East Ren catchment school issues

[trixymalixy]

I've been seeing on social media various comments around children not getting into their catchment schools in East Ren this year.

Can anyone clarify exactly what is happening, how big an issue this is and whether it's happening at P1 or S1 or both?

Given that it all just kicked off on Friday for the P1 submissions there's no statistics yet but I think there's a fairly significant number of parents in NM that haven't gotten into their catchment schools despite being within catchment.

I haven't heard of the same issue at other schools in ER. Despite the schools in Clarkston being routinely oversubscribed they seem to manage it well.

For S1 I think there's been some boundary changes. I don't have kids that age so have no anecdotal evidence.

It's a massive issue for locals as ER want to build even more houses but there's no more non-denominational schools planned.

Boundaries were already redrawn fairly recently, if they're redrawn again a lot of people may have paid way over the odds for the homes they are in as they were paying for the catchment.

When our local primary had too many catchment children, initially they were offered spaces at a choice of other local schools. When this proved unacceptable to the majority, eventually they were allocated a portacabin classroom and ultimately they had to expand the school.

Wankers that's what I thought had to happen. I knew there were going to be issues this year with placing requests, but for children in catchment not to get in is quite worrying. We have just bought in East Ren and thought we were sorted but now having a bit of a panic.

We are very close to our preferred school, although my children don't go to the catchment primary. I am going to phone the council and ask if moving them to the catchment primary would be a good idea, but I imagine they are very busy just now.

I think the parents had to seek support and publicity from local press/MP before portacabin solution was given. Luckily there had been a cabin on site previously when the school was being expanded from 4 to 8 classrooms so there was still access to mains drains/water and power supplies so they were able to install it during the summer holidays.

There was a furore when parents were initially told that spaces in the school would be allocated on the basis on when people had registered their child. That was subsequently changed to those siblings already in the school being given priority - still furore, so they then hoped that being offered spaces in what were quite frankly more desirable schools would solve the problem, it didn't. They then offered to also give places in these more desirable schools to older siblings too. All of this reduced demand by a few places, but in the end people wanted a space in the school that their children could walk to.

School now up to 10 classrooms and they still need the portacabin...

I'm not sure if there may still be some movement if people have applied for and are successful with placing requests (or private schools), which may release some catchment places? I hope it all works out for people.

This is actually affecting quite a lot of the central belt.

Basically, after the school closures and rebuilding programme that happened about 15-10 years ago, school populations have continued to rise (the rise of the new build estate, immigration etc). Placing requests have also became more popular. Up until fairly recently, this hasn't been a problem and it's been pretty much guaranteed that your placing request will be granted.

Many schools are now full and for whatever reason this year, things seem to have come to a head and there are only spaces for catchment kids. This means that all the children who have traditionally lived in X but gone to Y are going to X. Then the children who live in Z but go to X can't get in... and it all backs up from school to school and LA to LA.

Primaries seem the most affected this year. I suspect in the next 3-5 years, the big cohorts of children will move up to secondary and we will see the same issues.

Sorry, seem to have missed the point slightly!

RE catchment children not getting in, I think it is some similar issues:

• schools closed and/or (re)built for existing populations, ignoring massive zones of new housing.
• massive zones of new housing built without considering the effect on local schools.
• assuming that 20% of catchment will always make and be successful with placing requests.

I heard that for new builds they have to build a new school for every 600 houses built... oddly enough the new homes at the area total something like 590. JUST under the threshold so that they don't have to fork out.

It's shocking. AFAIK placing requests seem to be far stricter at High School level.
In 2015 185 of 543 placing requests for East Ren high schools from people living outwith were rejected.
In 2016 this rose to 360 of 531.

I have to admit that I did vote today for a local candidate who had a policy of 'local schools for local kids.' Every child should be able to go to the school nearest them.

Is it the denominational schools?

No, a few non-denoms as well.

Kirkhill definitely having issues (in NM).

I had heard about OLM but didn't realise that kirkhill had issues. I also heard that the new school hasn't had as much take up. I wonder if that has made a difference?

The new denominational school? I hadn't heard that but I thought it was quite shocking that they were aware of how squeezed all the local schools are and then they went ahead and built a school that is not accessible to everybody.

Yes there is a new multi faith campus which will open after the school holidays. Calderwood lodge school and St Clare's are the two schools. With this open and the new admissions policy, these should ease pressure on other schools.

See, this is why they need to stop mucking about with religion and schools. School for learning and faith for history home. Then they just have to deal with numbers of children, not try to calculate which form of drivel their parents might believe.

Totally agree.

trixy what is the procedure for registering at high school if your child is not in one of the feeder primaries? My ds is at primary on a placing request but will probably go to catchment high school. I will phone the high school to find out next year as I want to make sure he can visit the school before he goes.

Not sure if it's the same process Sponge, but in our council, all pupils were given a form to complete in P7 where you indicated if you were going to catchment or submitting a placing request etc. I'm sure that would give the opportunity to name your DS's catchment as his intended school.

Also worth phoning the high school to check when their induction stuff is happening.

We were the opposite, catchment primary and Placing Request High School.

If he lives within catchment it shouldn't be much of a problem at all. When the school is made aware they'll inform you of open nights etc.

Thank you wankers and trolls it does sound quite straight forward.

Thank you wankers and trolls

That might be the best sentence ever.

what is the new school being built opposite mearns castle?

It's the multi faith campus.

high school or primary?

Sorry, it's for the upgraded Calderwood lodge primary and the new St Clare's primary

thanks