Primary school admissions - MNHQ needs your thoughts!

[RowanMumsnet]

Hello

We've been asked (in advance of primary school places allocation announcements in England, Wales and NI next week) for MNers' thoughts on the current systems for allocating primary places - so as ever we thought we'd come to you for your insights.

What do you think about how your LA allocates places? Have you found the process stressful? Do you think the difficulty/stress varies widely across the nation - and if so, which locations are particularly difficult and which are relatively stress-free? If you're in Scotland, where the system is different, do you think it works well (or not?) Would you support a change to the allocation system - and if so, how would you like to see it changed?

Any thoughts welcome. Best of luck to anyone waiting to hear about their child's place.

I think the opposite would happen here - the next-door council has snapped up a really unsuitable commercial building for a free school, and there is some unseemly wrangling over the site of one school to give it to another school.

If the church flogged off school premises around here, I'd bet the council would buy them (even at enormous cost) and give them to a free school.

Jassy don't really get the point of your question, I don't think it matters more, there are Sikh schools that are state funded so am not really sure where you are going with this point.

OK - locally, there are no state funded Sikh schools, but a decent sized Sikh population. There are certainly no schools that prioritise the children of atheists.

Why do you think Catholics and Anglicans where I live are more deserving of priority in accessing a local education?

Dunno about Jassy, but I oppose Sikh state schools, too. I don't talk about them much, though, because there aren't enough of them (yet) to bugger up local provision for other kids.

tiggy I was just saying if the Catholic church shut their schools, there's no way around here the sites wouldn't be snapped up by the council.

Tiggy - who else would buy land designated for educational purposes? I can see private schools, perhaps, if they thought they could get enough locals to pay - but that certainly wouldn't mop up all schools that discriminate on faith.

Also - what Annie said. (I used Sikh friends as an example as I'm sick of religious people saying to atheists 'well it wouldn't hurt you to go to church for two years', as if that's a reasonable solution to the issue.)

Having read the whole thread, the majority view is that state schools reduce options for others who are non Christian ( as there are only a tiny number of other faith schools). The view of this is mildly irritating to down right discrimination. The net result is that for example RC kids don't mix regularly with other faiths. I personally don't think dividing schools by religion and thus race is healthy at all in this day and age. School hours are about 25-30 week? Why are these not focused on teaching basics and then families can opt for faith classes outside school as in the US. The problem with this segregation is that school, play dates, parties and even sports clubs are often all based round school so the segregation is more than just school hours. Even extra curricular clubs like Cubs are divided near us - the RCs have their own ...

I think it's ridiculous and people should just go to the school that's closest to them unless there's a v good reason not to.

You wouldn't need to force the churches to sell land against their will, just legislate to outlaw faith-based discrimination in admissions and employment in schools.

This would bring schools in line with every other business and public service in the country.

I also don't understand how people get their kids to school if they havnt been allocated based on sibling

So faith schools can discriminate on remuneration depending on a teacher's faith?

I can understand, though I disagree with, the logic of allowing it as an employment criteria but once a school has decided to employ someone, surely no further discrimination should be allowed?

Jazz that's the point. My nearest is a CofE which we are not eligible for (2 year attendance weekly) and RC (I don't want). I walk past 2 to get to ours

The governing body employs the staff and can apply a religious test in appointing, remunerating and promoting all teachers.

This does imply that religious discrimination can indeed impact on an employee's career and salary once appointed.

Sorry I meant I don't want RC as not RC church goer etc. it is actually also full of pushy white MC parents. I know for a fact that few of the kids attend mass post 5

If you are getting into the realms of forcing organisations to sell their land against their will for no net benefit to the community as a whole (i.e. no extra school spaces) just to tackle an admissions or an admin issue then it is all getting a bit speculative for me. I don't see that ever happening.

I certainly wasn't suggesting that, tiggy - that was Sweetie saying that if state funding was withdrawn from faith schools who refused to stop faith-based allocation, then the Catholic church would as a result shut all their schools in a huff.

That's not what I would want at all - I just want all state schools open to all children without discrimination based on faith. It wouldn't require much effort at all.

Although the sibling rule is unfair on some, I would support it since it does actually make sense from an ecological and pragmatic point of view, and most people will be affected by it with their eldest child anyway.

Jassy still don't really what you are driving at, I don't think anyone is less deserving of an education. I, personally, did not decide to build Catholic Schools, they were built many years before my time. I decided to give my children a faith eduction as is my right to do so. It doesn't make me think another child is less deserving of an education.
Just to add I do not agree with people telling anyone they should "just go to church for two years to get your child into a school" there would be no point in sending your child to a faith school if you had no intention of following the faith.

But sweetie millions do. That's why at my local CofE and RC the pews are rammed with dedicated parents of toddlers who all seem to evaporate at age 4

" decided to give my children a faith eduction as is my right to do so. "

But we are arguing that it shouldn't be a right, at least not a state funded right.

And indeed it is not a right; many Catholics or Sikhs or whatever cannot access such schools.

RC? not so sure about that... the holy communion prep lasts a year at age 7 so if they do disappear they soon are back.

I decided to give my children a faith eduction as is my right to do so.

I am fully supportive of your right to do so, Sweetie - as long as you pay for it yourself. I am sick of paying for faith-based schools that my own child is not allowed to access.

It doesn't make me think another child is less deserving of an education.

What you think is irrelevant. The practical result of the current faith schools is that other children are treated as though less deserving of an education.

Tedtess round us all the communion stuff is done in school. I am not a regular church goer but do go intermittently. There are rarely more than 4 or 5 families in church. Even for the Xmas Carol service. I know lots of the RC families and they admit they never go as they are too busy etc