Transition from private to state school

[Wiera68]

Hi, has anyone on the forum withdrawn a child (Y1, Y2, or later) from a private school and moved them to a state school? How easy or painful was the process? Is it possible to secure a place in a school while living outside the catchment area, with the intention to move within the catchment area if a school place is granted?

Re transition, places are allocated according to your current address or proof (signed rental contract or sale of house) to where you will be moving, not in a promise to move if allocated a place. You may get an out of catchment place if there is one available and no one higher up the list than you who wants that place.

You can go on the waiting list for any school you want. You'll get a place when one comes available and you are the person that meets the admission criteria the best. (LAC, siblings, address usually).

You have to take the space up within a couple of weeks usually.

The easiest thing to do is to give the school a ring and see if they have any available spaces at the minute. I did this and I was able to go to the school and pick up paperwork that I then sent to the Local Authority. It was a very streamlined procedure.

The only group who can apply on the basis of a future address are armed forces personnel, but they need a posting order or CO's letter as evidence that the move will be taking place.

At that age I’d expect them to transition without too many problems. They’re still very young and should adjust to a new school fairly well.
You can apply to schools out of catchment but they can only give you a place if there is one an available and you’d be expected to move to that school pretty quickly. Your current school will, of course require a terms notice as far as fees go. You may have to have some overlap between new school and paying for old school I’m afraid.

Thank you everyone!

@Wiera68 sorry I meant to address your other question. In my experience (as a teacher) the children adapt quickly. Sometimes they lack independence due to bigger class sizes but they are fine!

If you are willing to take your child to school and the school has a place and no one waiting who would be a higher preference based on the oversubscription criteria then the place should be yours. Schools cannot hold places back (apart from a few exceptions such as returning service personnel) and usually have to admit all who apply if they have a place.

If you go on the group - Facebook- education not taxation. There’s tips on how to do it. You can apply under the freedom of information act and see where there are places in your
local area. A lot of people are moving there children into state since labour have come in, in anticipation of the VAT so there’s some
Good advice on it

I am in a different country, and I moved my children from a private school (where the curriculum was taught in English) to a state school where the curriculum was taught in greek at the end of years 1/3. They ended up repeating the year as their greek was not strong enough, but otherwise flourished and quite happily went through the state system from.then on. My youngest in September will be in her last year of school.. hurrah!

Hi everyone! Can't we ask all the private schools to convert themselves into either state schools or grant subsidised schools? The only difference is they will have to take up more students. In this way, all tax payers are entitled to send their kids to free education which is the law? I don't think the government can refuse this as long as they have achieved the requirements?

please join the Facebook group education not taxation

“Can’t we ask the private schools to convert to state schools…..free education which is the law.”
I don’t think you mean “ask”, what you mean is enforce by law.
secondly, whilst free education is a right, it doesn’t mean that all education is free. So for example music teachers aren’t all forced to give free lessons.
Free healthcare is also a right, so would you ban private healthcare as you wish to ban private education?
Everyone pays for education through taxation. Should parents in fee paying schools not get their £5,000 per pupil refunded to them or their private school?

No.

HTH.

At that age I’d expect them to transition without too many problems. They’re still very young and should adjust to a new school fairly well.

I think it depends totally on the area in which you live, and in which school you get them into. So for example, if you live in Cambridge, there will be little problem. If you live in Doncaster or Boston then you are going to struggle. It depends on whether the demographic of the new school is middle class or not. If it is the kids will have no problem - if it isn't then unfortunately they could really struggle.

There are too many state schools. Many LEAs are closing schools.

"They’re are too many state schools. Many LEAs are closing schools."

With immigration at record highs, presently running at <>20 times the level of the turn of the century, it cannot be long before there will be a baby boom, thus a shortage of schools..

I did exactly this with DS midway through Y2. I called the local authority and asked which primaries would be able to take him from a numbers point of view. Luckily the one I wanted to send him to was under and therefore not running a catchment area as we were 10 miles away with at that point no intention of moving (we did a year and a half later). I just had to reassure that he would be brought to school (no issue, the private school was actually another 2 miles further along the same road). Sent in the forms the week before Christmas, place confirmed and started in January. Worked out beautifully, he was much happier, better school and made incredible friends (as did I from his friends’ mums).

My DD did a teaching placement in a private school year 5 , comparing to state schools she said the kids were significantly behind in English and Maths. They don't have to follow the national curriculum and spent lots of time on broader things eg music, sport etc. Also the behaviour was not as good as discipline was more lax as parents were always complaining if kids were sanctioned in any way.
The class sizes were smaller so there appeared to be more friction between students as they were all very familiar with each other. The opportunities were very good for the kids but strangely resources quite poor. I suppose they are out to make a profit.
I hope your child does settle and enjoys their new school. Kids are very adaptable it's us parents that worry so much.

@Rustygecko "
I think it depends totally on the area in which you live, and in which school you get them into. So for example, if you live in Cambridge, there will be little problem. If you live in Doncaster or Boston then you are going to struggle."

Because there are too many common children?

Oh, come on, we all know 'the code'.

'Middle class' means school-ready, toilet trained, able to take instruction, to sit still, listen, support the school and at least publicly, the teachers, etc.

Of course many non-middle class families expect and instill the same; it's just that we all know it takes 2-3 kids in a class to wreck it all.

Mine moved in y1 and it was fine. She was slightly ahead in writing when she moved but soon just slotted in. It helped that she went to a small state primary I think

@CurlewKate
I would not use the prosaic term 'common' to describe these areas, but rather note that they are significantly skewed towards a lower socioeconomic demographic. For instance, in the socioeconomic grading system of A, B, C1, C2, D, and E, Doncaster has one of the lowest proportions of A and B households in the country—just 3%, compared to the national average of 25%. Boston exhibits similar characteristics.
As a result, a child from a middle-class background is likely to face challenges in schools located in such areas—accent alone can make them a target for bullying. Conversely, a child with a broad regional working-class accent (what some might term 'common') may also struggle to integrate into schools in middle-class areas, albeit facing less overt violence but potentially more subtle forms of exclusion or prejudice.
Of course the younger that the transition occurs the less problematic.

Luckily the one I wanted to send him to was under and therefore not running a catchment area

Having an admissions policy which uses 'Living within the school's defined catchment area' as one of its oversubscription criteria only means that if there are more applicants than places available, (that is, the school is oversubscribed) this is one of the criteria in order of which those applicants will be ranked. If the school has a place or places available and only one applicant, it can't say, Oh no, you live ten miles away and we are waiting for someone who lives in catchment to apply for the place; that applicant has to be admitted, wherever they live.

“Private s school’s have to make a profit.”

2/3 of private schools have no owner for whom they have to make profits - they are charities and all monies are poured into the education.

any half way decent private school would be a year ahead in general, especially those for which you have to pass the 13+ to enter.