Curious what happens to late applications?

[Mamabear12]

I was under the impression that late applications mean you do not get the same opportunity as others who applied on time. So for example, for an over subscribed school, where there are hundreds of on time applications for 30 spots, what happens if someone applied two days past the closing deadline? Are they only considered after all the offers accepted/rejected if there are any additional spots?

Late applications are allocated places after the first round of offers are made.

They go into the waiting lists according to how they meet each school’s criteria, so at that point they will be ahead of someone who lives further away but applied by the deadline.

No places are saved for late applicants.

yes, you are right, they are only considered after all the offers ahve been accpeted/rejected. Then if there are any spaces left the late applicants are given them.

You OP suggests that you think that may not be the case?
If you think someone has been given a place ahead of you, and you know they were a late applicant, then the LEA has mad e a mistake and it is grounds for an appeal.

I don’t think they are considered after all offers are accepted/rejected because it’s done before the places are offered.

So the LA willl deal with all the on time applications first. Then they will look at whether the late applicant can be offered a place in any of their preferred schools. If not, they’ll be added to the waiting lists of those schools and offered a place at the nearest schools with spaces.

Although this does slightly depend on why the application was late. Some LAs will accept a change of address a few weeks later. Not sure if you’d be allowed to make a whole new application due to that.

We were told there was a window where it works as steppemum describes and then there is a final final deadline in the spring where you just don't get considered until after offer day. I don't know if that's national policy or just where we moved to.

Oh sorry, it wasn't steppe mum, it was RafaIsTheKingOfClay who described what we were told.

Thanks, I was asking out of curiosity because someone I know applied late and got a spot. I got my first choice, so does not effect me. It was only two days late, so maybe because it was so close to deadline it was considered on time application. I do know of 3 families who applied on time to same school that did not get a spot, so it was definitely not treated as a late application even though it was. I am so interested how these admissions work! I would think it was a program accepting all the on time ones and putting to the side the late ones. But now, I wonder if it is someone who considers each one....sorry silly thoughts I am sure. I guess because first time around when we did not get first choice I was devastated so was wondering how they do it (we eventually got in so it worked out in the end).

It may depend why it was late - sometimes special circumstances can be considered.

legally, the deadline is the dealine. one minute after midnight and it is late.
That matters for people who don't get their place and someone who was one day late gets the place.

I knwo that most LEA are really strict about this, even in special circumsatnces. I know a family where mum had custody, kept dad at arm's length, didn't fill in an application form for secondary (dad didn't know she hadn't done it). Then mum had a breakdown and at literally one hours notice dad became resident parent, and then had to sort school places. This happened before offer day. With support of SS etc they did everything to get a school close to where dad lived, but no, she had been allocated a school on the other side of town.
Considering that the day SS removed them the dd was found curled in a ball, and not talking due to the circumstances of the previous few weeks, you would think that if any child needed special circumstances it would be them, but no.
They had to appeal and even with support etc they didn't get the school they needed (close to dad)