Moving to new area with oversubscribed schools

[sunflowers8]

We are looking to move to a new area with nicer surroundings and better opportunities for us and our five year old.

We are open to where provided it is walking distance to a “good” local school and to a bus/train station for work commute.

My question is if the local schools are oversubscribed, would they be willing to accept any more children? I would hate to move to a new area and find that we have to go to a school that is miles away.

Anybody with any words of advice or experience would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

Check with the school and local authority before you do anything. Most people, myself included, move before children need to be registered to start school in the youngest year. If there are spaces, they will take you but it may be unlikely that they have any because they will have waiting lists so any spaces that arose are likely to have been filled.

You would be offered a space at the nearest school with spaces. A full school won't make a space for you and there may even already be a waiting list.

You need to do your research carefully. Usually the nearest one with spaces, has spaces for a reason.

Schools will also be unable to offer more places due to the infant class size limits (assuming you are in England) -they can’t take more than 30 per class until the beginning of KS2. You’d most likely go on a waiting list, and how close you are to the top of that list depends on where you are on the school’s admission criteria (distance/faith etc)

If you move the local authority must find a place for you somewhere (assuming the current school is too far away). However, it does not have to be at a local school. Normally it would be at the nearest school with places available. They can get a school to go over the infant class size limit if there are no schools with places within a reasonable distance (about 45 minutes journey each way for a primary school child, but that does not have to be on foot so it could be several miles).

No you wont get into an already oversubscribed school, When I rang up my soon to be new area school admissions team they were amazing they could tell me what places were free in what year groups I needed in the schools so I could have a google and find out about them before we relocated, So I did so and then applied for the places knowing we would get the children in. All our local school places were oversubscribed as theres alot of new houses being built here but luckily there is never any heavy traffic where we live so it only takes a short drive in the morning. They got their places accepted and I love their school, Yes I have to drive but its worth the drive.
If you are doing an in year transfer ring up admissions and see if they can tell you what schools have places and where so you can find out about them.

Local authorities should maintain a list of all schools with what years are full and which have spaces. My LA publishes it on their web site. However, you have to be resident to get the place. Wanting a place mid year or missing the cut off date for YR applications can make it really hard to find a school that you like.

No you wont get into an already oversubscribed school

If there are no places available within a reasonable distance the OP's child WILL get into an oversubscribed school, even if it takes the school beyond the infant class size limit. However, if there are places available elsewhere you are right that the OP won't get her child into an oversubscribed school.

Thanks everybody for your messages. Looks like I’ll need to consider very carefully before I make any moves!