secondary admissions 2013

[gloo]

Anyone know when the booklets etc will come out for this application round?
Anyone know if the admissions criteria are generally expected to be the same (I know local areas vary, but just wondered if there's any big sweeping national policy change that will affect all areas that I should know about!!)

[mankyscotslass]

Phew!

[Banter]

Just noticed your name - I think that it might be different in Scotland. Can you look at your council's website to check?

[mankyscotslass]

It's ok, I'm from Scotland but live in Manchester now. Thanks though.

[mankyscotslass]

The school I woild like DS to go to still hasn't published it's criteria for admission next year - on the LEA website for this school and one other academy it tells us to contact the school.

Go to the school website and they are still talking about last years admission criteria.

I'll have to call them later.

The other schools, even other academies, have them published.

[admission]

If they have not made any attempt to publish a new admission criteria in the current consultation then in theory the school are sticking with the same admission criteria as this year. But you should ask them the question directly to make sure.

[mankyscotslass]

Thank you.

[CardyMow]

Chippy - that wasn't a comment on YOUR financial situation - it was a comment at my OWN financial situation that prevents me from affording a tutor!

[mankyscotslass]

Just checked our Council website - all admissions criteria will be updated and posted on their website from the 1st May.

And so it begins.

[Rosylee1976]

I have been a wreck for the last 2 weeks now re secondary admissions for 2013. And in those 2 weeks I have been on the phone to the LEA twice. Coventry isn't exactly spoiled for choice and we have not a single grammar school. They all sit in Warwickshire which is a huge county and so highly unlikely we would get in. We live in a rough area, with the local school one of the worst performing in the city. Yes, best results ever this year, but still way too low for my liking. We only get 3 choices of school, whereas other areas get 6! No fair :( I am really worried about the fact that the last child admitted to the school we wanted was 1.3 miles away. We are about 3 miles. Seems so little but in secondary admissions terms it may as well be as far as the moon.

I know people say that a child will do well in any school. That's not necessarily true. Lets not forget there are multiple factors that impact on children's performance at school. The teaching may be fine, but if the children who attend come from homes where perhaps they are not supported academically, or perhaps are experiencing problems, they may not be appropriately motivated to work hard and who could blame them. Parental support and involvement is key to children achieving at school. The need to belong and fit in with peers is hard for kids to walk away from, and one can't always prevent negative peer influence. These are my fears, rational or not, I still worry.

[mankyscotslass]

I thought I would resurrect this thread as our DC are heading into YR6 next week.

First Secondary school open evening already scheduled, the 24th September, it's the one I would prefer (on paper), so we need to have a good look round. The other school that we are more likely to be allocated has nothing on its website yet.

I don't know whether to be worried or not - the less preferable, more likely school has not updatyd its GCSE results, the one I would like is shouting them from every local paper and they are all over their website.

[CouthyMowWearingOrange]

Signing in. Got DS1's forms yesterday.

He is sitting the 11+ in a few weeks, for a superselective Grammar, and I'm not applying until the results for that are out, on the 15th Oct.

We have one open evening for the closest school on the 26th September, and I need to find out when the open evening is for the next closest one too. Though given their results it will be my last choice.

DD has SEN, so when she was in Y6, 4 years ago, I was asking totally different questions at the open evenings.

I am asking about top-set issues and how All the schools feel Academy status will affect their results for DS1's year, and how they push their highest achievers. With DD I was more concerned with their SEN Depts, and the help they would give her.

God, it's such a minefield!

[Viewofthehills]

Couthy- I've been thinking about you and wondering how your DS's revision is going?

[mankyscotslass]

We don't get forms here anymore - everything will be done one line, and we will get more information when they go back to school - but probably not until they have been back a few weeks.

I'm trawling through old posts to get ideas on what I need to know.

[mankyscotslass]

Today is the start of DS1's last year at Primary - I feel very odd about it!

[CouthyMowWearingOrange]

Going well, thank you. He's had nearly a week 'off' from it though, as until 2 days ago, he had a yukky viral thing. I did too.

He's got some to do tonight.

Just 3 1/2 weeks to go...

[CouthyMowWearingOrange]

I think it will hit me when I see the new Reception DC and then look at DS1. It only seems like two weeks since he started YR.

[mankyscotslass]

I think the reality of this being his last year at primary has hit home - he came home today and has said he has been rostered onto hall duty, so needs to be at school early in the morning, and also has hall monitor duties one lunchtime a week. He was a bit subdued!

No mention of SATs, which I am surprised about given our schools reputation.

[mankyscotslass]

Our LEA no longer give parents a copy of the "moving on" booklet, they have told us to down load it and apply for a place on line - I've just downloaded it and its 49 pages long!

We got a letter with the unique code we use to apply on line.

We have all the dates for open evenings so we know where we want to go and look round.

DS has stated a preference for the more academic boys school, and looking at the furthest allocated distance from last year we would have got in, but in previous years they have not admitted from our street, so we will go and look round and see.

Has anyone else had any information yet?

[mankyscotslass]

And the value added scores from the schools have not changed much.

Preferred option 1020

Likely allocated 973

[FoofyShmooffer]

I received the booklet and pack the weekend before DD started Reception class last week. I've only just started looking at Secondary visits for DS. I needed to get over one change before addressing the next. Sappy, I know but it's all happening too fast.

We've got a tour of our first choice tomorrow morning. Really looking forward to it. Open day for our third choice next Thursday and open evening for our second choice the first week in October.

I need to find the thread about questions to ask, i saw it but didn't have time to read it.

The problem is DS has now decided that he wants to swap our first and second choices which bothers me. I'm delaying that conversation until we've seen both places.

[mankyscotslass]

We get 6 spaces to fill in, but where we are in the LEA, realistically there are only 2, or at a push if the Catholic High School is under subscribed, 3 choices for us to use.

First open evening is 24th September, last one is 2nd October!

I need to find that thread with the list of questions to ask too.

[CouthyMowWearingOrange]

Went to the Grammar school open evening in July, got the closest (most likely due to sibling link) school open evening on 26th September, and need to try to find out when the second closest one's open evening is - this thread has jogged my memory that I must ask the school office today!

[Lancelottie]

Hmm. All our local-ish schools seem to be holding open days on the same day. Thanks guys!