Late application to outstanding school

[TinaD84]

Hello
Was after some advice as I’m new to this .
My daughter starts reception in September this year , however we are looking to move to a property which falls within the catchment of an Outstanding oversubscribed school ( Sheredes in Broxbourne Herts ) . As a late applicant now , I know she won’t get in and the kids waiting list is massive no doubt . However , what is the process and likelihood of trying to get in the following year ( dependant on there being a space available ) on the basis that it’s the closest school to us ? Is that likely or an I being a naive plum ?
Thanks for any advice

It will be the same - you go on the waiting list and if/when a place comes up they allocate places based on the admissions criteria e.g. first siblings, then closest distance.

Tina,

The way it works is that you apply, and you are placed on the waiting list according to your position in their over-subscription criteria (e.g. If your child is not a sibling, and they operate sibling priority, you will be below all the siblings. If distance is a criterion, and you live 320 metres away, you will be on the waiting list below a child who lives 250m away, but above the child who lives 400m away).

Your position on the waiting list is NOT dependent on when you applied - so those who applied on time but did not get places do not have priority over you UNLESS they live closer, have a sibling etc.

No new application is needed for the following year, as the school should maintain a waiting list at all times. However, some schools do wipe the list in e.g. December, and so you may need to confirm that you are still interested in a place should one come up. Discuss that with the school.

If a child leaves, and you are top of the waiting list, you will be offered the place. f a child leaves, and those above you on the waiting list are now happily placed elsewhere and decline the offer, you will get the place. If none leave, or if not enough leave to reach your place on the waiting list, you will not get a place.

Remember that even later applicants will have priority over you if e.g. they have a sibling or live closer. We were late applicants for DD after a house move. She went from 42nd to 2nd when DS started (became a sibling), was pushed down 1 when another child moved into a house just across the road from the school and applied, then got a place about a week before the end of the Summer term before she was due to start. The next child on the waiting list didn't get a place until the end of Y2, as nobody left for nearly 3 years.

IME, school secretaries / receptionists are THE people to ask about historical trends in waiting list movement etc. Be polite, and don't ring between 8.30 am and 9.30 am when they are usually tearingly busy, but if they have a moment they will often chat to you about e.g. current waiting list, historical patterns of waiting list movement, number of siblings etc.

There would be no difference next year. A place will only come up as another child leaves. You will be placed on the waiting list according to the published admissions criteria. As time goes on others ahead of you may decide their child has settled in happily elsewhere and turn any offer down but otherwise the same class size restriction applies until year 3.

Hi everyone
Thank you so much for clarifying the waiting list order of pecking , I understand the logistics a bit better now .

Tina,
You actually need to check very carefully what the situation is for the school you want and not let others assume things.
Firstly the admission criteria priority is based on firstly looked after children, medical social category. then siblings, then nearest school and then distance. There is no catchment zone as such, it is whether Sheredes is the nearest school. That means that the area of priority may be quite different from what you think it is and you need to go onto the Herts Council website and check whether where you want to move to is actually going to give you that priority to the school.
Herts are quite good at giving information about who gets in. So it is a 60 admission limit and in both 2016 and 2017 19 siblings were admitted. In 2016 all the other places were allocated to pupils in the nearest school category and that was at a distance of 821 metres from the school. In 2017, there were only 25 pupils who were within the nearest school category, to a distance of 962 metres and so 16 pupils were allocated places on distance to 1081 metres. All distances are straight line distance. There will be information at some point on the 2018 admissions but you need to be aware they could be very different from what happened in 2016 and 2017.
Another reason I say you need to look very carefully at the admission criteria is because of the way that the waiting list is run. Herts LA run the waiting list, based on order of the admission criteria but what Herts LA call their continued interest list only goes up to the end of the summer term. If anybody wants to stay on the continued interest list into the new academic year then you have to make another in-year application.
Personally I think this is a poor way of handling the continued interest list but this is their way of doing it, so you need to be aware.

Hi

Thank you for the detailed advice - i'm very grateful .
The property we have put an offer in for ( and has been accepted ) does show Sheredes as being the nearest school on the Herts website (922 metres) . So far, i am told there are 4 children on the continued interest list - I am unsure if thats generally within the school or just for reception class- i have asked for clarification . The next 5 closest schools are religious schools so that wouldn't be an option for us . I wonder if you get extra consideration for that?

I know the school was inspected over 10 years ago and is still riding on the "outstanding" mark, however - are there any parents who currently have kids at the school who could comment on what the school is like now and if you are happy there / unhappy.

thanks in advance for any advice

You won’t get any extra consideration for not wanting a religious school.

You may well be within the distance then, this year, at 922 metres, but as PP said, not wanting a faith school is not going to give you any marks at all. All schools are equal in the land of admissions, unless you actually want them, and then you have to meet the criteria

But how many move away per year? Our school in our year had one place in year 2, and one each in year 4 and 5 coming up for grabs (now year 6). Even people who moved quite far away stayed at the school. It also depends if you live closer than the 4 on the waiting list (and fingers crossed nobody moves closer than you, they'd leapfrog you).

Sorry OP this of off topic but the Outstanding Ofsted many years ago really annoys me.

We are looking to move and the secondary school we are considering was last inspected 10 years ago!!! 10 years!!! I want an up to date Ofsted so I can know what the school is like NOW not 10 years ago!

A 10 year old Ofsted rating is no use to anyone. Outstanding schools should be inspected just as often as anyone else. An Outstanding rating is even more useless as they have since changed the criteria and a Good school nowadays is probably equivalent to an Outstanding 10 years ago. Grrrr! Stupid Dept of Education.