In year admission - 2 children but only 1 place

[boyata]

Hi,

We're relocating to a different part of the country, hopefully at the end of May this year. We've been advised that our preferred school (the only one in the village we're buying in) has a place for DS2 (Reception) but not DS1 (Year 2).

We want both children to start at school as soon as we move, but we know that if we were to wait until September to apply for DS1, as he'd then be in keystage 2, he would stand more chance of getting a place as there would no longer be a legal limit on class size.

Should we apply for both places now anyway, and try appealing for DS1's place as soon as possible even though there is still a legal limit on class size? Or would we be better off applying for DS2 now and waiting until the current academic year is over before applying for DS1?

We really don't know how to time the applications, and don't want to risk losing an appeal now, which would mean that we couldn't then re-appeal when DS1 gets to KS2.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Apply ASAP to get on the waiting list. Then its either your choice to accept an alternative school or home educate.

Indeed, apply now, (though you would need the school to agree to hold the reception place until you arrive, which they may not do - normally a a place would need to be taken up within a couple of weeks. Have they indicated they would do this?)

That will get your DS1 on the waiting list, and once your DS2 is on roll, DS1 would I imagine be high on the list as a sibling (check the admissions criteria).

You are correct that there is more chance of a successful appeal for Yr3 than Yr2 if it is infant class size, but you can appeal more than once as long as it is for different years. So you could appeal for Yr2 and then Yr3, with the knowledge that the Y2 appeal is very unlikely to succeed.

The Yr 3 appeal isn't a given either; is there another school you could get him to?