25th on wait list.. no hope??

[firebrand123]

So we got our (Buckinghamshire) wait list position email and my son is number 25 for his first choice grammar - I'm guessing that means we should assume he'll be going to his second choice?

For context, we're about 5.75 miles from the school. Some years they've offered out this far (which, frustratingly, is only about 500 metres from being in catchment) or further, but obviously every year is different. We don't have any reason to appeal other than he wants to go there because his friends are!

That’s good, my son was 212 on the waiting list for the school he wanted

I don’t know about grammars but we were 25th for our second choice school which is a v popular state comp in London and we got an offer in the second week of September. We were 4th by the end of the summer term.

Don't give up, people move schools all through year 7 especially the first term or later if the reason is a slow burn eg. if it turns out the travel is too far and a child is worn out by it. But focus on the place you've been allocated as a positive with the attitude of "it would be great but it's unlikely- this school is good too" with your child.

The amount of waiting list movement varies between schools. As you haven't named the school, it's difficult for anyone to offer anything more than their personal experiences of waiting list movement for different schools, which could give you false hope or false despair!

Have you tried asking either the school or the LA how many places were offered from the waiting list for this school in the previous few years?

Was he offered a place? We are 115 (Kingsdale) and 20 (Central Foundation Boys) in my sons band for our first and second choice school. We got our third option.