Do i have to tell current school I'm looking to move children?

[Justjoseph]

I'm really unhappy with the current school, I have filled in an inyear transfer for online from the council, however they have returned a form for the school to fill in before the application is considered.
Surely I won't have to tell the current school before I know that the new school has free places.

I thought you just rang up and if they had a place it was yours! Apparently not.

Any help much appreciated.

yeah start quoting and demanding things.

That will absolutely make sure they want to have you as a parent :p

This is what used to happen in my old school. The family had to see the HT for a meeting and get him to sign the form. His response differed depending on the family, for some it was immediately signed with a 'good riddance' attitude but if your child was high-achieving he would hassle you and try to persuade you to stay.

It's really unfair for parents: if you don't have a good relationship with the school for whatever reason then you should be able to leave quietly without that discussion. I don't know what the LA will say, OP, but I hope you can have an easy move.

I think from a safe guarding point of view alone, headteachers SHOULD have a discussion with each other

I think from a safe guarding point of view alone, headteachers SHOULD have a discussion with each other

A discussion with each other, once the move has been decided, yes. But should the HT be aware of families wanting to move schools before it has even be confirmed? That could make things quite uncomfortable, particularly if the move doesn't happen for some reason.

It doesnt make things uncomfortable, or it shouldnt. Why should it?
But people have been known to move to avoid people finding out about child protection issues etc.
For that reason alone, I would say it is essential

HT talk to each other though don't they.

I was naive to think that my initial enquiry and look around the school wouldn't go any further but now I realise that HT do talk, especially if it's within a cluster of schools who regularly work together. Why wouldn't they.

We had to do that, get HT to sign form before we could move. However I'd already rung the new school and knew there was a place, so I wasn't worried about the move falling through.

The HT was very upset that we were moving - despite previously asking us to move. And put a lot of pressure on my Y5 to stay! Which I thought was totally out of order.

But in the end we pretty much left at the end of the week and there was no problem.

So, ring the school you want to apply for, check there is a place there, and then ask your HT to sign the form. If they don't sign the form it's not a problem, it's just a formality. But you might as well get the formality done as life will be easier for you in the long run.

It's not unusual for parents (around our school anyway, socially deprived area) to seek to move their children merely out of temper. Not considering the child at all.

An example that happened last month. Mum tried to move 3 children because nursery staff suggested she might like to buy a bookbag for nursery child.

Mum went ballistic. "He had a perfectly good rucksack, why should I?". Agressive to staff, who were only asking. Mum then added various points for effect (to justify her fury). Like he's not going to be allowed to take a book home to read unless he buys a bookbag. Totally untrue.

Phoned school and when she didn't get a call back that day she contacted another local school to find out if there were places for all 3 children. She was ready to take them out of school that day. Out of nothing more than anger.

Head of other school stalled, experience knowing moves in haste don't always have the child's interests first. Contact made between the two schools.

Deputy of original school phoned parent. Bookbags were just offered, not compulsory. And no child would ever be denied a book! Certainly no need to disrupt the education of older 2 children because of this, they aren't involved at all.

Such parents do not put their children's needs first.

The Heads of current and receiving schools have to put the children's needs first, above the parent's anger/frustration/unreasonability because there are many parents who don't put the child's need first.

In our area you do. They won't put the dc on the waiting list for your preferred schools unless the forms are fully completed, which includes a section for the current school to complete. Other areas may have different systems. I have to say that since moving to Manchester 5 years ago I have found our local education department to be one of the worst I have ever had the misfortune to deal with, so it wouldn't surprise me at all to learn that other areas have far better ways of doing just about everything.

Teacher bob, I will quote that to the LEA. (Not the school)

No safeguarding issues here and very bright, well behaved children. Safeguarding should come into place after a place is confirmed but before the t's are crossed so to speak.

It didn't disrupt my daughters education moving her . It's as though she always went there .

