Changing secondary school choices

[allthatIcando]

I applied for various secondary schools for my daughter for Sep 2022 but have unfortunately now found out about a proposed change to a bus route that would make getting to one of them difficult.

I appreciate that it might not be possible to change my choices now, but if I get offered the school with the now non-existing bus route what are my options? I guess I have to accept the choice but can I remain on the waiting list for others (even though they were lower down my preferred list) and how would I let the London borough concerned know?

Thanks for any advice

I would wait until March and go on the continued interest list for your new priority school.

You don't know you're definitely going to get your lesser favourite school anyway

How difficult is the new journey and are you sure you'll get that school anyway, if it's hard to get to?

Do not make any change now. Any change now, if you are not moving house, will be treated as a late application so you would go to the end of the line in terms of being offered a place at a school you want.
You need to leave it to March 1st when you will know what school has been allocated. Hopefully you will get one of the other two schools you put down as your preferences.
If the worst comes and it is the school that you now cannot get to easily then you should accept the place offered so that you do have a school place as a last resort. You can then apply for a place at any school you wish to off the waiting list. It is quite possible that the LA will be in touch if you request a place at a school lower down the list but just explain the reason. It is likely that there will be more than you faced with the same problem. Just make sure that the LA confirm that you are in the waiting lists for al the schools that you want to be considered for.
You should also then appeal for places at the other two schools in your preferences with the reason being the change in bus routes makes it impractical to get to. By just appealing for the two schools that were your other preferences you help to confirm to any appeal panel that this is a genuine reason and not you or child changing their mind over the school of choice,

How many pupils use that bus route to get to that school at the moment? If it's a proposed change, rather than definite, it's possible that the argument will be being made that the change in route would cause significant issues for those already at the school.

Thanks for all the messages. The proposed change I think to bus routes is now definite when TFL have the funds (so maybe next year or maybe never ...). The new journey would involve changing buses whereas at the moment it is door to door so a long more annoying, I would not have wanted that for my 11 year old. She is quite likely to get the school as it is semi-selective and she did well in the test - but I will wait and see what happens post-March.

If it makes you feel better, a good % of the DC at our high have to navigate two buses. The distance as crow flies isn't far, (all mess than 2 miles direct) but no direct buses in some directions. The Yr7 all cope fine.