Graveney - catchment area half 2012 distance!!

[SWandStressed]

I have just seen the figures for 2013 (and compared them to 2012) and noted the following:

Applications 2115 (up from 2076)
Selective Places 63 (63)
Looked After 6 (up from 2)
Social/Med needs 2 (down from 4)
Staff 1 (n/a)
Sibling Places 102 (up from 81)

Distance offered 1 March 532 (down from 913)

That is a major reduction in catchment - and wonder if anyone has got any idea of why that happened. Was it an anomaly? I guess it must be at least partly explained by the extra sibling places taken up this year.

How near do I have to be to be safe for next year?

Oh. 523 places.

Sorry for being so dumb!

No you guys are talking about 523 m?? Now I am confused!

523 meters. Its a straight line. Unfortunately, you would not be successful this year, but things will vary from year to year. However, and GL might shed some light, unless there is another change to the criteria for next year (or 2015), it is very very very unlikely your DD would get in.

Its the closest, so the criteria won't mention the distance for the upcoming year. 532 (not 523) was that for 2013. It seems to be getting tighter and tighter every year. Sorry. Sounds like you have no little chance on distance, perhaps on the test though.

Alias, I'm not sure that GraveneyLady's info means that 'over half of this year's grammar stream are from FSM backgrounds.' or anywhere near it!

Bear with me - maths is not my thing, but:

"We currently have 310 pupils in years 7-11 who are FSM, ever FSM or children in care/formerly in care (we call these Pupil Premium pupils, as we receive a premium for them). They represent 25% of the total numbers.

Of these 310 pupils, 34 were admitted on test, which represents 11% of the total Pupil Premium pupils in years 7-11."

I take this to mean that out of 310 Pupil Premium Pupils (PPPs) out of the whole 5 year group, 34 were admitted on test.

Which actually means an average of 6.8 PPP's admittted on test each year, and 54.2 non-PPPs.

Ugh was hoping to avoid having to rely on exam results! I looked at Wandsworth state secondary schools brochure and we are over 8-900m away from ALL of them!

DD needs to apply in 2015, so we have some time and could move house and/or her primary school. But don't really want to

So it's just as demanding as 11+ then I suppose! And she'll be doing that anyway for an out of area application to grammar schools.

, you are right Blu! Not so good at multi-tasking as I hoped.

Pls scrub my previous post - I thought it didn't feel quite right.

Blu - Agree (Alias has gone a little wrong). 11% of 63 is 6.9 or so (another way to say result). Still better proportion of FSM than I would have guessed! I think the super selectives only manage 2 or 3%.

Madame, if you come to the next Open Day in October, you can have a look at a map I've prepared showing distances from Graveney, which might help your deliberations. Stressed is right though - you are very unlikely to get in on distance from your current address.

Thanks GraveneyLady. That will be useful.

Have just read all of this thread - how utterly depressing!

Indeed, True.

I love London but good lord schools admissions are far more civilised elsewhere.

Actually, by choosing our closest comp, and putting our second closest comp second, and our third closest comp third, and being happy to accept any of them, and then accepting our closest comp, I found the whole experience of admissions in our area of S London very civillised.

There are 'black holes' and schools which people are less happy to send children to while being in an area with no other options, but overall London, and especially Lambeth which borders Wandsworth, offers the highest chance of your child being in a school rated 'outstanding' than anywhere else in the country.

Coming back to strengthen anti-smug disclaimer, because tight catchments do make secondary adimssions worrying for many many people because of the micro-climate of different catchments and school provision.

But on all the secondary admissions threads this year, I don't think a disproportionate number of anxious people came from London, and much of the nail-biting is (understandably) from those who have opted for the selective route. (often as a response to difficulties described above - but not always, by any means).

Wandsworth has many other great and sought after comps in addition to Graveney, but people in the Graveney area of the borough have less choice in the closest neighbouring borough. Hence the keen interest in Graveney's admissions process and especially in the way it affects the distacne catchment.

I am just v interested in schools provision across S London as a whole because I am passionate about good opportunities for young people, challenging the often negative perceptions of S London and especially it's youth. I am a bit obsessed with it all, really.

Obsessed of S London.

Blu, you are so right about challenging the often negative perceptions bit.

I do think a disproportionate no. of secondary admission threads are about South London - in fact most of the schools near where I live have appeared in thread titles I think - that can't be normal across the country surely???? . Several have received visits from Cabinet members, and several have received attention in the national press, for good (or occasionally) bad reasons over the years. Not normal either.

You are right about the micro catchments an black holes - that does mean you can live within a few miles of four good schools, without a realistic or good chance of getting into any of them, and it is extremely hard to predict so families live with years of uncertainty. Which is very anxiety inducing. Or you can live within the "catchments" of several, as you do.

All this adds up to a very distinctive cocktail, with as you say some really good provision, but other factors making the whole thing complicated and stressful, depending on individual circumstances, so I completely understand the reactions of people not from the area reading this thread.

(They might well ask why school places are not distributed evenly or proportionately by geography, gender, faith, ability, aptitude etc etc.......just don't go there!)

LOL - and of course that's exactly where we should go (re your last line)

Well, I know the schools of which you speak, Tired, and in fact our third choice was one of them - the lottery admissions one . And that's the thing, isn't it - whenever there is a fuss that sends everyone in a frenzy towards a school, other things happen in it's wake, whether that be parents treating the school as a holy grail, or the school pulling all sorts of stunts to keep it's stats up (and this could include , oooh, gerrymandering the intake by various means, making the best, shall we say, of your exam results, introducing selection-like processes in a variety of schools...)

(I may now be deleted )

There are people in black holes, it's awful, and especially frustrating when S London has a galaxy of great schools - from Habs and Sydenham Girls in Lewsiham, Charter, the Harris ED schools in ED and CP, Kingsdale (kids and parents overwhelmingly report being happy), Dunraven, Elmgreen, Chestnut Grove, Graveney, Burntwood, Earnest Bevan and many others (outside my encyclopaedic knowledge ) and so on and so on. And that's without the faith schools.

Mostly what I hear people call for is more co-ed comps with a standard admissions policy (Looked after / Social and Medical / distance).

No, please Blu, noooooo, anything but that, not that discussion [runs to bunker].

Absolutely, you are spot on [taps side of nose knowingly]. Frenzy is not good when years of calm sensible planning are needed to deliver. Nor is the random patchwork of admissions policies, which are likely to get more fragmented as far as I can see, but which are almost impossible to understand at present. I think it is probably worse being in a black hole when there are good schools close - but not close enough. I don't think the problem is primarily to do with the quality of the schools, now, I completely agree (although the problems of the past can cast long shadows - oops veering off to THAT discussion again).

To those who wonder what happens to extension places "taken" by students who live in the catchment area... I understand Graveney has three extension classes, not two - made up more or less of the 63 kids who get in on selection only plus 30 or so kids who would have got in anyway on distance but who also do well in the Wandsworth test.

Graveney Lady, after the admisssions consultation and resulting admissions criteria changes which took effect for 2013 intake, do you know if there are any plans at all to tweek or change them again in the near future (say 2-3 years' time?)
thanks!