Has anyone applied for a primary school place from overseas (Crown Servant/Forces etc?)

[Boobz]

And can offer a bit of reassurance?!

I am applying for a primary school reception place for my youngest starting next September, and have just completed the CAF through the Lambeth website (we will be returning to Streatham in August 2016). I don't have a proof of address for either myself nor my son (we own the house in Streatham we are returning to, but currently it is tenanted and so we don't have the proof of addresses that are required to upload to the site).

My DH works for the FCO and so we have been given a letter from them stating that we will be returning to this address, to use as proof of address, but I am still worried that it won't be accepted (I have heard rumours in the past that these FCO letters don't "work" when applying for primary places).

So I was just wondering if anyone else had had to do the same as us recently and had also been given this kind of letter and whether your DC then got in to the school you applied for?

As your husband is on crown service the LA must allocate a place before you return to the UK provided you include an official letter giving your relocation date. If the LA fails to do so that is a breach of the Admissions Code which should lead to a successful appeal. That doesn't necessarily mean you will get the school you applied for. Whether or not you get your first preference depends on the admission criteria. The LA should look at whether or not you would qualify for a place at your preferred school based on your UK address. That will decide whether or not you are offered that school.

Thanks prh47 - much appreciated. I have applied and included the official letter, so hopefully it was all go according to plan and there will be no need for an appeal! We live in a strange black hole for school distance (the only criteria we will be measured against as there are no sibs, children in care, religious attendance we can use, etc.,) so I'm not sure we will get into the top 3 choices, but we should get into #4 based on distance published last year. TBH this is a back up anyway, we are applying for the kids to get into the Lycee CDG - am just being super watertight!

Thanks for your reply.

Just found this old thread. How did it go? We are coming back from overseas with the United Nations so wondered if it will be successful for us too. We are international diplomats rather than direct Crown Servants.