1 day late primary admission- please help

[sundowners]

Hi all, please dont flame me- believe me I am feeling guilty as hell, foolish, stupid you name it - enough already. So I had stupidly put the date on my phone as a reminder as Friday 15th 2021- not 15th 2020- which was obviously yesterday. I have missed the deadline for primary place for DD by 1 day. Obviously went straight online and applied.
Her DS attends the school- currently Year 1, we also live very close by- its our closest school.

I don't THINK massively oversubscribed- as certainly in his year so many parents were offered it despite being their 2nd or 3rd choice, but then loved it so much have stayed. However results are great especially compared to some of the other local primary's that were oversubscribed but fallen in result tables so no longer full. So I am very very worried...

Council admissions website states : "between 16 January - 10 February 2020- If there is a genuine reason for late application or changes to your application – for example a change of address or circumstances - supported by written details and evidence, we will treat your application as on time only if the details reach us by 10 February 2020.

After 10 February 2020

All applications received after 10 February 2020 will be treated as late applications and only considered after all on-time applications have been processed. It is likely that there will be no vacancies at the school(s) you applied for, as these will have been allocated to those applying on time. However, if there are vacancies we will co-ordinate offers of places to these schools, based on each school's admission criteria. If there are no vacancies your child may be placed on the waiting list for the school(s) you have applied for.".

I have emailed the admissions team with a grovelling email stating there is no exceptional circumstance other than sheer stupidly at putting a reminder for the wrong year in my phone and realising a day too late. I have apologised, made lots of references to be mortified and accepting this isn't an exceptional case just one of utter stupidity, but asking as DDs brother attends (he is also SEN -not she if that makes any difference) we please be considered.

What do you think our chances are please? Thanks.

Good luck OP!

Okay so siblings are top priority behind children who have been in care so under normal circumstances your DD would have pretty much been guaranteed a place. If I was you I'd be ringing the council and explaining what went wrong. For me this is too big an issue to just wait and see what happens as dropping two children to two different schools would be a nightmare.

Most LAs will regard late as late however near the deadline you are. And you really have not got a very good reason for the lateness.

yes any applications classed as late will not even be look at until ALL the ontime applications have been allocated a space. Doesnt matter where they placed the school etc.
Late applications unfortunately will only be able to access left over places so even if you wee living next door to a school with siblings at the school you would be last in the list as others who had applied on time but lived 3 miles away out of catchment would be above you and already been given a space.

Have you rung your admissions team? I think its best to speak to someone asap as they may have a small amount of leeway

Thanks all BrieAndChilli the admissions office only opens in a few hours but have the direct number, will definitely call (and try not to start sobbing down phone).

I am afraid that you are going to be at the mercy of the local authority admission team as to whether or not they accept your application as being on time. For most LAs the answer will be no and the reason is that you have had since Sept 1st to complete, so it is your mistake. They do tend to be very strict simply because if they allow one, then they lead themselves open to numerous other requests for special treatment.
The level of applications in primary schools is slowly going down so you may get lucky in that the school is not full after the first round of offers. As a sibling application you will be near the top of the waiting list.
Whilst you are beating yourself up about this mistake, you will definitely not be the only person who has made a similar mistake. It is a very frequent reason at admission appeals but not usually a reason that carries any weight for admission

Is the school closest to your home?

I don’t understand why you set an alarm to complete it on the very last day?

it will be treated as late but you are pretty likely to be ok in the end.

chances are you might well not get a place there when the initial allocations are released. you will only get a place then if the school is undersubscribed and that sounds unlikely. however there are almost always churns and changes between allocation day and 1st September. people gain and lose jobs and have to move across the country. military personnel get posted. kids win a place at a private school. all sorts of reasons.

when a place comes free at this school, your dd will be the top of the waiting list as the sibling of an existing pupil, and will get the spot.

Even if you were put down as a late admission, you would then be first one the waiting list for September so the chances of your daughter not getting a place there are very slim. If it's more than a one form entry and you are top of the waiting list then there's probably about a 99% chance of her getting a place.

@sundowners did you phone admissions? Were they helpful?

OP: whether people applying list it as first or third preference makes no difference to where they are ranked in terms of eligibility for the school.

A person who lists it third and lives on the doorstep (if distance is a criteria) will be offered a place ahead of someone who lists it first from far away.

The applications and waiting lists are held in the exact order as to how they meet the criteria.

If you are treated as a late applicant you will shoot to the top of the list if siblings are a priority criteria. You will overtake those who just missed out on distance who applied on time, etc.

If they put you in as a late applicant, and in January you get offered another school (likely):
Accept that school: there is no advantage in turning it down
Immediately confirm with the LA that you want to be in the waiting list for your school
Double check that they have you in the ‘sibling’ category.

Lots of movement on waiting lists all through the year: people decide to go private, move house, get a place at a different school that they are in the waiting list for etc.

It will be a nail biting time but I bet you will get your place.

Sorry, March, not January!

This happened to my friend and it was treated as a late application. She was top of the waiting list as a sibling though and they got a place in plenty of time - you might have to sweat for a bit, but you will be surprised at the amount of movement between April and a couple of weeks into September.