Would you move in year 6 to be in feeder for secondary?

[Deanofvenice]

My child currently attends a private prep school as I work there.
There is an excellent secondary school in our town, where I would love her to go but you must be in a feeder school to get a place.
Would you move your child in year 6 so they can get into the secondary?
If I leave them at the private school we have the issue of having to try and find the money for private senior, hoping we might get a scholarship etc which is never a certainty!

Absolutely I’d move them, even if I was waiting for a space . Children move between state primaries all the time, there might be a local policy allowing schools to delay till the start of a term but I’ve never seen it happen here.

I moved school in year 6. Could have waited an extra year but brothers were already at that school and just made sense to move year 6 rather than year 7.
It gave me a chance to get to know everyone in a smaller setting, before the influx of now kids in year 7. It was less intimidating probably. It didn’t massively phase me at all. I would 100% move them now.
Half way through y5 even better. Just asap

If there is space, then the school doesn't have a choice about whether or not to admit them.

Anyways, If the child has never done KS1 SATS then they won't influence the school's progress figures.

Schools have to accept looked after children, vulnerable children and pupils with EHCPs before other pupils get a look in….

Well, I did exactly this. Moved my daughter at the start of year 6 so she could get into the state secondary we wanted. In my head, I'd always thought this would be a terrible thing to do - but we really didn't want her going to the local secondary. The reality was completely different and it couldn't have gone better. The reality is, in year 6, a lot of the children are a bit bored of their friendships and are actually really up for welcoming someone new in (parents too can be a bit fed up of the status quo.) My daughter's quiet but gets along well with people and she was welcomed in really well (she said the other kids were all really interested in her as the new kid.) It was a 3 form entry and by the end of the year she said she knew all the other kids. They are on the cusp of a huge change anyway with a big mix up of friendship groups anyway. My daughter made lots of lovely friends and she's continued to be friends with them at secondary. It was the best decision we ever made.

My DC were at a feeder school for a very good, popular secondary school. If there were any spare spaces they tended to get filled in Y5.

My daughter moved schools after Easter holiday of year 5 from a small primary to a much larger one, which was the feeder for the secondary we knew she would go to. No issues socially, even as a fairly shy kid, made good friends to move up to secondary with that she's still close to today at 21.

As sentimental as it can be wanting to finish year 6 at the same school, getting the right secondary is so important (as I am sure you're well aware), I would move her.

Yes I would - and I did! My DD moved at the start of year 6. Absolutely zero regrets from me or DD! Really happy all round.
I think it is good to move up to a secondary school with children you know than the double whammy of going to big secondary school and then not knowing a single person on top of that.
Kids make friends quickly at that age and it is great practice for the secondary school move

There are children moving into DC’s primary right up to and including year 6. If you’re local, would she know some from extra curriculars anyway? If you can’t afford private and the choice is the good school or a rubbish school, then I’d move.

Some of our local schools prioritise catchment siblings attending feeder primaries, then catchment siblings, then catchment feeder, then catchment, then out of catchment in the same order (after looked after and SEN). For the popular schools just being in the catchment isn't enough because they have built new houses but no new schools. So I would move in year 6 if there is space and you are in catchment.

DC in Year 6. Friendship groups have splintered this year already - everyone is bored of their peers and ready for high school - and I'd have no hesitation in moving ours in your circumstances.

Our kids had a new boy come in Easter Year 5 and he slotted straight in. You wouldn't know he'd not been with them since the start.

Thank you so much to everyone for sharing their experiences and advoce. It is really reassuring to hear of others that have done this and that it has gone well. I'm so pleased for your children @NotAFanOfJan @NoisyGreenNewt @Alexa51 . A good secondary is very important to us!

Yes, apply and move her ASAP

The first thing you need to do is check if there are spaces in the school, because if it’s a feeder school to a good secondary school the likelihood is that there won’t be places available as everyone would want their child to attend that school.
If there are no places then decisions about moving her or not are pointless.

All the DC who joined my DCs classes in Y5 all got on fine.

