Missed admission deadline.

[Adriana87]

Hi

No real excuse. Our oldest turns 4 in April. He was previously in a nursery that had a pre-school so the plan was always to have him there until 5; he was at that nursery since being 1 years old. Long story short, we changed nurseries but it's just dawned on me that they go up to age 4.

Scrapping around to find something and seeing on pretty much every website I've seen so far, admissions stopped mid January. Does this typically tend to be a hard and fast no, or is there a reasonable chance of still getting a place somewhere?

English state system?
Apply ASAP. In the initial round, you will be allocated whatevers left, but after that, being late will not matter on waiting lists etc.

If you are in Enlgland then yes, the deadline to apply for a primary school place is 31 January. Is that what you mean? your post us not entirely clear. Or did you intend him to start school later, at 5.5? I really wouldn't unless there is some SEN related reason.

Yes apply now through your local authority. You'll be a late application but may still get in where you want, if it's not oversubscribed. Or you can go on waiting lists.

You’ve missed the deadline, yes. I’d apply anyway as a late application. Are the schools you want likely to have a space available?

Apply anyway, even if you intended for him to start a year late I think you were still meant to apply this year and then defer the place (I might be wrong about that.) You might still get a place in the school you prefer.

The English state school deadline is fixed. You can submit a late application now which would be considered after the allocation of on-time applications is made. Private schools may be flexible of they have space.

You need to get in touch with the primary schools you wanted ASAP, let them know you intended to be on their lists, there may be time, if faith schools, to complete a supplementary I formation form for them to advise the council if you meet the criteria for a place.

Even nurseries that have pre-schools rarely take children until they are 5 unless there are special needs involved. I think technically the are allowed but virtually every child starts reception class the September after they turn 4.

If you wanted your child to start school aged 5 you needed to have applied for the place in January and then deferred for a year.

But the local authority is obliged to find your child a school place somewhere. You might need to compromise as it may not be the closest school and it might be one that isn’t highly regarded but if you apply now they should find you somewhere.

I just want want to point out that some LAs have guaranteed acceptance of compulsory school age admissions for summer born children (I.e. starting reception the term after the child turns 5). So it depends where you are in the country as to how easy that route would be. There is a useful FB group about this, plenty of people do this for summer born children without SEN. Just something to consider as it's not clear to me whether thats what your plan always was or not.

Where are you based? In England, nurseries that state up to 5 tend to mean you don't have to leave when you turn 4 and that some children will be there until 4;11. There are very few 5yos in nursery, only a few that have deferred their place at Reception.

Do the application ASAP and see how you get on. You will be offered a place as a late applicant and can go on waiting lists if needed.

I'm assuming you are in England.

Your child must, by law, start full time school at the start of term following his fifth birthday. If his birthday is before the start of the summer term, he must start school then. If it is after the start of the summer term you can potentially delay school until September 2023. If you want to delay until September 2023 you need to talk to your LA about this. They don't have to agree to your request, but many do these days.

If you need a place for your son before September 2023 you need to apply now. They will still accept your application, but it won't be looked at until after they've processed all the on-time applications. That means your son is less likely to get a place at any of your preferred schools, but the LA must find a place for him somewhere.

prh47bridge I think you might be a year out in your post? OP if your child is 4 in April, he would ordinarily start school in Sept 2021 but you could delay his start to Sept 2022 (when he will be 5 and a bit) if you prefer.

You are right. I am a year out. Change 2023 for 2022 throughout my post. Sorry.

If my LA is anything to go by, you are by no means alone in missing the deadline this year, OP. Nothing you can do about the lateness, but try not to worry too much for now.

He will still get a school by law, he just is unlikely to get one that is usually oversubscribed and it will probably be the the nearest school to you with spaces. Have you checked to see the furthest distance of offered place for last year and previous years of the school you want? Is there a particular school you want or are you happy with any?

What do you mean by you were planning to keep him in nursery until 5? Have you got agreement from the council and a local school for a compulsory school age start for summer borns for next September? If not you would have had to home educate once he turned 5. A September born child would stay at nursery until they were 4 years 11 months. That's why nurseries advertise as being until age 5.

Are you after private schools?

If state it shouldn't be an issue, they will find him a place it just might not be your first choice. If private I wouldn't worry too much either, it's uncertain times and there's a good chance some will have space.

I am a bit confused by a preschool that goes up to age 5, don't think I've heard of this in England as age 4-5s are in reception year. But anyway the advice is the same either way - get in touch with LEA or schools you're interested in asap and don't panic. They'll have some people in your position every year.

listen to prh47bridge

sheis the expert on this, and what she says is the actual law, as opposed to anyone's opinion. (apart from the fatc thatshe can't count )

They do have to find him a place, but at whichever school has spaces, which might be on th eother side of town.