Primary school application form - what does this mean?

[adaptiveness]

I'm applying for primary schools, for reception. The form has tick boxes for:

1. I am selecting this school for social reasons.

1. I am selecting this school because of the distance from my child's home to this school.

1. I am selecting this school because it is easy to plan for my child to travel to this school.

Do I tick any of them? I'm applying to the schools for normal reasons. There are no special circumstances. They are reasonably close to my home and I like them. The form provides no guidance.

We had a box saying "I believe my child is in the catchment area for this school" or similar. I did wonder if it was data capture rather than prioritizing tho.
If they are your closest schools, I'd tick the distance, but I'm a mum, not an applications expert!

I'd tick all 3!

How strange. Maybe an admissions expert will be along in a short while...

Your LA will have an admissions policy and my LA does invite parents to say why they want a school. I would be inclined to tick box 2. If your first preference is your catchment school, or the one most local children go to, you can express this by ticking box 2. Social reasons might be going with nursery friends etc. or there might be other reasons. This is more likely to be a reason for choosing a school further away but putting them first on your list. It really depends on admission criteria when you express a preference. Are you likely to get the school you place first? What about getting into the others?

Make sure you list them in order of preference but be realistic looking at admissions data. The LA works from your first preference down using the admissions policies. If the school has a catchment and you live in it, you have a good chance. When you select other schools, you are invited to say why.

Are you in England?

The ONLY criteria they can use to assess your application is the criteria listed in the published admissions policy.

These sound like questions that enlighten them on why people choose the school, rather than anything that forms part of the application / allocation process.

@EdgeOfTheSky

Are you in England?

The ONLY criteria they can use to assess your application is the criteria listed in the published admissions policy.

These sound like questions that enlighten them on why people choose the school, rather than anything that forms part of the application / allocation process.

This. I think it is in the admissions code that they are meant to provide you with something on the form to give your reasons for choosing a school (prepared to be corrected on this) but it doesn't make a difference to your application unless what you put places you in a higher admissions category (e.g. some schools have a category for medical reasons). Places have to be given in order of the admissions criteria, and, as others have said, you should the schools in your genuine order of preference. Best of luck

It makes no difference to the admissions process. It’s just to add info if you want to. You are not obliged to tick any box. Often these elements are raised at appeal though.

This is very worrying. The only criteria by which schools can be allocated is the agreed admission criteria. None of the questions that are quoted have any relevance to being offered a place at the school but will give parents a belief that they do have relevance to their application.
I presume that this is the official LA application form that we are talking about, which must have been agreed by the LA.
Can only say best of luck to the LA when they get more and more appeals because parents believe that they have been given an expectation that answering these questions will be taken into consideration in who gets places at the school.

I think these are leading questions so to speak but giving reasons why you want a school is there in admissions policies. I looked at my LA to check and there if was!

Op, tick as many as apply to you.

If it's likely friends of your dc will be going there, tick the social box, etc etc

I'd also recommend applying for as many schools as it gives you options for.

Although you're most likely to get the one closest to where you live

Depends on how big the cohott is and how popular are the school(s) you want

Cohort.

Thank you auto correct

The Admissions Code requires the LA to allow you to state your reasons for naming each school. It is completely pointless - your reasons play no part in the admissions process at all.

It is the format of the online form. All LAs have software provided by Capita and it is rolled out the same to all LAs.

Often we have social or travel boxes ticked but we disregard them because they are not in our over subscription criteria.

Capita also provide the Admissions portals that schools or LA admissions log into to see one-year and first admissions applications to process them (if they do their own processing). They are obviously created in line with the contract they signed- they are not created with admissions staff in mind!

Our LA had boxes to tick as to why we were choosing that school. I phoned & queried it. They said it was data for them & nothing to do with your actual application, they can only go on the published criteria. We also had a box where we could right a full reason but again, pointless. They can’t actually use it!