Offers Day 1st March 2012

[gazzalw]

Anyone else feeling like we do about the impending Offers Day?

Not at all a foregone conclusion that DS will get into any of first five choices (all selective, two 11+ passes, one 11+ result due this coming week) so rather up in the air.... Sixth choice is okayish but DS has talked it down to the point that he is now desperately hoping it's not his one and only choice! Otherwise DS is being quite mature about considering that he could end up at any of the schools and is already thinking about which friends from primary school he is likely to stay in touch with etc.....

It all feels a bit as if life is on hold till 1st March.....

Sympathies Gazzalw.... This time last year, I was waiting anxiously and got a bad result. Ds1 passed the 11+ but we didn't get an grammar offer. We then went on to win an oversubscription appeal.
So, I'm here for advice, and a shoulder to cry on as I know exactly what it feels like

Thank you - may need to take you up on that....oh dear for you....find it so hard that the DCs can do so well but it's still not good enough.....

No grammars, so no 11+ anxiety here (I had no idea before I joined MN that there are still so many areas with grammars).

I have suddenly become horribly anxious though. DS's first choice should be OK, it's not been oversubscribed before but then who knows? His primary wasn't overly popular when I chose it all those years ago, but now children a few streets away aren't getting in. Same staff pretty much, too. I think fashions change, iykwim.

2nd choice is very, very unlikely and is another school that has become all the rage within a few years.

3rd choice wouldn't be a disaster (although ds hated it - it's very small, CofE and very churchy) but because we're all so keen on #1 we'd be very upset.

I really have nothing to worry about, do I? So why do I still feel so anxious?

Sounds stressful, gazzalw.
Thankfully we have no selectives on our list, so it's all down to the system and the numbers, not to 'how well we did'.
Do you have no good comps in your area?

I think everyone is nervous because there are very few certainties with secondary schooling and as other MNetters have pointed out, living close enough to a good school one year doesn't necessarily guarantee that the next year one will live close enough....

I just think that we are nervous that it's so up in the air and as things stand DS realistically could end up at any one of the six. Know that SIL has two top choices and her DC should with 99% certainty get into one of those so that lower preferences aren't an issue.

One decentish boys-only comp but still not that brilliant that any of us are totally sold on it. Other comps in the area either have the selective element (and are on DS's list) or are to be avoided at all costs....

Think in the weeks before Christmas too busy being distracted by Christmas to really think about it too much, but now that the New Year is upon us and the results are but 7 weeks away, it's time to start nail chewing.....

By the way, without wanting to cause mass panic, has anyone noticed that the Councils are busy, busy, busy expanding primary schools, especially in London and the Burbs, but have they started building new secondary schools yet? No, they will wait till the 2003/04 cohort (who I think are the start of the current baby boom) are in Year 6 and then there will be fun and games....

I must admit I have started counting down the days.
My biggest unknown is what stream DC will be in. It makes quite a difference, but I'm not sure when we will hear that.
Good luck, gazzalw, are the schools you hope for 'super selectives? Do you know whether your child has passed the 11+ before you have to put the schools on the list, or do you have to use up some of your places not knowiong whether they have even passed?
I can see that it is very nail biting!

I don't think any of DS's chosen schools stream until at least the end of the first term; possibly later (in the case of #1, not until Y8). They wait for SATs results (when do those come out btw?) and use their own assessments (teacher and formal I believe).

One school we looked at streams from day one based on exams they set. They were very cagey when I asked about movement between sets - it seems like there isn't much, which worried me.

Counting the days here as well. We are not in 11+ area but local schools is part selective. We should get in by distance but just to boost our chances my DD1 sat the academic test and the music test. We don't have a plan B if we don't get any of our choices. Unless when you take the 11+ that you are told if you passed the exam or not, we don't know the results of the tests at all, just the schools we have applied for know the results.
Less than 7 weeks for the big day
Good luck everyone!