I honestly would just start the admin process ASAP. If there is guaranteed access to a great secondary school by attending this primary, there will be other parents looking to do the same thing.

Unless there are any usurping factors e.g. looked after DC, the council will process the applications on a first come, first served basis.

To add my anecdote... our last move was when DDs were Yr5 and Yr3 (Easter). Yr5 settled fine, made good friends... then made completely different ones at Secondary (ironically including several from the other class at Primary school, but not the one she was in... Covid times so no mixing).

The Yr3 DD never really settled... but again that was a fault of Covid rather than just moving schools.

If there are no places then decisions about moving her or not are pointless.

Sort of, I suppose, if no place ever comes up (or doesn't before the CAF deadline, as a school move after this, not necessitated by a change of address, and then normally only up to a few weeks later, may only change the DC's ranking after national offer day, with no guaranteethat a place would be availablebefore September), but not necessarily. If a place does come up, those who are on the waiting list / continuing interest list at the time will be ranked according to the school's oversubscription criteria land the place offered first to the child at the top. Or the only child on the list, if that's the situation, but no-one will be on the list who hasn't formally applied. So by applying now for year 5, and renewing interest, if required, at the appropriate time for placse coming up once the cohort moves into year 6, the OP will be in a position for their DC to be considered.

(Schools are not legally obliged to hold a waiting / CI list at all, but most do, ime).

N.B. the rules on a change of school vis à vis the submission of an on-time application for secondary would mean that starting the process now would be sensible, rather than waiting.

Thanks but as I said earlier there is a space.

When is the earliest you can move them? Don't you need to give one terms notice?

You need to pay a notice period, but of course, you don’t have to attend the school in the notice period.

Sounds like OP gets a considerable discount anyway so paying an extra term is not massive, in the scheme of things.

It's about whether they have a place or not. There's lots of movement in primary schools

I think you should move her for Y6. Anyone relying on a scholarship, which may or may not materialise, to afford private secondary for 7 years is living on a knife edge. The child may lose it, or not want to continue whatever conditions are attached to it as a stroppy teen. They may reassess for sixth form and no longer qualify for it. It puts kids under a lot of pressure ime and I know several families where they had to give up the scholarship for GCSE years, either because the child no longer qualified for the top sports teams or turned out not to be super academic and didn't want to go to all the extra lectures etc on the scholarship track. It's very difficult to make a 15y old get up at 6 to train/practice or spend Friday evenings at guest lectures etc while friends are all out in town. Don't do it to your daughter if scholarship is the only way you could afford the private secondary.

Our DS moved to state primary from a prep school starting in Yr5. The process was - miserable at prep school with not very nice teacher being the last straw; we had taster days at 2 other independent schools only one of which had a place immediately available and it was the one he didn't like after the taster day; we visited local school and loved it; made 'in year' application in June; started in Yr 5.

It was much better in so many ways at the state school. The advantages of small classes seemed exaggerated, the state school were ahead on maths and the topic work was far more interesting than the stale curriculum the prep school had been half heartedly teaching for years. The absence of entire afternoons on the sports field meant DS learnt a lot more. Friendships were a little bit difficult as there were quite a few who had been in the same primary and nursery. However, there were also new pupils and kids who did make the effort to include him.

@Deanofvenice there is a space now but there might not be one in the summer term or next month or next week - you don't know when other parents will apply.

As I said in a pp the primary school my DC went to had a similar arrangement with a very good popular secondary school - if you went to this primary school, you were guaranteed a place at this school if you put it on the CAF.

For both my DC their classes became full in Y5. All the DC that joined were not 'local' - they were from neighbouring towns quite a few miles away, where their secondary school options were not great.

As time goes by, more parents will be doing their research, visiting secondary schools and working out which are their favourites and if they have a chance of getting in. Once they have read the admissions criteria for this secondary school and realise that this primary school has guaranteed ties, they will apply.

The longer you put off applying, the higher the risk of this space not being available.

I moved my sons school in Jan of year 5. Hes been there a year now and wouldnt even think hes "new". They settle in very quick. If youre going to do it then do it asap.