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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

Reception waiting lists

14 replies

Teamc1 · 10/09/2015 12:00

Can anyone offer any advice from past experience. Now term has started is there likely to be movement on waiting lists. Currently number 6, it is a 30 intake.

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Witchend · 10/09/2015 12:10

It's a bit of a piece of string question.

If I give an example of my dc's at school, which was a 2 form entry (60). Dd1 had a few leave over reception, you'd have got in by the end of the year. Dd2 I think 2 left over reception, 3 left end of year 1, and 1 in year 2, so you might have got a place in year 2 if no one had moved in.
Ds one child left over the course of infants, most of the way through year 1. And the child who got the place had moved into the area, so no children got it from the original waiting list. Although 4 moved away in year 3 to different areas.

But the current reception from 4 have moved away from the area over the summer (includes one set of twins). There is a waiting list, but the council are still processing it, so it could be worth phoning the school and asking.

tinkitonki · 10/09/2015 12:47

Our experience of reception waiting list for a one form entry school last year. No4 on offers day, then bobbed around 3-7 over the autum term, back up to 4th by easter and then all the way down to 9th by June. Not on the list anymore as our school has actually worked out remarkably well and I doubt we would have ever got a place at our first choice anyway...
Sorry if that's not what you were hoping to hear.

PatriciaHolm · 10/09/2015 13:31

Depends on many many things, including how sort after the school is and how transient the population. DD's class lost 1 child in YR, DS's none - our school is over subscribed in an area people move to for the schools, so I think we have a low turnover until Yr2/3 when some parents move to private. Other areas will experience greater turnover.

teacherwith2kids · 10/09/2015 13:36

In DD's year, in a 60 intake school, the first child to get in from the waiting list - actually someone new to the area who moved into a house opposite the school shortly before the first person left from the year group - in Year 3. There was no movement in reception or KS1 at all!

teacherwith2kids · 10/09/2015 13:38

(on the other hand, we moved when DS was at the end of Y1, and he walked straight into the same school, we were offered the place even before we moved becuase there were several places and we were the only ones wanting one. Same school, same catchment, 2 years apart...just slightly different birth rates)

CocoPlum · 10/09/2015 15:50

Feeling your stress OP, DS is on waiting list for DD's school. He is due to start allocated school tomorrow. We were 4th when I checked last week.

When DD was.in reception two years ago, I know at least 2 children left in the first few weeks - possibly more, I'm not sure, those were just the two I know of. It was a three form entry so other classes may have lost one or two as well.

Last year I'm not sure about the movement but I know that by Easter there were just 79 children on roll in reception - 90 intake so well below.

A lot of.schools are only just starting back here (as I mentioned DS's class only starts tomorrow) so I'm hoping movement will happen asap!!

mabythesea · 10/09/2015 15:57

Seems unlikely that that many will leave unless you live in a very highly mobile area. We are still at number 10 on the waiting list for a 90 intake school a year later!

reni2 · 10/09/2015 20:37

In our school (intake of 60), one child didn't start reception as planned so place was available in October, one child left after Reception, one child left after Year 2. It is highly rated though so people stay at the school even if they move.

Inkymess · 10/09/2015 22:35

Ours is a highly desirable but transient school - 90 intake. People got in on wait list until January - prob about 13 in total. Some had however moved into area near to school so a friend at no13 in April has been up and down but is still waiting

ShadowLine · 11/09/2015 00:43

Depends entirely on the area and how transient to population is, how popular the school is etc.

In my village, the population isn't very transient, and the school is very good, so very little movement. School is 1.5 form entry (mixed year groups). From talking to friends with DC at the school, there was only one space to come free for the waiting list in the last 5 years in KS1, in Y2.

DS1 was no 3 on the waiting list when I checked, but there's new housebuilding started nearer to the school than us since the applications for reception 2015 closed, and people will probably be moving in there before long. More planning permissions have been sought for even more houses nearer the school too. So I think there's very little chance of DS1 ever getting to the top of that waiting list. Unless we move into one of the new houses next door to the school once they've been built.

CB2009 · 12/09/2015 14:14

Highly transient part of NW London. 1 form entry, church state school. We got a place over the summer from the wait list. Two vacancies then popped up in the first two weeks of Reception where people rejected for private and so children moved from other schools were they had just started. No other changes in Reception. 1 leaver mid way through Y1 where family went back to USA. 2 leavers at end Y1 both job relocations to elsewhere in UK. 1 leaver in first week of Y2 being the first to a nearby state primary which was there first choice from the start. In our school there is quite a lot of movement at end Y2 where children leave for independent schools

elfonshelf · 13/09/2015 19:06

Highly mobile part of SE London (not leafy in the slightest). We were no. 42 on the waiting list at the end of August and got a Reception place 3 weeks into the Autumn term after 2 left and 2 never turned up.

There were some things in our favour though. First, the school had increased the intake by 15 that year so there wasn't as much of a sibling issue as normal and secondly, all the surrounding schools are Outstanding and so most parents were perfectly happy with their allocation even if it wasn't their first choice.

Quite often parents won't bother signing onto the waiting lists after the 31st August and don't want to move their child after they've bought the uniform and settled them in.

Be prepared to move fast. We found out about a vacancy on the Thursday am, signed forms on the Friday and she started on the Monday.

reni2 · 14/09/2015 11:22

Good point about people not wanting to change once school has started, many are surprised their dc settled well at an unwanted school and don't want the upset, so the only place opening can easily go to number 8 on the list.

Enkopkaffetak · 14/09/2015 13:43

Depends on where and when too. DD3's best friend was no 13 on waiting list in a 15 intake school. She got offered a space in December. Everyone above her had turned the space down.

Another space became available end of year 2 got in a boy from the waiting list

halfway through year 3 a child who had moved into the area shortly before was added to the class

In year 6 they had only 14 as 2 had moved away and no one moved their child for the year 6 space.

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