Is anyone here part of private school secondary admissions?

[upupandball]

I have some questions that only admissions can answer.

thank you.

For us it would have been the SEN team to read the full report and then highlight relevant provisions to the rest of the team.

The SEN team can be pretty busy, so I’d suggest when you send it you also draw their attention to anything especially important to you (eg “As you will see on page X, DS needs a scribe for note taking during exams and so I would be grateful if the school could arrange this for the entrance exam”).

Ah that makes sense - in that case when sending it to the admissions team you could also comment that you would like the school to note page X, which discusses DS’s academic ability and potential, and that given he school’s strong record in helping SEN pupils reach their potential you feel this is a good fit etc etc.

I don’t think there’s any point writing to the head, no.

Our head would have forwarded it straight to the admissions team (probably with a note saying, effectively, why is this person bothering me? Please get rid of them). In our case we would then remember your name as somebody who is difficult and trying to circumvent the school systems, so if a place comes up in future that would not count in your favour.

Just let the admissions team know that if there is movement and in future they are able to invite your DS to apply then you would be interested.

And then go and look at some other schools - if this one is not even letting you apply as they are so full then you’re not likely to ever get a place here.

And why would they do that? How is that fair towards the children who worked hard for the entrance exam?

You are coming across as thinking you know more than the admissions team about admissions.
If they are not letting you apply and join the waiting list there is a good reason- probably that the wait list is full.

Try somewhere else.

Why did you miss the admissions?
Why haven't you been to view the school and meet the head teacher once, twice or more?
Why is this school the one you want your child to attend?

I feel that without very good reason, you wont find yourself top of the waiting list. Schools might not think favourably of you if you couldn't meet the deadlines of the very initial stages.

Sorry to say but if they are over subscribed and have a waiting list you are unlikely to get a place if your child has SEN. If they can choose an "easier" kid they will.

@SENnotwelcome i think you’re confused as there are two separate questions being asked on the thread by different posters. One missed the application deadline but is now trying to add her child to the waiting list of an oversubscribed school. The other is asking about process for making a normal on schedule application to a school for a child with Sen, they’re not the same person.

And FWIW that’s not been my experience- I have two SEN kids in mainstream private school and previously worked in admissions where we took lots of Sen kids, it’s just a case of finding the right school for your child.

Ah thanks - I am confused 🤦🏻‍♀️

I am glad you have found the process straightforward- is this in London and recently? We have found certain London day schools to be absolutely ruthless and unwilling to consider even minor adjustments. They are oversubscribed and don't have to.

Not in London I’m afraid, and yes you definitely have to pick and choose schools carefully! We left London largely because our kids had managed to get places at the school we’re now at, the London schools were insanely competitive and stressful. If you can move away life tends to be a lot easier, but I know that’s not always an option.

My screening process was that I started off looking at websites, googling for info on Sen at specific schools, and then I’d phone admissions and ask if it was possible to speak to their SENCO about whether this school would be able to meet needs. I then had an honest chat about what my kids need, and then only applied to schools where they said yes that sounded like a profile they’re used to, they have other kids with those accommodations etc.

Some schools don’t even want you to speak to their SENCO - they have an attitude that if your kid gets offered a place then you can talk about Sen stuff, but they don’t want to discuss it before then and definitely don’t want to make any adjustments at admissions stage. Those are not the right schools for your kid anyway!

Thanks - this is helpful.

I wish we had left London tbh. Tricky with elderly parents and jobs though.

Yeah, that can make it tricky/impossible to move. When we were looking I had posts on here asking about Sen friendly schools in the areas we thought were possible for us and got a lot of useful info - if you wanted to post which part of London you’re in/commutable to you might find somebody on here can give you feedback on options

Thanks again @KarcherK5 and @NancyJoan . I am going to speak directly to the SEN teams before exams I hope but will note those things as per your advice on admissions. Any red flags to look out for when talking to the SEN team do you think? My DS’s profile isn’t super straightforward so I want to make sure they actually understand his profile…

Thats an interesting question @Meforthree . I think looking back on our experience (we could move anywhere within a few hours of London so spoke to a lot of schools!) the big red flags with Sen teams were

• didn’t want to talk at all until kids were offered a place, ie no interest in making reasonable adjustments during the process, no interest in helping us decide if it was the right school before going through the expense/hassle/stress of the full process
• made assumptions about the kids without listening to what we said - one SENCO kept contradicting me that as DS1 was autistic he would definitely need support with transitions. He definitely doesn’t! Not an issue for him at all. I didn’t think we’d be able to work well together even if he got in.
• seeming super stressed/busy!
• superficial knowledge - one SENCO that we met with didn’t seem to know what dyspraxia means or why it might be relevant in school
• rigid ideas of what accommodations would look like, DS2 is physically disabled but does sport with adjustments - one SENCO was very clear that at their school kids that can’t do rugby have library time instead, no alternatives.

On the other hand the green flags were Sen teams that were happy to help us work out if it was a promising school, happy to ask us what we’d like for the entrance exams and reach a sensible compromise, keen to spend a bit of extra time on our application to really be sure it was the right fit. Both kids are now in a mainstream private with accommodations, they joined in reception and will hopefully stay right through to 18 so the school made a lot of effort at the beginning but now have loyal customers!

Interesting! Thank you. And good idea to look or green flags too. It can’t all be negative!

If your dc were at a school where the staff spent their time “supporting” parents who were looking for a place despite the year being full and there was a waiting list, your be rightly indignant that they were not fully focussed on the actual pupils already in the school.

Well obviously kids currently at the school are the priority, but of course staff also spend time talking to potential new parents.

Also I think you are confused between the two entirely separate scenarios being discussed on this thread: nobody is talking about an application for a Sen child to a school that already has a waiting list, we are talking about the regular admission cycle and navigating that as a parent of Sen kids.

Clearly the Op was asking one thing i would like to know how admissions work with getting a place.
The 2 schools that we need a place at say they have a waitlist. We are not on the waitlist as my child did not take the enterance exam. However, school can see his results as it is an ISEB school.
They have not put me on a waitlist
And someone else started to ask a different question!

Yes, there was a discussion about applying late (when the school is already full with a waitlist).

There is also a totally separate discussion about applying for places for Sen kids, but that doesn’t relate to applying to schools that are already full.