State Primary School

[Zhila]

Hello everyone, what to do if my chosen school for my child is full? We are moving to a new area by the end of the month and the school that I would like my child to go to is full and I was told by council that I need to put him on waiting list. I am Christian, and this school is a outstanding Christian primary school which is important to me. Do you think I should contact the school directly? Is there any possibility to get a place for him to start the reception this coming September? And is there really a difference between outstanding state school and outstanding/good private school? Sorry to ask you all these questions I only went to university in the UK so dont know much about school system here :(

Thank you for your help :)

You'll be on the waiting list. There may be some movement so depending on how far up the waiting list is you may have a chance. I would say that yes there is a difference between a state and private school. The private school tends to have smaller class sizes, better facilities (more emphasis on sport and music), the quality of teaching isn't guaranteed to be better - depends on the school, the private school will tend to have a larger catchment - so less local friends - all walking to school together etc obviously less diversity in the kind of demographic the school attracts.

In terms of which school will be best for your child you definitely can't judge purely on "outstanding"/private/state status, you'll need to look round and get an impression of the ethos and whether it'll suit your child.

Is he on the waiting list for this school now?
Do you know how much higher his waiting list place will be when the move takes place?
The local authority should be able to give you this information, even if it is a little rough.
Schools will not go over 30 places in Reception, but some people may not accept their place.

Are state and private schools on a level playing field no. Private schools do not have OFSTED, so it's a little difficult to measure them against each other.

Go state if you can get him and treat your child to holidays with the money you save. You could also strongly support the PTFA or similar or make a regular donation, state school are in a funding crisis and the government doesn't care.

The local authority will have an obligation to you when you move to find you a place somewhere, but this may not be in a school of your choice.

You can the waiting list for your chosen schools, and you can appeal. Which year is your child in?

Thank you very much Paddington68 for your reply :) No he is not on the waiting list yet, I called the local authority this morning , the lady that I talked to said there is no place for that school and I need to put him on the waiting list. I did ask if there is any place available for year 1; the same replied that there is no place. Do you think I should call the school directly? or this would make no difference?

Thanks again :)

Thank you PatriciaHolm, he is going to start Reception in September.
He has a place at a private school and the reason for that is the schools near our current house are not good and I was told that I need to apply only to the school in the catchment area. That is really the reason that we are moving but I guess it is late now :( maybe I can still have a chance to get him a place for Year 1

Thank you :)

Speaking to the school would at least get you on their radar.
I read this as you child would start school in Reception in September 2019. So once you have moved the local authority will be more engaged with you as your child will live in that LA.

The school will roughly know their waiting list and where you would appear on it. There is a lot of movement between National Offer Day (Tuesday 16 April) and when school starts in September. Parents have two weeks to accept the offered place, so you haven't reached that point yet. Late applications will be added to the mix two weeks after National Offer Day. (I'm speaking as a London Local authority other local authorities may do something different)

The school will not go over the 30 children they have in each class.

So once you move, you will either be added straight into the mix of waiting lists or some local authorities do this on a weekly or fortnightly basis.

Does the school in question have a supplementary information form policy for Christian children that you fulfil? If they have such a policy, you could at least get the supplementary information form completed by your current vicar/priest etc before you move.

If Reception is full now, year 1 will be assumed to already be full unless a child subsequently moves away/leaves and if yours is top of the waiting list at the time you may be offered a place. However you would not know until it happens. The waiting list is in the same order as the admissions policyYou also may be top of the list one day but if another child applies , living closer or with a sibling link, they can move yours down and be offered the next place if and when it comes up. Class size does not change until year 3 so there is no flexibility until then. Also bear in mind that if you do go private and are then offered a state place you may need to take it up quickly and pay fees in lieu of the notice period.

Thank you LIZS :)