Anyone nervous for primary school admission results?

[ThisIsTheEndgame]

State primary admission results are.out this week. We have to wait for a letter, how retro, as we did a paper application for a deferred Reception start (DD is 5 in July, some minor additional needs). Really really hope we get a place at the friendly local school a 5 minute walk away! Anyone else waiting and want to chew their nails with me?

twenty bandits appeals and waiting lists have no connections. The only way you will win an appeal for reception is if you can prove that there has been an error in the allocation, ie you were placed in the wrong category, your address was wrongly calculated. The advice given by the MN very knowledgeable appeal experts is firstly accept the place you have been offered so you know you have a place in September, second go on the waiting lists for schools you prefer. If you want to appeal then the best thing would be to start your own thread and ask for advice about how to maximise your chances.

I work in school admissions - we know it's a stressful time for all, but I can assure you, where we are the admissions authority (i.e. not an academy, free, foundation or a church school), it really is all done by the board.

I can assure you we get more than a third of parents put a single choice of school, and they are usually the ones who get most upset when not allocated the school. They're usually also the ones who don't fill out the supplementary application form church schools ask for, nor attend the banding tests that some secondary schools ask for. Parents often think they are "forcing our hand" placing a single school on the list. No, we will then allocate you the nearest school that has a place free - this could be some distance away. The same with people who put the same school 6 times ! Thankfully, the software now rejects that.

I can reiterate what the poster above says

But also, if you appeal...have a point. If you just turn up and say you "deserve a place", then the panel will do nothing. You need to pinpoint an area which you think the admissions authority has made a mistake.

And reasons for that do NOT include "I know someone from further away who was admitted". This could be due to the sibling rule, or because the child had medical or social needs.

Riceuten - Those are precisely the things that the MN education threads regularly advise people not to do but, sadly, not everyone reads MN!

Well, they'll have to accept my appeal because I can't travel to any other school as I have anxiety and depression. This is the only school I can travel to. That or she won't be going to school I guess. 🤷‍♂️

It is very unlikely your health issues will influence an appeal, especially if it is Infant Class Size and the criteria was correctly applied. Are there any family , friends or even a childminder who could do the school run while you wait it out?

We have no family here, no friends, no car.

Oh and no money for a childminder.

I would say 8 out of 10 appellants are rejected solely on this basis. Even though it says in the letter that your case will not be discussed unless you give grounds. Even when you ask for grounds at the hearing. Even when the clerk at the meeting tells the parents to ensure they have grounds for appeal

*sigh

I would reiterate that a parent's health issues would be unlikely to affect a panel's decision, unless that impacted on the child. It would be something you would need to have made clear to the admissions authority prior to admission of the child at the application stage, so a place could be given on a medical or social reason. The admissions authority would need to know that in advance, and then the appeals panel would be based on whether they had assessed this claim of a medical social place properly OR that the admissions authority knew about the medical social priority and did nothing.

Not sending your child to a particular school places absolutely zero pressure on the LA (or admissions authority of the school) - people think they can blackmail the school or LA into taking a child. It absolutely does not work that way.

Unfortunately they won't have to accept your appeal. You can stay on the waiting list for the school you want but if a place doesn't come up before the start of school you'll have to go elsewhere or home educate until a space does become available.

Waiting lists change depending on who meats the criteria so if someone was to move closer to the school etc they would go in front of you on the waiting list.

Please please please stop worrying for those of you who are . From experience kids will do well with supportive ( not pushy ) caring parents in any school if bright wherever they go . Have confidence and talk to any experienced teacher as all those I know tell me this and from having my own children I believe them💐

Waiting lists change depending on who meets the criteria - so if someone was to move closer to the school, they would go in front of you on the waiting list

I can't reiterate this enough as well. Waiting list is a complete misnomer - indeed, some schools have taken to calling it a "priority list".

