School Offer - What does Other preference mean??

[elsa109]

Hi,

Our DD has been offered a secondary school placement which was not one of our preferences. On the offer letter they have put the offer school as "Other Preference". Is this normal? Why have they called it a preference when we didn't put it down as one?

Thanks

Why is preference 3 not listed?

Because we didn't put a third preference

In an area where there's competition for places , preference sadly doesn't count for much. It will be down to your nearest school and other admitting criteria. Our areas most desirable school had 78 percent allocated to siblings or children of staff and lots of people got their third or fourth choice. If they didn't put down 4 choices they got given a non preferred school

Is this an in year application? Or second round of continued interest?

You should accept your place and then stay on the waitlist for the schools you prefer. There is movement before the term starts.

I think that's just how the form is. Are you happy with what you've been offered?

The advice is always to put as many of your own preferences in. We could put 6.

I'd guess that as you didn't express a preference, then all schools would be considered equally preferred, so that could be why it's worded like that. It will be the closest one to you that still had a space after allocating to kids who had it as a preference (ie. Often the one no one wanted, unfortunately).

Maybe ask to look round and see if you could make the best of it, as also ask to go on the waiting list of any school in the area you think would be better, even if they weren't the original two you listed.

Thanks, that is good advice regarding waiting lists for other schools.

The issue with the one they have given is that it really is too far away and would require an 80 minute journey each way on public transport. We have asked the council if there is any other form of transport but i'm fairly certain there isn't DofE guidelines say 75 minutes is the max a child should be expected to travel to school.

It also involves a bus, a train, another bus, with a lot of walking inbetween. It's also not possible to take her by car as we only have 1 car and we 2 other children at primary school in the complete opposite direction.

Thanks. My main question was if the application was actually processed correctly. On the first page the appeal panel were given, the offered school was listed as a third preference. (this first page was apparently created by the school though, so doesn't sound like the councils fault.)

The wording "other preference" just doesn't seem right if we didn't put it down as one. thus the question.

That sounds like an awful journey, I wouldn't do that commute as an adult, never mind at 11. I hope you do get a waiting list place, there will be a lot of movement between now and September as people move or maybe applied for both state and private, then withdraw from state place.

It’s probably just the way the form is produced. If you had offered three preferences, ‘other preference’ at number 4 would make sense. I imagine there were options for at least four preferences.

You gave two preferences and didn’t meet the criteria for them, so the authority has discharged its duty by offering a place.

How many miles away is the school they’ve offered. Over a certain distance, isn’t transport provided?

Have you accepted the place offered, as well as getting on waiting lists and appealing.

The offered school is 8 or 10 miles depending on route, by car.

I rang the council earlier and they suggested emailing regarding transport, but due to the location of our home, I doubt there will be any direct transport available (like a school bus) which leaves the quite frankly, awful 80 minute commute i mentioned.

We have appealed and lost, which leaves us in a fairly awkward position where we don't have a clue what to do or how to get her to school. The council suggested we could home educate as a "choice"

We have not done anything formally to accept the offered place, yet.

The transport may be a taxi. Not everywhere has schol buses.

However if you didn't apply for your nearest school or catchment school, you may not qualify for transport

Did you put your catchment school as 1 or 2? This will potentially make a difference as to whether they were reasonable offering this school and transport offers

In my council they will provide free school transport if the school is over 3 miles away for secondary age. However - you have to have named nearest schools to you in all preferences, so you wouldn't be eligible as you didn't give a third choice at all, let alone one which was a close school to you.

Have a google of your council's travel to school policy

#1 preference was our nearest school but it isn't the catchment school. We didn't put the catchment down but we were not offered it either. In hindsight we should have, and we will ask to be put on the waiting list.

Were you only able to list 3 preferences or was it more?

It May just be the title of the box if eg there were 6 choices, and they just put preferences 4.5.6 or non listed schools all in that box.

It's a maximum of 3 preferences on the application round here.

Why did you not use all 3 choices? You should always use every choice or you end up in a situation like this.

As I understand it, if you don’t fill out 3 preferences, if they can’t offer the ones you’ve preferred, they literally just pick a school for you

I know its too late for you now but you do really need to use all your preferences. Is there a reason you didn't?
I dont think you will win an appeal if they have followed the correct procedure.
Where either of your 2 preferences the school your other children are at?

Yeah it is too late, so not that helpful at the moment tbh so no need to focus on that, i get that.

Our other 2 children are at primary school. This is secondary

Our LA is the same. We were offered our 4th preference which is over 3 miles away so I applied for transport - but we were rejected because there is another school slightly nearer as the crow flies, but still over 3 miles away, that our son would have got a place at had we listed it. The ‘closer’ school would have been a nightmare to get to, no direct bus like there is with the one we were allocated, but the LA has this rule and they stuck to it.

In my area you get 3 preferences and the option to add up to 6 or not.
Offered school is in that box as you only put two down

Op it may be listed a '3rd preference' as the admissions policy probably stated that if you don't get stated preferences you get nearest with space as option 3
So you got your option 3

Oh OP, that’s a tough lesson to learn the hard way about using all your preferences and also understanding the transport policy wrt the implications of not putting your nearest/catchment down- i’m sorry. It’s easy to sneer but you don’t know what you don’t know etc.

There may well be school buses operating in your area that you could pay for a spare seat in, that happens round here.

My suggestion would be accept the place you’ve been offered, investigate school transport, and get on every waiting list. Good luck :)

I think the wording of 'other preference' is just how the form is. It feels a bit odd when it wasn't your preference but I don't think it will have confused the appeal. It wouldn't have mattered anyway, the appeal panel should understand parents often list a preference they don't like lower on their form below the ones they have a genuine preference.

As you have said, get on the waiting list for your catchment school and any nearer. Presumably you are on the waiting list for your original preferences.

Can you investigate the journey and find a way to drop her part way? E.g. drop her to the train station and then go to take your younger children?