Secondary waiting lists query

[SuperSue77]

Hi, does anyone know when waiting list places get offered to students? Or does this differ depending on which LEA you're with? We've been told to accept offers by 15 March and from 23 March you can call LEA to find out where you are on waiting list - though I think you call the school itself if it's an academy. So if some people have declined places by 15 March, does theLEA/school ring number 1 on wait list and offer them a place straight away, or is there a further wait? Appeal deadline is 29 March, so do they wait until after they have heard appeals to offer places on waiting list? Does anyone know? TIA :-)

I think they are all different. Our LA there is no deadline to accept they just assume you have (always means some movement on day 1 in September as some never told schools they were going private). And they start offering from the wait lists 20 school days after national offers day. Ours also will not tell you where you are on a wait list. Good luck

Our waiting lists come out here in early April. It should tell you on your LEAs admissions section of their website. I suspect each Borough does it differently.

Have you tried Googling "secondary school waiting lists 2023, your boroughs name" and seeing if anything comes up?

Appeals are completely separate. They are not allowed to ‘hold’ places in case of appeals.

We were on our waiting list for three weeks - it's an academy but the LA handles admissions. I rang the LA on D-day, asked where we were on the waiting list - she said 1 - I cried. She was very nice. Three weeks later we got in but christ it's stressful and awful to go through.

Thanks for the answers. @Neighneigh you must have been so relived! I don’t think we’ll be so far up the waiting list :-(
@Smithstreet my LA sounds much more organised, but I think quite a lot go private round here so they need the spaces freed up and there is quite a lot of movement before 1 Sept.
@Dacadactyl I know they tell you waiting list info from 23 March, just not sure if they start allocating spare places at that stage or later.
@EduCated thanks - I assume they allocate the spaces created by those refusing the offer with waiting list and then any successful appeals will take them over PAN.

Our LEA waiting lists are live on the website now. However it is a moving feast. Late applications will be added as they come in - we went down the lists 8 or so places when they were added last year. Ours updates regularly to begin with as and when. Then it moved to every Friday.

I rang our local authority on Wednesday to find out where he is on our first choice schools waiting list. He is number 21. I don't have a sound enough basis for appeal and so it would be a waste of my time and theirs. I will hope he moves up the waiting list quickly but it's. It the end of the world if he doesn't. He got our 2nd choice school and so because he didn't get in to our nearest (horrendous) school I'm relatively happy.

In our LA (a London borough) the second round of offers normally goes out around the start of the Easter holidays, so a while after the deadline.

It's not just a simple case of calling the next person on the list for each school, as that person would potentially get offers from more than one school, and they're only allowed one.

After collating all the acceptances/declines, they need to add in all the late applicants since the first round, then re-run their coordinated admissions algorithm to see what new best-preference offers can be made, then communicate with neighbouring boroughs who will also have been re-running their algorithms, to make sure you don't potentially have higher preference offers from out of area schools. Then they need to send the comms, which may be an email or may involve printing and posting letters.

My daughter has been offered her 3rd choice at secondary school and we want to go on the waiting list for her 2nd choice. Can anyone help as to what reasons they used for wanting to go on wait list? My daughter’s want to go there rather than where they have given her does not feel like enough of a reason so looking for creative ideas! Thanks

You don't need any reason, and don't need to give one. Just ask to be put on it, and you should be placed on it according to how you fit the admissions criteria.

Two different things - most Local authorities put you on the list for higher preferences automatically. That's the waiting list - you sit and wait.

However if you want to appeal for a place there - you need a good reason as to why she will Miss out if she doesn't- eg the music facilities and she's a great musician, art, drama, after school clubs, Latin only at that school etc. that's if your child has any needs or talents.