Moving house

[mayday]

Some important issues raised by Mayday.
Yes it is virtually impossible to get a 24 month tenancy agreement. I read this as the school saying that it is virtually impossible to move during the application process and to have your new home counted as the address for 1st round offers. They have set the bar so high that very few people will be able to comply.
In your case I do not see any need to worry. As a renter you will be in the same boat as owner -occupiers in merely having to prove to a reasonable standard that your child lives where you claim. I imagine that one of the reasons the school have asked to see child benefit paperwork is because that is not affected by your type of housing tenure.
The very strict rules about showing long tenancies is for people moving closer to the school to gain higher consideration in the allocation of places. If you stay in the same area then this would not affect you.

Thank you for replying and sharing your experience in general

[determineddaddy]

Dogs dinner back on the menu!

The current admissions policy on AGGS website appears to have lapsed back into all the confusing ambiguity that I thought they had progressed out of. How long this policy has been in the public domain for I do not know.

Once again we are back to the uncertainty of not knowing what it means for movers to "dispose" of their previous home. Does it mean sell or will letting suffice? If so how long would the tenancy agreement have to be for?

Section 2. 12 spells out what is required for people moving "into the catchment area" but what about those moving within the catchment area. Where do they stand? Given the geographical radius of actual offers has shrunk in recent years to much less than the full catchment area this is really quite important. Moving from 8 miles away to 4 miles away from the school could make all the difference.

We are told that any move must have taken place by 15 October but by what date is the evidence required. When someone moves house it takes a while to get all paperwork lined up.

These are just the same old problems my family had to deal with. Can anyone spot the new problems that have been introduced by this new policy?

[determineddaddy]

As well as the familiar old problems of a poorly drafted AGGS admissions policy there are some new ones in this current document on their website.

Look at paragraph 2.13 which is critical for anyone moving house during the application process. It refers back to paragraph 1.8. Can anyone find paragraph 1.8? I can't see it.

I can't help noticing that they left the section for Aims blank. I suggest that it should read as follows " Aim - to confuse families considering how to comply with the school admissions policy."

I would like to retire from this forum. But I will continue to post until I see a properly drafted admissions policy that sets out what is required from people moving closer to the school in clear and unambiguous plain English.

[determineddaddy]

I think my retirement from this forum is not far away. AGGS new admission policy for entry in 2015 is now on their website. It seems that moving house after your original application will no longer be entertained. Moving house will no longer gain you any better ranking but it could lose you a place offered if you move the wrong way!

1.3 spells this out in one emboldened paragraph of perfectly plain English. So there it is. Whether it is realistic and workable for the school to expel a child during their first term I do not know. But at least the policy is now clear and makes sense. If you are going to move house make sure you do it before your application to the school. After that there will be no benefit in moving.

There is a similar approach at AGSB see para 7.3. The boys school policy is not quite so well drafted. But the policy is basically the same ; don't try and move after you have applied!

[rabbie burns]

Isn't moving closer to a school at the last minute basically cheating and denying another child who has lived in the area all their lives a place? You could have moved years before when your child was in year 1,2,3,4! It's called planning.

[determineddaddy]

Isn't moving closer to a school at the last minute basically cheating and denying another child who has lived in the area all their lives a place? You could have moved years before when your child was in year 1,2,3,4! It's called planning.

I think the reality is that many families do not really think about what secondary school would suit their child until after year 4.
Also other families will move house closer to their child's secondary school for reasons that have nothing to do with admissions policies.
But you are entitled to your view.... that is what this forum is here for.