A key paragraph of the school admissions guidance is paragraph 2.21 which included "Any parent can apply for a place for their child at any time to any school outside the normal admissions round. They can do this by applying directly to admission authorities, except where other arrangements are in place locally (e.g. the local authority co-ordinates all in-year admissions).

That doesnt actually say anything about telling the new school.

The fact you are so keen for your current school not to know rings alarm bells tbh.
It is not enough just to say 'it isn't a safeguarding issue'.
Because it could be.

Children slip through the net and rules were changed to address that. You should be grateful people care enough about your children to have discussions imo.

Now you are just being rediculous teacher bob.

Alarm bells indeed!

The new school is better by miles, the children already have friends there so I am not concerned about it being disruptive. I am very, very concerned about the current school.

It's not ridiculous. It there are issues in the family, e.g. Abuse and parents feel that the current school is cottoning on to sth, they will move children around. At the new school it might take a few months for staff to start noticing again. Sadly, things like that happen and schools need to communicate. The LA might also want to see that you've taken steps to improve the situation at the current school and it isn't out of temper or spite - as described above. A sensible parent with nothing to hide has no reason not to tell the school.

Yeah as JoJo says it is not ridiculous.

If it saves just one child from abuse, it is totally worthwhile doing. I actually don't care if you feel put out by it, child protection comes first.
Sorry to be harsh but that is the reality of it

Same as pp in our school - the head has to complete their part of the in-year transfer form. The new school will also sometimes phone the current school for more information, though of course child protection and other files are handed over to the new school so any concerns will always be shared.

I've known an academy in our area not to take a child because of persistent absence from school.

The admission code states that schools cannot refuse children on the grounds of their previous attendance.

I don't doubt that, eddie, but the academy would not take the child with their 67% attendance. Whether they gave that as the official reason I don't know but the child went somewhere else in the end.

It is a safeguarding issue which is why they have this policy. It stops children falling through the gaps. The current school acknowledge the move, then the new school and they then each have a repsonsibility for making contact with each other which ensures the child has moved and doesn't just disappear off the radar.

You can't have one system for children from 'good' families and another system for children who have obvious safeguarding issues. You just have to have a system that protects the majority because problem families aren't always obvious. Sometimes that causes a bit of a pita for folks, but it's just a signature on a form. It's not going to stop the move and if it does cause any adverse effects toward your children whilst they are still at the school then complain in the strongest terms to the governor and let the LEA know.

It is a safeguarding issue which is why they have this policy

No it is not. The new school will contact the old school once they have offered the child a place and it has been accepted. All records including information about any safeguarding concerns will then be transferred. There are also processes in place to deal with pupils who disappear from a school without any information about where they are going. They won't fall through the gaps. There aren't any gaps for them to fall through.

This is nothing to do with safeguarding. It is just an LA trying to make it difficult for parents to move children between schools. They won't be doing this for parents moving into the area, only for parents who want to move children between schools within the LA.

I agree with Admission that this is certainly against the spirit of the Admissions Code. Personally I am of the view that it is a breach of the Code but someone needs to complain to the Schools Adjudicator for a determination. If the form for the existing school asks about attendance, behaviour, attitude or achievement it is very definitely a breach of the Code - schools are specifically prohibited from taking this into account when deciding whether or not to offer a place.

I agree it isn't a safeguarding issue based on the information we have available. In my experience a head will often contact the current school when a parent expresses a desire to transfer before any paperwork is completed.

"There are also processes in place to deal with pupils who disappear from a school without any information about where they are going. They won't fall through the gaps."

I wish I shared your confidence but experience says its misplaced.

How about "no gaps if it works properly". I agree it doesn't work all the time and people do escape. However, demanding that parents get the existing school's permission before transferring to a new school won't do anything to help with those who choose to disappear.

No I agree that if families want to disappear there's very little anyone can do about it but if there are issue/worries it reassures staff to know the child hasn't just vanished and is actually attending another school.

I don't know why anyone would be worried about the old school knowing they're looking to move before they actually do. We've had countless parents saying they're moving their child and then changing their mind. Life goes on for everyone afterwards. Why wouldn't it?