Primary School Allocation Day: Thursday 16th April Thread 2- let the positive vibes continue!

[MTWTFSS]

I only want good news for all of you- Do not disappoint me!!! :P

I'm in the (almost) same boat withasponge. Awkward doesn't come close! I hate this system - everyone gets so agitated!

Ah yes, just realised that christina. Mind you the ones that don't appear on the list are all miles away too.

And there are none that have never been oversubscribed in the last few years so no totally safe bets.

North London here, Got second choice. Relieved!

I feel so bad for my friend, too Annie - this is the last thing she needs at the moment. I'm not really sure what the process is, I've never known anyone not to get a place (though I know it must happen, it's just never happened to anyone I know).

Can someone in the know talk to me about bulge classes please?

We got DS2's first choice. However all the village schools around it are completely full and the children that applied there it appears have been sent to our already oversubscribed school. It has a PAN of 60 at the moment and even through FB its very clear than way more than 60 have been allocated it.

I assume they will create another Reception Class somehow and employ another Reception Teacher but how will that work going up through the school and the adjoining Junior School. Its not a huge school by any means and the thought of there being 90 children in Reception is freaking me out slightly.

Raffles - that's why most boroughs give sibling priority - they recognise that it's a pain having siblings at different schools. But then it can also be unfair if people very close to a school miss out because people with siblings get in ahead of them even if they have moved quite far away. So some have added a "within catchment" criterion ahead of outside catchment siblings - it's a bit swings and roundabouts as to which is fairer but I suppose some competition is inevitable until all schools are considered equally good options. The alternative is fixed catchments and the schools have to respond to changing numbers each year which would at least be more predictable and les stressful but if there are still more or less popular schools this would still push up prices around popular schools so not necessarily fairer.

Having siblings is number 6 on the list criteria in our area. There is no priority. It counts for very little here. My friend has children at the school already, but has been refused for September.

iheart - it's exactly as you say - and that bulge class will continue to exist throughout the school - so that year group will always be bigger than the others, unless they expand the school permanently making it three form entry from now on, which would mean extending the building, presumably. Sometimes schools can handle one additional class by having a mobile one in the playground or losing a music room or something and they get extra money to invest in the school in return. When it comes to juniors I suppose it depends on whether you have a separate applications system for that part of the school and, if so, whether the additional class is still needed at that stage.

withasponge - that's harsh. People round here do moan about sibling priority when they're trying to get their pfb in because it means the distance catchments are so tiny and unpredictable but I think it's fair enough to give some priority as it makes sense that having separate schools is a nightmare logistically when they're too small to make their own way and all schools have the same start and finish times. I'll be grateful of it next time round that's for sure.

thanks longest...yes its a separate allocation system for Junior School. They are on a separate site but its Community School Federation so both Infant and Junior have the same headteacher.

Im thrilled he has got a place but just feel a bit sad that his Reception experience is going to be somewhat different to DS1's...90 children crammed into a tiny Reception Playground is going to be chaos :-(

She must be near the top of the waiting list though if you got in? Unless there's been a mistake on either the LA's part (they would need to give her the place even if the school is full if they've caused her to miss out) or hers (more difficult - although she would maybe jump up the waiting list if the mistake is rectified?) She should try and find out why she has missed out anyway if she really is nearer than you.

iheart they might have a plan to re-jig the playground maybe?

Interestingly lots of schools have free places in our borough and surrounding boroughs. Obviously they are the ones that no one wants!

I'm going to view the local ones with places, and still hoping that we get a place for out first choice from the waiting list, which we missed by metres.

Hope you find a good fallback option fluffy and the waiting list comes good.

I think this issue is with our school is that it has lots of village schools surrounding it which are completely full so lots of people that applied for there have been sent to ours.

I think in the long run it will be a positive for the school-more children I assume more money and more opportunities just the selfish part of me wishes it wasn't DS2's year!

Our school is really small and without taking bulge classes they stagger the lunch period, infants in first 12-12.30 then juniors in 12.30-1.

Ours is an Infant School singing...I assume they could do all of Reception then Y1/Y2 later.

What i find ridiculous is the 2 schools at full capacity have one class per year due to the size of the school, the other 2 which are not outstanding have 2 classes per year but cant even fill one class each, big schools on big sites, schools could be fab if they done something about them instead of everyone applying for the 2 small schools. Luckily we have a new affordable homes build going on now and part of the deal was the oustanding small school was rebuilt on the new estate with double calapacity but that still leaves the other 2 struggling for pupils, the new school is half distance between the 2 so be interesing to see what happens

I've just checked according to the website run by the country council, my friend is actually closer to the school than I am and it is, in fact, her catchment school (it's not mine). I think someone might've messed up.

sponge if it's the LA they should give her the place even if this causes them to go over their PAN (they won't take the place off someone who has been allocated it). Hope they do it without causing too much hassle. And hope it was their mistake. If it was her mistake then she might still get to jump to top of waiting list if she submits another, correct, late application, but I don't think they'd be obliged to go over PAN to give the place to her.

yy to sudden oversubscription - DC1's year was the first to be oversubscribed, and most of the older classes have 25-28 in.

There were 42 first-choice applications in his year for a PAN of 30. It was insane.