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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Original poster

Waiting lists for secondary schools.

55 replies

furbz · 13/03/2009 18:53

Hi all, I recently found out my son hadnt got a place in our first or second choice of secondary school. we were devastated. well i rang up the admissions team today and he is 9th on the waiting list. i was wondering if anyone knows if 9th is a good place to be or not and if they think he will have a chance of getting in failing me not winning my appeal. i would be really grateful for any replies.

OP posts:

scienceteacher · 15/03/2009 09:18

9th sounds very good. A lot can happen between now and September.

choochoochaboogie · 15/03/2009 12:21

Yes, stay on the continued interest list for both schools, there will be a lot of movement, is 9th for 1st or 2nd choice school?

PrimulaVeris · 15/03/2009 12:22

Yes, 9th is v v good, even for an oversubscribed school. May still take a few weeks but hang in there

Original poster

furbz · 15/03/2009 12:42

Thankyou so much for your replies. its for our first choice school.
I never realised how much this would affect our life.But when its your childs future you only want the best.Its the worst feeling ever to get the letter saying Not allocated.. My son was really upset as all his friends but himself and one other got the school of there choice.unfortunatley we was something like 0.6 miles just to far. (We live at the far end of a close) and even children in the same close got a place. i think maybe thats why we are number 9.You have all made things seem better now.I am going to ring every week to see if he has gone up or down on the list.His school are being so supportive. They say my son is a wonderful student that deserves a place in the school.its just unfortunate that its done on distance.Thats the rules though. Thanks again.

OP posts:

aitchjay66 · 16/03/2009 11:12

I work in Admissions and would like to offer my advice. Firstky your place on a waiting list is not static and you could go down if someone who is higher in the admission criteria for the school applies for a place and is turned down. Also rememeber after the appeals your place on the list will change if there are sucessful appeals as the school will have to loose the same number of children as sucessful appeals to take the admission number to where it started. (I hop that makes sense!)

lilolilmanchester · 17/03/2009 18:00

9 sounds great to me. We live 1.5 miles from our first choice school and DD was 503 on the list based on distance and they have 200 places .... DD will only get in if we win our appeal, no chance on waiting list, even tho some of the children will take up grammar school places rather than the high school we want. Do you live in a selective area or comprehensive furbz?

moodyblue · 18/03/2009 13:27

9 sounds good to me too - we're 40th! There's no selection in our area so we're relying on people moving out of the area of taking private school places to have any hope of a place from the waiting list. Fingers crossed for appeal.

3littlebears · 18/03/2009 16:21

Sorry to be negative, but don't count on getting in. At one point we were first on the waiting list (started as 3rd) but never got a place...

clam · 18/03/2009 19:25

It might depend on the nature of the school. I know someone whose DD got in to a partially-selective school from no 78 on the list. We figured it might have been because others on the list would have been more likely to have applied for a number of other perceived "high-achieving" schools, and therefore had other options to accept.
But I agree that your competition is most probably from successful appeal candidates, who will leapfrog you in the queue.

Saxlass · 21/03/2009 14:12

My son's 10th on waiting list for Grammar school, but as of 19th March, 12 people hadn't responded to accept their places. Sounds good, but then apparentley the Education Authority give them a few days grace to reply and then write to them to ask them whether they want the place. Surely if you really wanted the school place and the school was oversubscribed you would accept it immediately!! Just hoping they don't reply as although I am ready to appeal, chances are slim. Good Luck!!

clam · 21/03/2009 15:07

How annoying, Saxlass. On our letter it said, "reply by the 13th or the place may be withdrawn" Unless that "may" is key....

cherryblossoms · 22/03/2009 22:09

Saxlass - the waiting is awful. I suppose while you wait, everything is undecided; you don't have the closure of an outright "no" but you don't have a place either. Good luck.

However, it may help if you feel better, just a little, towards the council and the ditherers. I think most of those people are probably not interested in the place and just don't bother themselves to get in touch. (Boo!) But some may be going through something awful and some will have English as a second language, and it's for those people, and just in case of those people, that the council have to extend their deadlines and chase people up. So they're not doing it to be p(s)ita, even thought it may feel like it.

Anyway, good luck and I hope that lots of people turn down their places!