TwentyBandits - Some schools have in their oversubscription criteria a category for social and medical needs and at some schools this will cover the parents' needs as well as the child's. But to benefit from this category, applicants have to supply relevant supporting evidence with the application. Does your preferred school have social/medical need amongst its admissions criteria and did you submit evidence of your health issues?

If yours is an infant class size appeal, you will win only if you can show that there has been an error which has deprived your child of a place or the decision was so unreasonable as to be irrational. You can argue that your health issues make the refusal of a place unreasonable but, if you didn't mention your health issues when you applied, the panel may take the view that the school/LEA can only act on the information available at the time of the application and so has not acted unreasonably. You can of course home educate as an alternative to sending your child to a school you don't like, but be aware that panels don't like to feel they are being blackmailed so saying "allow my appeal or I'll home educate" won't help you win the appeal.

We’ve had an unusually low birth rate year where I am. Every child in the town except one got their first choice school - which is unheard of previously!

Just accepted our second choice 😱 and taken ourselves off the continuing interest list so we’re going to hell in a handcart 😂

—or the second choice cofe school depending on your POV— 😉

Kind of relieved to have the whole thing settled if not quite the outcome we hoped for.

@riceuten I've been engaged in a bit of a debate with another local mum as she is convinced that the oversubscribed school DD got into a couple of years ago has been able to circumvent the system and select pupils even though admission is controlled by our borough's learning trust. I assume this cannot be the case? It's a local rumour that even DD's childminder thinks is true.

DD got a place although we are out of catchment and she didn't meet any of the other criteria: looked after child, sibling, child of a teacher etc.The final criteria is distance from the school. She was at the nursery attached to the school which I understand has no bearing on Reception admission. According to the learning trust's report, the school received almost 400 applications. 1 child offered a place under ECPH criteria, 6 siblings and the rest catchment. The local mum lives opposite the school and didn't get in. We live a 25 minute walk away. I'm very relieved and grateful we got our first choice but there is quite a bit of drama over this particular school's intake.

I'm in Scotland, what is primary school admission results??

Eastie77 either they have made a mistake in your favour and in which case that mum would have grounds for appeal or her living opposite isn't actually in catchment. The school my dd got into the way the catchment goes that those living across the road aren't in catchment but I at 1.5 miles am.

Hello...

First time poster...
Completely gutted with the school placement. Felt... this is it... the end when it hasn’t even started for my youngest!
None of our school choices were presented. I have been to this school for other reasons, a few times that too. And in all honesty have nothing good to report.
I wish to appeal. And who do I call if I need enquire where my child stands on the waiting list??
Please help....

@happyhillock - so I understand that in Scotland children. Just go to their nearest school? In England it’s not that simple, oh no! Parents/guardians apply to their 3 (or more, sometimes up to 6 I think ) favoured schools in order of preference. Schools allocate places to applicants based on whether the child has siblings there and how close they live to school, amongst other criteria. If a school is oversubscribed some children won’t get a place at 1st choice... sometimes a child is not prioritised for any of their choices, in which case the local authority are required to allocate them a place at the nearest school that has places in that cohort. It can be a very stressful time!

AsianTiger - If you start your own thread with more details of your preferred school(s) and why you missed out on a place, you’ll get plenty of advice.

Asiantiger- sorry you’re disappointed. You need to ring your local authority to find out where you are on the waiting list. Have a look further up this thread for advice about appeals. You’ll most likely have to prove that the admissions authority made an error if you want to appeal.

It’s not the end, don’t worry. The school you’ve been allocated may not be as bad as you think.

twentybandits - what is the intake at your school - is it one form, two form etc? Just trying to get a sense as to how likely an offer is based on being 6th (although as others have said you can move up & down the waiting list)...

I do hope you get your place but I think you should also start exploring options in case it doesn't materialise. Your chances of an appeal based on the information you've supplied (although you are yet to clarify about social/medical admission categories) are low and you have time now to explore other options - has anyone near you been allocated the same school, could you share travel arrangements etc; could you home ed if needs be etc etc

How do you find out where your child is on the waiting lists?