Bromley waiting list

[Thebromleymum]

Hi

Looking for experiences on the Bromley waiting lists, they have said they won’t tell us our position, nor will they start offering places until mid-April. Anyone have any experience of this? Do they really wait that long or is it just a ruse to stop you calling them at the start?

I know other London boroughs where they have already been told their position on the list.

thanks!

Yaaayyy. Now breath and Relax 🤣 xx

Thank you, it seems to have so much movement on the lists so you should get an offer soon!! 🤞 x

So apparently we are second on the waiting list now. But the woman I spoke to from Bromley Admissions said that there hadn't been any movement for about 3-4 weeks and that all the places were final and that it was very rare that offers go out now. It didn't make much sense given the amount of movement over the last few weeks! I will need to call again next week and try to speak to someone else. She also said that the offers didn't go out in batches - which again makes no sense given what I've read on here. Oh well, I'll just carry on stressing 🙃 🤦🏼‍♀️😂

The waiting lists might be impacted by the closure of bishop challoner 😢

Yeah, I saw that announcement yesterday 😢

@Anxy10 I think you got unlucky with who you spoke to there and in my recent experience it is not true that nothing else happens. My daughter (who was happily sitting on a second choice at this point) got an offer of her first choice in July last year.
I do think once the school holidays kick in nothing happens until September when there is another big move with people not turning up on first day and the council chasing up.
I also think.its true that at this stage things no longer happen in batches its much more of a trickle.

Thank you! That is really reassuring to hear 😊 I fully expect things to stop moving over the summer hols, but had thought I'd seen people saying that the lists keep moving (albeit more slowly) until beginning/mid July. I will just try to stay positive. The lists have already moved so much, there is still hope of a place before September. Otherwise, we would take an in year move if one crops up before Xmas. Thank you again.

I feel like 2nd seems really promising and surprised they said that! especially as we still have so long before September , a teacher at my sons school told me they have seen so many cases that children are offered there schools just at the end of summer holidays just before beginning! and even at the beginning of September when children don’t show up , the way the movement has been I just can’t see how you won’t get a place , we started out as 44 on the list then moved around 15 places every 2 weeks then we was number 15 and I rang about 9 days later 🫣😂 and had moved another 9 places to number 6 on 3/6 and then we got the offer yesterday , that doesn’t sound like not much movement to me ! So 🤞 I really hope you get the offer soon I really beleive you will do being 2nd xx

@Thebromleymum That announcement seems to have taken everyone by surprise. I feel so sorry for the pupils who now have to adjust to a new school with hardly any notice. We did look at independent school places for DD in case the waiting list didn't pay off, and BC fees are quite a bit lower than other local independents, which may be a draw for parents but obviously wasn't enough to sustain the business.

@Pinkfox87 Thank you for your positive words 😊 I am hopeful that something will come in for us. I'm just impatient 😂

Please don't listen to that, I'm not sure why she said that. People get offers up until sept. 2nd on the list is extremely close.
In half term they sent me a list of schools at 11am and told me I needed to accept one as I wouldn't get my choice. I refused and at 3pm I got offered my 1st choice. 🤨

I also feel sorry for the Y7 children who may well have had their first choice state places offered and then turned them down for BC. They'll now be scrabbling for school places along with all the other year groups needing places in September and kids in the middle of their GCSE years.
We looked at the school as a back up in case DS struggled in his allocated school. So glad we didn't decide to go for it now.

What happens to those in year 10 and 12 who are half way through GCSE and a level courses

Yes it is awful. They are trying to get places elsewhere but no one wants them half way through. Plus as you say Challoner quite a bit lower fees than most private schools so likely impossible for people to find an extra £10k for other private schools even if they get a place.

Really hope those kids find something. It's terrible they didn't get more notice.

@Annoyeddd I would hope they'd be given priority when it comes to asking other schools in the area to open up spaces, although it depends on whether parents want to stay private or not

@SydneyCarton Schools are required to offer places in accordance with their published admission policy, so if children are already on the waiting list, it will depend if any new applicants leapfrog the existing waiting list candidates in terms of their eligibility. Of course, given BC is closing at the beginning of July, this is likely to be the date counted as out of education (still term time for state schools) which may mean those children get included in FAP, if not otherwise placed, slightly earlier.

Phew! We have just been offered a place. Very happy and extremely relieved!! Thanks all for your positive and reassuring words. They have really helped with my worry levels over the last couple of weeks x

That’s brilliant I’m so happy for you! And in time for the transition day on the 1st too ! Xxx

Yay! Fantastic news @Anxy10 so glad for you.

Wondering how you got on in the end having declined your only option at the time. We've only applied for one Bromley school and are unlikely to get it due to distance but we didn't like the local options. I fear if we do not get any of our selective school options we are likely to get our closest school, which I'm adamant we will not accept.

I'm also curious whether any parents that failed to get their choices ended up looking outside their previous 6 choices. I.e., I really don't want our local school. If we get offered, I would consider schools within the borough that are closer, just not the closest 2. Is the process of getting onto alternative waiting lists different?

Hi.
so I rejected the offer and 2 weeks later they sent me a list of all schools with spaces which was not anywhere I would send him so replied saying that I didn't want any of them and would wait, within 2 hours I had a offer of out first choice and he is loving it. I would look about and put another choice down though as back up, I had 2/3 which I would have accepted.

Too late now, we are waiting for offer day on Mar 2nd. However, as they are mainly grammars out of borough, I'm not hopeful of getting a place in the first instance but would happily accept any of the 6 over the summer. However, if we're unsuccessful and remain waiting it's helpful to know we may be presented with a list to pick from whilst continuing to wait on something we feel is more suitable.

Thanks for sharing your experience and I'm so pleased it all worked out for you. Gives me more hope than I started out with 😁.

Keep us updated on offer day, ill keep my fingers crossed for you. 🤞

We initially got none of our preferred schools - we put down four Bromley non-selectives and 2 out of borough selectives as we appealed DD's 11+ result. The appeal failed so we were down to a list of four, got none, got offered the nearest school with available places which was a definite No, Never In A Million Years!

Initially we then applied for and were offered a private school place, which would have been a stretch financially, but we stayed on the waiting lists for all four schools and got an offer from one in the May half-term having been 6 on the wait list after the first round of offers. Places do move quickly - my daughter's friend was in the same situation as us and was about 30 on the waiting list for the same school and was offered a place at the October half-term, but declined to take it up as she was already happy at another school.

You can stay on the waiting lists until 31 December.

Hi

We are on the waiting list number : 47 for Langley boys and 15 for Hayes any chance of getting a place ?