, either no-one has been to the school, including the new head, which is a bit shit, or no-one can be arsed to reply, also a bit shit.

We've managed to go DOWN the waiting list for the preferred school, so are now number 19. God know how. And he's starting in just over a week. Trying not to let the facade of jollity slip in front of DS...

I didn't see your thread when you first posted and it certainly sounds like the school has been pretty rubbish with their communications but, as others have said I really would try not to get too stressed. All the other parents will presumably be in the same boat and tbh as long as you turn up on the right date you can find everything else out as you go along.

The thing that would annoy me most about your situation would be the not knowing if you're doing full days right from the start, or maybe I've missed that you do know that.

I might be wrong but I have a vague recollection of being told that it's now a requirement to have a prospectus on the school website if the school doesn't send out a hard copy.

term dates - the council should publish them

inset days - we always get a huge letter AFTER the term starts. My friends get a letter once a term only

rough timetable - never saw one. If I am lucky DD will tell me what they did during the day, most of the times it was "I don't know". In Reception it is still child-let, so your child may not do what the others are doing

curriculum - there is a national curriculum
uniform - ok, that's bad

lunch arrangements - not good but I doubt they will do full days including lunch in the first week

whether/when he'll do PE/music - PE kit stays in school until the holidays, I know when it was a PE day when DD came home with polo shirt inside out. Music - they didn't do formal times, just singing along during the day.

what he needs to be able to do - nothing apart from being able to dress himself, can concentrate for 5 minutes and is able to ask for help if necessary.

what he needs to bring - a waterbottle is the only thing DD needs even now in Year 2.

or even when the school day starts - phone them

OK, your school is not the best forwarding information but a lot of what you want no school automatically gives out and things like dates are only published when the school starts again.

Relax and enjoy the last week.

Do you know anybody with a child in the school and can check the uniform issue?

I'm not at all surprised that you haven't had a response to your letter. You are being completely unrealistic in expecting a reply until term begins.

In many schools the post is held at the post office until the beginning of term, so they may not even have received it yet.

They sound hopeless, good luck. We did get a pack which lists some school uniform needed (no details about shoes, socks, coats, tho) and nothing about PE kit. What is normal? Have bought old fashion black pumps on a whim but have no idea what kids normally wear, ditto swimming... Is any swimsuit normal?

Oh Herby, i so hoped when I saw you had updated it was going to be to say 'all sorted now, informations arrived and the school is 100 times better than I thought!'

I hope someone replies to you soon.

In all honesty I'd be appalled and would be doing anything and everything I could to get him into a different school. I'd even consider Home educating for a couple of terms whilst I waited. The 'general air of not giving a shit' as you very accurately put it, is unlikely to ever change. Do everything you can to get out.

For those ? with children at school for years or are a teacher or admin staff at a school - who think it's be perfectly obvious that no-one's going to answer, or that 'of course' they're going to do PE, etc, I haven't had anything to do with primary schools since I left more than 30 years ago. I've got no idea how schools run, what (if any) staff there are over the holidays, etc etc, or, indeed, why if you're paid £60K + as a headteacher that you can't even be arsed to even drop in to your place of work for six weeks over the summer.

The playground is still not even started, with old furniture all over it, and the portakabins still there.

I'm tempted to play the system to get him out of there. He's got a minor medical problem that sometimes needs attention during the day. The two schools we visited, that I thought we'd get into, had procedures in place to deal with such things, so I thought it was standard. Then we got allocated this school. At the new starters meeting I asked how they'd deal with the problem, and the deputy head said 'no idea, ask the teacher'. I asked the teacher, and she said 'no idea, ask the deputy head'. Further discussion with the teacher revealed that at some stage (no idea when) I can go through what needs to be done with the TA. I'm wondering if I can claim that he 'needs' to go to one of the other schools...

It's going to be tricky to move him any other way - all schools round here are oversubscribed.