'Challenges': how do these work with school choice order

[nobutreally]

So.... our first choice school (A) is our most local, we're well within catchment and should get in. BUT our second choice school (B) does a 'challenge' thing - so x% of their places are available to kids with appitude for a certain thing.

If we put ds in for the challenge at B (it's an area he has good natural skill, & lots of enthusiasm) what happens if we put the school down as second? I'm assuming applying for the challenge doesn't make any difference to the ranking? Will the school take the ranking into account when deciding on the places (in which case him doing it is probably pointless!) I can ring and ask the school tomorrow, but we're just realised the forms need to be in by lunchtime tomorrow, so I've left it rather late!

Any thoughts welcome!

S

If you meet the requirements for the first school and get it then irrelevant who you put as second.

If you would rather go to the second school then put them first, if you get it great but if not then goes to your second choice which sounds like your local school.

Question is - which one is best for your child? Put that one first.

Thanks, Fan - we'd assumed that was the system.

I'm having a last minute wobble as school B was an outlier, in our heads, but when I went round it (unfortunately, without dh or ds) it just seemed incredibly friendly and nice - which imo is worth a lot! School A is a much, much more sensible choice (better results, better facilities, including for ds's core 'passion', easy to walk to, lots of ds' friends will be there) so I'm putting this down to last minute wobbles!