Primary application - e-admissions - borough not listed

[Bec1984]

Hello,
Has anyone had experience of applying to a primary school out of borough?
We live in London and so need to apply to our council area using the e-admissions website however we are planning on moving north before September and so wanted to apply for schools in the area where we will be moving to. The problem is this council area is not an option on the e admissions website!
I’ve sent enquiries to my council and e admissions but they are all closed until the new year and I am aware how close I am to the deadline!! I am just wondering whether it is even possible to apply for a non neighbouring borough?!
Thanks!

As far as I'm aware, it's not possible. You have to apply once you've moved but you'd be treated as out of year so be allocated a place after the January applicants, which may mean you end up on a waiting list for the school you want and initially get allocated a different school.

Thank you so much for your speedy response! On the government website it does say you can apply to schools in a different borough, but it doesn’t state how far away! I wonder if it’s just for neighbouring borough if you live on the edge so to speak.

Regardless of how far away the schools you want to list are, you HAVE to apply to your own borough. They are then responsible for sending your application on.

If the schools are not listed online you would have to send in a paper application stating clearly the schools and council you want.

Remember though that unless the schools you want are consistently undersubscribed you won't get a place (unless looked after).

All schools will have distance as one of the admissions criteria. Until you have an address near the school, you wouldn't be accepted, even if you could apply.

Thanks again everyone. Yes aware of the distance thing - looking at the schools I want to apply to some of them sometimes are undersubscribed so I am just crossing my fingers that one of them will be undersubscribed this year! I figured I’d rather try now and hope for one to be undersubscribed than wait til we move - especially as there is no point applying in London as we won’t be here so that’s be a wasted application.

A slight chance better than no chance is my current theory!

Hopefully there is a paper application form I can use. Thanks again for all your replies.

You need to apply via the borough in which you currently live. As others have said, the potential pitfall here is that, until you have proof of address in the new area, the new local education authority will use your old address and so - unless the school is undersubscribed - the distance will prevent you getting a place. Once you are in the area, with proof of address, that should move you up the waiting list but won’t necessarily get you a place.

Apply as usual within your London borough. Then when you have moved house, apply again via that council. There's no use in applying up north now when you don't live there and it's risky as you might end up with no school place in London if you have to stay for whatever reason

We applied for a school from overseas and got a place. So it’s definitely worth trying it.

Thanks again. I’m aware I have to apply via the borough I live in - the problem is they use an online portal which doesn’t currently list the area I want to apply to so currently it’s a case of “computer says no”!!!
Hopefully the earlier suggestion of a paper application form will work - though obviously I don’t know if my council area do that and they don’t open for enquiries until the new year so will have to wait.
Fingers crossed that’s the solution though.
Thanks everyone for your replies.

I would apply to your current borough regardless. What if you don't move, and end up being allocated a school miles away?

Yes it would be a paper submission if you are moving that far. Schools can offer you a place based on your current address if they have places but they are only going to be undersubscribed ones given the huge distances involved.

If you are sure you are moving and want to secure school places beforehand this is the only way.

Is there anyway of putting an unlisted (I think it was an option on our form)? You should still be fine to get an application in on time, but you can also update, any time up till the closing date. You can apply for any school in any area, in England at least.

You definitely have to apply via the LA in which you currently live and you can apply for any school in England. The home LA then have a legal requirement to pass on your application to the LA in which the schools you have expressed a preference for are. That LA will then put you on the lists for your preferred schools but as others have said you are only likely to get an offer of a place if the preferred school is not full. If the preferred schools are full then your current LA is informed and it would then be a situation that the current LA will allocate a school, even if you do not need it.
You need to be slightly careful in that you can express a preference for 6 schools on the London e-admissions website but in many other LAs you are only allowed 3 preferences. Check with the LA involved and if it is only 3 preferences can be stated then choose carefully.
In theory you can appeal for places at your preferred schools in your new LA after April 16th but I would not expect many appeal panels to consider your initial on-time application to have any relevance, simply because you will presumably still not have moved into residency in the LA.
The other point to make is that if you submit before the cut off date, the application will be considered as being on-time. However if you try and change the application before the national offer day of 16th April then it will be counted as a late application and you will then be considered only after all other on-time applications have been considered. If you are not moving till after April 16th then as soon as you have a moving date and a place of residence then you need to be applying to the LA for a place. If your school preferences are full then you can then appeal from what would be a local address, having a higher chance of being successful in my opinion.