Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

Offers Day 1st March 2012

776 replies

gazzalw · 06/01/2012 18:44

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.....

OP posts:
Blu · 16/02/2012 17:55

The Charter in Southwark situation was posted here on MN on 2nd Feb. Lots of people who put Charter as first preference would have put Kingsdale as second or other preference, and as Kingsdale admits on random lottery any change from the Charter list would ripple through Lambeth, Wandsworth, Lewisham, and possibly beyond, as there are loads of applications from all those boroughs.

RE the Lambeth test, as they are purely for banding purposes, I am not aware of the results being published or released at all - apart from in the form of an offer to a school. I am not even clear whether we will be told what band the children were assessed for admission in. Since the school we have applied to uses SATS results and teachers reports to allocate the eventual band, I don't suppose we will be told the band until school starts.

It would be much better if you knew all this before making school preferences. For example, if I had a musical child, I might put Kingsdale first if I knew he had a music scholarship (because the offer is so fantastic) but not if he didn't, because it isn't nearest. If I knew a likely band I would be likely to make a different choice of school depending on whether it operated setting or streaming. And grammar applicants would be spared using up choices if they knew in advance they had not passed.

kravings · 17/02/2012 22:55

@all, just migrated over from indie section as I am waiting for grammar results and eagerly awaiting 1st March. Just catching up on the thread... is anyone awaiting Tiffin/Sutton results?

Original poster
gazzalw · 18/02/2012 09:47

Not Tiffin (we decided it was too anomalous an exam to risk!) but all of the other three DS passed so we have huge anxiety here....

Hello Kravings.....not sure if we are eagerly awaiting 1st March after we have been told repeatedly that even with three passes on his belt DS still might not have scored highly enough to get a place - initially anyway Sad!

Happy days - don't know how you are coping with the double stress of indies and state schools!

OP posts:
Cat2405 · 18/02/2012 15:41

I'm so glad that this thread exists! I'm another SW Londoner Smile and I'm doing this for the first time with my pfb! Eeeek!

According to my local authority's council documents (check out point 19 on page 16) schools find out the results, if possible, by the 24th Feb but us parents don't find out til after 5pm on the 1st March. Where's the fairness in that?! I expect each LA will be different though?

Original poster
gazzalw · 18/02/2012 16:38

Hello Cat2405 welcome - the more the merrier....

No, the only thing that might vary is the exact date when the Heads find out - from a previous year's thread it seemed as if some know by 19th and some a bit later but all before we parents....!

Am fully considering being really bold though and asking the Head for the information - sure it will be denied but worth a try Grin

Do you think you're going to be lucky with the school allocated??

OP posts:
Blu · 18/02/2012 18:50

So is that the secondary school that will be given a list of all children who have been offered a place at that school?

Not the primary schools that the children are at?

It makes sense for the schools to know who has been offered one of their places.

Original poster
gazzalw · 18/02/2012 19:07

Yes, Blu, I've just looked too and I thought it was referring to the secondary schools rather than the primaries...however, the Richmond website gives an awful lot more information than the other Boroughs (don't) - but definitely in the thread from 2010 that I found the implication was that the primary school Heads find out too....

Anyone feeling brave enough to ask the question of their Council Education Department?

OP posts:
Original poster
gazzalw · 18/02/2012 19:43

Or is anyone very close to their DCs' primary school Head???? [grin}

OP posts:
pranma · 18/02/2012 22:27

My dgd hoping for Watford Girls but will be happy with Clement Danes which is her second choice.

Original poster
gazzalw · 19/02/2012 09:48

Hi Pranma! Not very au fait with the Hertfordshire area but sounds good that you would be happy with your DD's second choice!

Countdown to 1st March - 11 days.....

OP posts:
Cat2405 · 19/02/2012 11:13

Thank you for your welcome gazzalw! I'm not confident in anything regarding the admissions process at the moment, it really does seem that a great deal of luck is involved, even if living quite nearby.

I think you might be right, the document does seem to suggest that it may be secondary schools that find out what pupils they are going to take, but perhaps primary schools find out then too? There's no info in there that I can find that says about how primary schools are informed, only a reference to 'all schools'. Maybe a bold and brave question to the headteacher could be in order? What's the worse that could happen?

11 days...!

Original poster
gazzalw · 19/02/2012 12:03

Are there no Mumsnetters lurking who are Heads/Deputy-Heads (or in relationships with one) or work in the Office -who could enlighten us????

Can't believe it!

In one way why should the primary schools know before we do - in a way it's neither here nor there to them is it? Our Head was very anti the selective choices that many of us have gone for so sure there won't be any major congrats if our DCs do get places anyway!

OP posts:
marriedinwhite · 19/02/2012 13:53

We did it three years ago. We had a rather indiscreet primary head. If s/he had had early information s/he would have been incapable of not giving the nod to a few people. I am convinced the primaries were not getting this info in 2009, or 2010 or 2011 for that matter.

CustardCake · 19/02/2012 14:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

bigTillyMint · 19/02/2012 15:02

CustardCake is right - the secondary schools definitely know about exam results the day before and get the list of Y7's before the children are informed.

kravings · 19/02/2012 16:34

I know the head of my DCs primary school very well, I will dare ask her tomorrow, try and catch her in a good mood Wink

jeee · 19/02/2012 16:39

I assumed the schools knew before we did - they certainly had the results of the Kent Test (11+) two or three weeks before they came out (to allow the headteacher appeals). Back at the beginning of October every time I came into contact with any teacher at the school I was trying desperately to read the results in their eyes.

Original poster
gazzalw · 19/02/2012 18:51

If you live in a County/Borough that has selective schools as the norm do the Heads of the primary schools generally regard success at 11+ as indicating something about how their school is performing?

Just wondered because our DCs' Head is very anti selectives and strongly discouraged parents from applying (but we took no notice anyway:-)) so he/she definitely won't necessarily see allocation of selective secondary places to the pupils as a positive!

OP posts:
kravings · 19/02/2012 19:40

should we not be able to see the information under the FOI Act? Its worth a try.

Cat2405 · 19/02/2012 19:53

That was my thinking too kravings - but then I wonder whether making a FOI request and then them responding means that it would be longer than waiting for the actual results? I genuinely have no idea about this Confused, so if anyone does please do correct me!

Cat2405 · 19/02/2012 19:58

gazzalw - out of interest, do you have any idea why your Head is so anti-selective? What are your non-selective options like locally?

Original poster
gazzalw · 19/02/2012 20:26

They are okay(ish) but not brilliant. Think it's down to Heads' politics really don't you?

OP posts:
kravings · 19/02/2012 21:19

gazzalw - which area are you in? i.e. borough?
We are on border of Wandsworth-Lambeth. DSs go to school in Wandsworth, we live in Lambeth. I have couple of grammar choices on my CAF and couple local comps.

CeciC · 20/02/2012 11:42

Well, just 10 days to go!!! pranma, my DD1 might joing you DGD, if one of them don't get their first option. My DD1 has St Clements Danes as first and Watford Grammar as 3rd (based just in distance), but we took the academic and music exams.
She is very nervous, and counting the days too. Everydays when she wakes up, lets me know the days left till she knows her secondary school. Well, hopefully most of us will get one of our options, and all the anxiety will be forgotten.
Good luck everyonw!!!

busymummy23 · 20/02/2012 12:19

Yes the final countdown has begun! We can actually say "next week now"! Clearly St Clement Danes is popular - we have out that third on our list - we would be delighted with any of our top 3. Just think this time next week there will only be three days to go! The end is near Alleluia!