Can a primary school reject a new pupil because they are too young??

[Monobrow]

I've got a couple of years to go yet, but want my dd to go to the local Catholic primary. It is quite difficult to get into as it has very good ofsted reports and a great reputation. A friend of mine has just had her son accepted but a friend of hers was turned down. The friend of hers lives 2 doors away from her, is a regular churchgoer, are both practicing Catholics..the only difference is that her ds was a summer baby and will be only 4 yrs 2 mths when he starts in Sept (just one intake). Would a school turn down the younger children?

[hana]

would seriously doubt this is the reason they would give
sounds odd, must be more to it

[dustystar]

I would doubt very much that age had anything to do with it.

[meemar]

If the school only has one intake they have to include summer babies. Age can't be the reason they turned him down.

[PrettyCandles]

This doesn't make sense. He'll be of school age - so not a reason to reject him. There were children who had had their 4th birthdays a week or two earlier starting in September with ds1.

[Monobrow]

Hmm, I agree there could (and hope) there is another reason other than the fact they dont want younger children in the class. I have no experience of how a class of just four year olds and nearly a year older kids get on. Do the older ones learn much, much quicker than the younger ones?

[dustystar]

If they are oversubscribed they have to make choices somehow. Those 2 doors further down the street might have been the deciding factor.

[Nemoandthefishes]

He is still of school age..would be more likely they are oversubscirbed and she hasnt been one of the first with her form in.

[Kewcumber]

our local state nursery school prioritises based on age - obviously oldest first. they said they are the only borough-wide dedicated nursery school and they ahve to prioritise somehow. I suppose its possible that a primary might take the same approach but oversubscribed primaries generally go on distance to school.

[Kewcumber]

how regular is "regular churchgoer"? My cm was almost turned down for her youngest DS (despite all three other chidlren at the same school) because she only went to mass twice a month. This despite having four children, a DH who worked shifts and providing occasional weekend respite care for a severely autistic child . HE got in on appeal in the end.

[pedilia]

sorry to hijack- can you still apply for a school place even if they only take from 5 and your child is younger?

In September DS2 will be 4 11 months and I feel is ready for school espcially as his nursery friends will all be going up to the primary school.

[dustystar]

Where abouts are you pedillia? In England children can go to school from the school year that they are five.

[dustystar]

This means that some will only just be 4 when they start.

[jangly]

If a school did turn down a 4 year old on grounds of too young, would they take him in the next year when he was 5 and 2 months?

[Monobrow]

Kewcumber - regular as in, 2-3 times a month. We go to mass as often as poss but not possible every week with illnesses/visiting friends or relatives/weekends away. What I should of said is, my friend goes to church as regularly as possible - and has done for years. Very sad for your cm - thank goodness appeal worked.

Friend also said someone she knows from her pn class only started attending mass last Sept but got in.

[Kewcumber]

I think local priest here is an arse (am I allowed to say that about man of the cloth?)

[dustystar]

It might be that then mono. Catholics are required to attend mass every sunday and also on Holy days of obligation. If her attendence is lower than her neighbours then that would have made a difference.

[CHOCOLATEPEANUT]

my dd started at catholic primary last sept.They take them full time at nursery age (3) at our school which is also v popular and has v good ofsted reports

dd was actually 4 in nov but some where only just 3 at end of aug but it made no difference and they all started at same time and 6 months later are all doing well

[Monobrow]

Well, just looked on the school website and the school only takes children in the year they turn five. So, as they only take new ones in in September, my dd will be 5 years and 2 months. I didnt realise this. I thought she would go when she was 4 years and 2 months. Confused now.

[dustystar]

That'll be the school year mono. Sept-aug

[dustystar]

She will go at 4 years 2 months if you want her to. However there is no legal requirement for children to attend school until they are 5.

[CHOCOLATEPEANUT]

some start at nursery class aged 3 in sept
some in reception class aged 4 in sept
but legally as said they must go by age 5 in sept (primary one)

[qjbtc]

My dcs attended catholic schools in our area, both primary and secondary. The schools they attended had published admissions criteria. These were a list of catagories the school worked through until all the places were filled. At my daughters primary school a place in the nursery did not guarantee a place in the main school. I had to reapply. I can't remember the catagories for primary but she is due to move to the high school in September examples of criteria were,
1.Baptised Catholic children attending a catholic feeder school who have siblings already attending the school
2.Baptised Catholic children attending another catholic primary school with siblings already at school etc. etc.
None of the criteria were age based, but if a catagory was over subscribed they allocated places on how far from school the childs home address is. Does the school not have addmissions criteria like this....I thought they all did. I thought they had to reveal how they allocate places

[qjbtc]

I know of a family who converted to Catholicism in order to get their daughter into a very good selective Catholic High School. To best of my knowledge they never returned to church after she got a place. VVV wrong in my opinion.

[CHOCOLATEPEANUT]

We have just seen our priest to arrange ds baptism and he said he regulary gets calls from families asking for thier dc to be baptised catholic when they have already been christened c of e or methodist and sometimes the dc are as old as 10