It is enough to make you have too many glasses of vino...oh dear.....Yes, it doesn't really matter whether there are 11+ issues to contend with or selective comp ones (we've got those too!) or just holding out for the best school.....

Yes, 7 weeks tomorrow and counting every day - as I said in the lead up to Christmas it was easy to be distracted by the whole Christmas bandwagon but how do we distract ourselves now.....

I think it would be much better for everyone concerned if school places were offered on the basis of SATS results and streaming done by a combination of SATS results and Headteacher reports..... Know at one of the girls comps near us that they test the girls again when they go for a taster day at the end of the summer term of Year 6....

Any excuse for a glass of wine .

Signing up for the wait, although I don't really have an excuse to turn to drink. gazz, I think frm conversations on previous threads I am in the same quarter of map as you, but close to a v dependable comp, so unless there has been a HUGE explosion of siblings or invisible high density housing between us and the school, we should be confident of a place.

I thiink it's good for the chidren to start to think of themselves going to a particular school. Yr 6 is a funny time for them

Does anyone know, if you appeal, when you hear the result?

Blu, hello! Yes, you should be okay and fingers crossed for you! Yes, any excuse! Think we should have a thread party on 1st March whether it's to celebrate or drown our sorrows!

Gosh BettyBedlam any reason for your pessimism???? Isn't the acceptance timeframe about two weeks after Offers Day - then I am pretty sure you would be giving the Council at least 6 - 8 weeks to sort themselves out for appeals?

Seem to recall when we unsuccessfully appealed for Ds's primary school place we got the original letter to say we'd not been allocated a place in March and the actual appeal didn't happen until June??? Results of the appeals were then sent out about a week to ten days after that.

Guess the best thing would be to look at the Council websites for the schools you have applied for...presumably they will vary from one council to the next?

A thread party is a great idea - I've put it in my diary!

Though I am full expecting the website to crash in our borough, and I will be frantically pressing 'refresh' until my fingers bleed.

We only put one choice down! Despite living round the corner and having an older sibling there, there is a niggly voice asking me what I'd do if it was madly full this year and she got sent somewhere else...

Sounds fine, ElaineRees!

It sounds as if only 180 Looked After children / those with social and medical needs could pip you to the post.
Go to a bookies and ask if you can place a bet on that happening! You might find it re-assuring

I'm sure it will be fine really: just being ware of taking for granted

Right I've put the 1st in diary for a thread party too! We should design a champagne emoticon :-))

Yes, ElaineReese, doesn't sound as if you've got anything to worry about if you live round the corner from the school and DC has older sibling already there....

And iced gems, and cheese on sticks.

My fingers are crossed for all those who are already in tricky positions, appealing grammar results etc. Is there any appeal on other selective school exams?

gazzalw - are you affected by the delay in results from Sutton grammar? here

Yes sadly Blu....DS came home from school really disappointed and sure he won't have been the only one.....Another MNetter has discovered that some boys only took the exam yesterday which might explain why they couldn't give us the results....

Heyho......yes, less than 7 weeks to wait now....

gazzalw I'm not feel particularly pessimistic, it's just that the private schools we have applied for as a back up will apparently want a reply fairly soon, so I am just wondering how it will all work.

Some only took the exam yesterday?
Goodness.
I thought the Sutton grammars were already holding tests as early as September? Surely they can't spin the test period out for months, it wouldn't be fair wrt to preparation opportunity, etc?

Think I might have misinterpreted the thread I was reading (on 11+forum) so disregard that remark

Hi everyone... Just checking in forgot to mention in my last post that I do have a ds moving to secondary this year as well but as he is going to the comp which is our nearest school we don't have a problem. We are waiting to see if he is in the grammar stream though.
For whoever asked about the appeal decision, last year ours was at the end of June and there were still appeals for another grammar in July, so quite a long wait. It really depends on whether the school is an academy or LEA VC etc.
Once you get there though the results are quick, in our case appeal was on Monday, letter on Friday.