BarbaraDavies · 25/03/2009 12:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

mummytime · 26/03/2009 14:01

My son got into our first choice from about 29th. I decided not to appeal as I was quite happy with our 3rd choice, and didn't even check the waiting list until we were top. But that was before the recession and catchment changes had put all the posh houses (just about everyone goes private...or did) in the catchment of the school we wanted most.
It did take them about 3 weeks to offer us a place, all the time we were top of the waiting list and I knew people turning down their places. I did suspect they were holding onto places for the appeals.
good luck!

MollyRogerslikeanEasterabbit · 02/04/2009 18:40

fingers crossed for you - we are 20th....

Anyone heard about appeals dates yet??

Original poster

furbz · 02/04/2009 20:56

I got my letter today saying they would write to me soon with an actual date but it will be sometime in may!

OP posts:

Saxlass · 03/05/2009 19:42

Just found out our appeal is a block appeal in two stages, 1st part on 18th May. Sounds like loads of people appealing and now our son has gone down the reserve list to 12th. Determined not to give up - but feeling very apprehensive. Just don't think our case will be strong enough. However, will keep fighting to the end!!!!!!

lilolilmanchester · 05/05/2009 18:15

we've had our appeal, but basically told no chance unless we can prove our DD will be more prejudiced by not getting into preferred school than all those already allocated who will be affected by extra pupils in the school. So resigned to not getting in.Good luck to everyone else who is appealing

pooka · 05/05/2009 18:18

WRT waiting lists - dd has, in the nearly 2 years she's been on the list for our (450m away) local primary gone from about 17th, up to the giddy heights of No. 3 and now back down to about 9th. Basically, as people move Into the area, nearer to the school, they jump up the list. I can see that it's fair, and I'm happy enough with the school she is at, but wanted to reiterate that waiting lists are not static in general.

roisin · 05/05/2009 18:22

oh no, that's tough liloil.
What are your options now?

Original poster

furbz · 05/05/2009 21:42

oh reading your latests notes is making me nervous!!! My sons appeal is on the 7th of May and to be honest im pooping myself!!!
Is it really nerveracking?
Are they nice?
I feel like a kid myself going in front of the Headteacher for being naughty!!!
I hope it all works out for everyone this is a tough thing to do!!!
Ant advice before the day? i would be grateful!

OP posts:

2plus2 · 06/05/2009 12:59

Good luck furbz. Our appeal date is 18th May. Anybody got any tips to help?

lilolilmanchester · 06/05/2009 15:49

roisin, she'll go to the high school round the corner, which is was in special measures but got good in recent ofsted. Not really the right school for her but no other options apart from private and not a route we want to take.
Furbz, 2plus2 and others waiting for appeals, good luck! I've been through 2 now. In both cases the panels were pleasant and matter of fact. In both cases, they heard the case on behalf of the schools as to why DD not offered place and why the panel should uphold that decision. Then we got to make our case. Our 2 appeals were different: one was for grammar school, only interested in mitigating circumstances which might have led to failing 11+; the other for a different high school which we preferred to the one allocated. They were looking for reasons why DD would suffer from not going to that school more than children already allocated places would suffer by having an extra child take up space/teaching time etc. Not got the result yet but fairly clear we don't stand a chance. My advice would be to prioritise your points, be concise and make notes of key points you want to raise. Having gone through them, take a minute to double check you've mentioned everything (I remembered something I missed in the first appeal which might just have swung it too late, and still kick myself over it!) Good luck again.

2plus2 · 06/05/2009 18:36

Lilo thank you for your help, will have another look at our appeal letter and work from there. My DH is going to do the talking he is more used to it. I will get too emotional, who could not want my DS at their school.

Original poster

furbz · 07/05/2009 14:58

Have now had my appeal and it was not a nice experiance. lasted about 45 minutes and i was shaking the whole way through.
Saying that the panel do there best (There was 3 on the panel) to make you feel at ease and one of the gentleman was so lovely.
On the otherhand though the lady representing the school wasnt that friendly, she hardly made eye contact and seemed a bit hardfaced that this is how it is and that is that sort of thing!!! She told me that my son had now gone up to 16th on the waiting list he was 9th at the beginning and basically had no chance failing me winning my appeal.
My advice is be prepared for the questions they will ask, put yourself in their shoes and think if you was on the panel what questions you would ask the parent about your case.Then you can have an answer prepared.
I wish everyone appealing Good luck. I get my result of the appeal by letter after the 20th of may so i have my fingers crossed.
All you can do is try your best.

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