Applying for school with 2 different councils

[TynaAidy]

Hi, me and my family are currently on an overseas military posting and will be returning in June 2019, ready for our son to start reception in the September..
We are undecided as to whether we want to live in Sefton or Wirral when we return. We have parents in each and so my question is, can I apply to both councils for my sons primary school (using both parents addresses)?
TIA

No you can't apply using parents addresses I'm afraid.

I think rules are slightly different for returning military families. Could the on base school advise you on how it's done?

You cannot apply using your parents addresses, nor can you apply to two separate councils. You can apply before you move into the area but you need to give the address where you will be living.

Even if that is where we will be living temporarily when we return, until we find our house?

We don’t live on a camp but I will contact the embassy education team, thank you ☺️

We won’t know our address until 90 days before we are posted back to the U.K.. I know that allowances are made for military children so that they are not disadvantaged.. I will read up on how to apply within the deadline without an actual address 🤔

aff.org.uk/advice/education-childcare/admissions-appeals/ says you can use a unit address for example.

I will read up on how to apply within the deadline without an actual address

As far as I can see neither of these local authorities will accept an application until you have a confirmed address. I'm afraid that means you will miss the deadline. Your son will still get a place but it may not be at your preferred school.

Brilliant, I’ll have a read! Thank you

It’s not straightforward that’s for sure, although I have just read some guidelines for military applications that gives me some hope! Basically it says that “if there are places available”, admission authorities are expected to allocate a place even if the family do not have a confirmed return address 🤞🏻 If it is oversubscribed, however, it’s highly unlikely (which means we probably won’t have our preferred school anyway BUT at least we will know what school in advance)

Prh47 is the expert but your son would be an excepted pupil

Yes, your child would be excepted. That helps you in that your son won't count towards the infant class size limit, so a school can admit him even if they already have 30 pupils per class. That gives you a better chance of getting a school you want than other applicants who miss the deadline. It also makes it easier to win an appeal if you end up going down that route. It isn't a guarantee - if the schools you want are so full they really can't handle any more pupils you still won't get a place. But it may make the difference between getting a school you want and ending up at one that you would rather avoid.

You can't apply using an address other than your own and with only one authority.

Thank you so much for taking time to explain things to me.. you’ve really helped me out 👌🏻☺️

If you are moving into an armed forces housing estate then you can apply using the housing estate address as a general address but you will need a letter from your commanding officer confirming that you will be living in such accommodation with a unit posting address or quartering area address. Under such conditions the admission authority must not refuse a service child a place because the family does not currently live in the area at the time of application. You should apply before the cut off date for on-time applications which is in January but also make sure you have a conversation with the LA admission office before the cut-off date so they are aware but get their response in writing.

However from your post I am assuming that you are not moving into armed forces accommodation but your own accommodation. As such you do not have any level of protection and as such there will be an expectation that you can only apply for a place using your current address. That is possible from abroad but you will by virtue of the distance involved only get a school place if there are vacant places at the school in reception year 2019, as you will be last in their list of applicants.
I would also question whether applying for a reception place sometime between January and September next year you would be counted as an exceptional pupil. What the relevant paragraph says (2.15F) is children of UK service personnel admitted outside the normal admissions round, which I do not believe you meet as it is a reception year place and it is very much the normal admission round.
Sorry that does not sound very positive but what I can say is that I know that both Sefton and Wirral do try very hard to accommodate service personnel requests but they will have to obey the guidance around admissions.

If you do not know your exact address, is it going to be in a patch, or an individual letting? If the former, and you can supply evidence of the posting and the patch (if not exact address) then that might be enough to get your application accepted. AFF should be able to help - because a lot will come down to how used the LEA is to dealing with Armed Forces and the slightly different rules

Yes, we will be moving in to our own accommodation and the nearest base (which will likely be our posting) is 1 hour away so still not in any of the catchment areas we want 🤔

But thank you all for your really knowledgeable and helpful replies.. I have contacted the military’s education dept, as well as the LAs 🤞🏻

I would also question whether applying for a reception place sometime between January and September next year you would be counted as an exceptional pupil

The Admissions Code definition of the "normal admissions round" is delightfully unclear about when it actually ends. However, the latest date mentioned in the definition is National Offer Day. On this basis I would argue that the normal admissions round is definitely over once offers have been made and possibly earlier. If making the case, I would point out that any other interpretation creates a hole in the process where parents who move into the area between offers and the start of term are potentially disadvantaged in that their children are not treated as excepted, whereas children of later arrivals are so treated. At a push, given the wording in the Code, you could argue that the normal admissions round ends on the last date on which the LA will accept an application and process it so that an offer is received on National Offer Day. I'm not sure that interpretation would fly but it would be worth a try.

The OP talks about moving in June, so I would expect her application to be after National Offer Day. My view, therefore, is that her child should be treated as excepted. The LA may, of course, take a different view, in which case it would be up to an appeal panel to decide.

You are quite right PRH that the definition of normal admission round is left delightfully vague. Certainly LAs I am involved with make the point that the normal admission round has got to involve all the "block appeals" as they are part of the overall process of the normal admission round. They therefore argue that this is September 1st which is when the new admission round starts.
However at the end of the day it is up to the individual LA to make a decision and then for an admission appeal panel to decide on the weight of the argument what date to apply, unless anybody knows of any prior legal decisions that have been made on this subject.
Sorry OP that the above is really just a discussion of a difference of opinion between two of the experts here but hopefully you can turn the lack of clarity in the guidance to your advantage in any admission situation.