Moving house for secondary school - would you / have you?

[Hathor]

Quick poll - if you liked where you live, but the catchment secondary schools were either in special measures, other with poor reputation, but there was another school with better reputation a mile across town, would you move house purely to get a place for your dc in the "good" secondary?

loveandlight - in a weird way, you may actually be in a better position in applying in yr 7.

What you are looking for is casual entry. you need to decide which schools you like best and contact them now. Send them copies of your ds' work, write great covering letters explaining your situation (you're moving) and telling them why you think their school will suit your ds.

Can you wait until a place comes up? ie keep him at the school he is at now or home educate for a bit? Admittedly, casual entry in year 7 is a bit of a wait but in most schools places do come up and they come up in yr 7, before GCSEs start to bite.

Also, with gs entry he will simply take a test (in most sitautions) and the normal waiting list criteria will apply. In most schools that will be down to performance in the test.

You can be a little bit proactive, rather than hoping the council sorts out something nice for you.

Thank you cherryblossoms. I am looking for my DS to start in Sept this year in year 8. I am home schooling him now so there is no great urgency other than it would be good for him to start in Sept as it is then a fresh academic year for him. I have already done as much as i can be expected to do. If I thought I could do more I would be doing it. I think I will prepare myself and my DS for home schooling for a while longer until he gets offered a decent school place.

Good luck. It does sound as though you and your ds have had a really rough ride so far. hope it gets better for you.

You can be a little bit proactive, rather than hoping the council sorts out something nice for you.

I have just realised that you have put this. This is a very unfair and spiteful comment for you to make. I could list pages of the proactive action I have taken for my DS but this thread is not about that but about whether as parents we would move or have moved house for a secondary school and I was merely joining in about this particular subject as we are in the process of moving to find a good school for our DS just like others are.

Sorry - i really didn't mean it like that. but I completely agree - reading it back it does come across as spiteful. I was genuinely thinking more along the lines of what you might get offered, especially as I had read your post earlier. And yes, I was rather hoping that you might get offered something OK.

I was trying to be cheering. And I was trying not to go into details about people I know who have had to move schools in yr 8 (and not because they have moved) and trying to be discreet. Which can affect your articulacy.

Honestly, I'm sure it's stressful and I'm sure I'm only repeating stuff you already know, but I wanted to be a bit positive.

Thank you for your apology cherryblossoms. It means a lot to mean. Thank you also for caring enough about my situation to reply to my messages. You have helped me see that I do have a choice and can continue to home school until I find a suitable place for my DS.

I was feeling immense pressure and stress as we are moving and I was trying to find my DS a school place by Sept as I want him to go to school because that is what he wants as well and I had a fab time at school and I want him to have good experiences as well. I will of course continue in my search for a decent school for him but you have helped me see that I do still have choices and I thank you sincerely for that. hug coming your way.

loveandlight - I really hope it happens for you both. If it's anything, it did for one of my bfs. He had a rotten early school experience, exited the schools system for a bit, was home schooled and then went back in and it was a good experience. I'm sure that's a common home schooling story. I hope it's yours too. As for the yr 7 thing, well here in London there really is a lot of movement. Hugs to you too.

We are moving because dp does not like the local secondary school. I am not too concerned as dd will do well whereever she goes. But as I got my way over keeping her in the state sector I see it as a small compromise.