Can you apply for a reception place at two schools in different parts of the country?

[Justanyrh1]

I don’t know if we’ll continue to live where we are or be moving to a town 70 miles away by the time she starts school next year. When I apply in October can I apply to a school/schools in the town where we don’t yet live if I know what the address will be if we do move there? Thanks

No. You need to be living in the right area for a school and provide proof too....council tax receipts etc.

You can apply out of county but chances of you getting a place at such a distance are remote if it is a popular school. How would you rank it, you will only get one place allocated.

You can, but you’d need to express a preference for one of them. You can’t have both as first preference just because they are in different areas.

You’d need to apply for both schools to the LA where you are currently living. If the oversubscription criteria are based on distance you are going to be ata huge disadvantage being 70miles away though.

You can apply go any school you like BUT you have to apply through your local LEA using the address your child lives at at the time of application. You cannot make one application from one address and another in another LEA from another address. You will also only be offered one school, not one where you live now and one where you want to move to. A

If you move after applications close, you can make an late application to the area you move to; some will have a period of grace after applications close to allow for this, some don't. If they don't, you would count as late application and be dealt with after all the on time ones.

If you are definitely or probably moving, name the school(s) in the new area as your highest preference(s) on your CAF. That way, although you - probably- won't be offered a place, you will go on the waiting list, as you will have been offered a lower preference school in your current locality (or, at worst, the nearest undersubscribed school, but that doesn't really matter if you are not going to be taking up the place anyway, bit more of an issue if you don't move).

Then when you do move, you will move further up the waiting list for the now local school(s) and should in the meantime either be able to add more prefences through your new LA and will at least be offered the nearest undersubscribed school there.

Thank you, that’s really helpful

Oh ok thank you, I thought October was the deadline! That helps

31st October is the deadline for secondary school applications.

Controversial. But unless they are neighbouring counties I cannot imagine for one second they would have a clue that John Smith has applied for a place in two places.
Yes neighbouring LA might match up a date of birth and a parent if they have lots of cross border applications and certainly London who use a central based system.

Elsewhere? I doubt it.

You only have to provide evidence of address after allocations - ie right now, in fact the deadline was today in my LA. Not before.

Everyone will jump on and scream wrong wrong wrong.

If I genuinely didn't know which house I was going to live in and I could PROVE my residency at both times at both addresses.....

70 miles is a long way.

Running for cover now.

I do work in a related to the subject role. So whilst I should agree with everyone else, I can also identify the flaws.

Thanks @DungtwiceBother that did actually cross my mind

Which is why many LEAs now ask for a council tax reference at the point of application....

And like the other thread where some LEA don't seem to accept exchange of contracts in admissions, very few ask for proof of address at the point of applying.

There are many holes in the system sadly.

Our LA asks for council tax for this year AND last year. If you haven't got last year's, the school will look more closely at where you were living previously and when you moved. And all evidence has to be dated within 3 months either side of 15th January (so you can't come in now with evidence dated May).

I couldnt apply for a place until I had moved x

I moved 280 miles. I didnt need to show evidence though.