Worries about school places

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Dorset Parent
Posts: 37
Joined: Tue Oct 03, 2006 10:11 pm
Location: Bournemouth

Worries about school places

Post by Dorset Parent »

Dear All, I thought I had calmed down since the 11+ exam experience. Now I find I am worried about the whole school allocation process. I woke on Christmas Day morning from a nightmare that my daughter hadn't got a place at any of the 3 schools we had put on the form. Then I remembered a few years ago a girl on our road didn't get into our catchment school and had to go to a school in a different area that to be honest I wouldn't want my child to go. How come I had forgotten this and why didn't she get a place?

Although I have already got a written response from our education authority that the preference we put on out form is blanked out and the schools allocate on catchment first process, our school is oversubscribed and does turn away people. For the past 3 years the rejections have been from people out of catchment,(I haven't been able to access previous records). The education authority was re-assuring in their letter, but they could not state categorically that there would never be a case of rejecting a child from catchment. The year my daughter started school there was an extra class in her school and a neighbouring school - that's 60 extra children in our catchment area.

The education authority allocate places according to preferences on forms. I am now thinking - they must allocate all the places to our catchment school to those with first preference first. We've put it as third preference, - the grammar school first, then a nearby good comprehensive that is outside our Borough but which allocates about 60 places to our area. It is a popular school and in recent years our road has been just too far out, but we thought we must give it a try. What happens if the education authority allocate places to all those within catchment who have put it as first preference, then those who have put it at second, and the places are used up before they get to those at third preference? If our first and second choice schools do not offer us a place, then we are stuck with schools further away which I do not want her to go to.

Does anyone else have thoughts like this? I thought I had gone thought the whole process really carefully. Quite a few people have put the preferences in the same order we have. I just hope I have not jeopardised my daughter a place at her local school by putting two more remote chances above it. I can only hope that this isn't the first year that children within catchment are refused places, due to the increase in school numbers.

I must sound really neurotic. We do live quite close to our catchment school and I know that if it comes to it, distance criteria will be applied. It's just the preferences on the form and the education authority's role in allocation (not the school) that is bothering me.
Guest55

Post by Guest55 »

I sympathise!

I hope your child gets what is best for them.

Unfortunately in Buckinghamshire it is common for children not to get places at their catchment school - especially if it's popular! All you can do is appeal - let us know what happens as there is a lot of support here.
Guest

Post by Guest »

If the preference is not weighted according to the order in which you put them on the form you should not have a problem. When we will be filling out the form next year our local comp will be put in 5th place but I know as we are in catchment we will definitly be offered a place if the 4 selective schools ranked above the comp reject us. I know this from the experiences of the many children that have been in this position in previous years and have failed to get a selective school place.

I know it won't stop you worrying even though it sounds like you are quite likely to get in to your catchment school (thats human nature) but at least you'll know by March!
Jj

Post by Jj »

Hi Dorset Parent,
You are not alone, I'm having the same nightmare. I feel I've let my child down in the way we placed the schools, but at the time we thought we had thought it through and could justify why we placed the schools the way we had. Now I can't remember any of our points!! March seems such along time away doesn't it? Unfortunately there is nothing I can think of to do but wait and then appeal. Good Luck and if it's any consolation you are not the only one going through hellish thoughts and emotions.
Alex
Posts: 1097
Joined: Thu Nov 02, 2006 10:10 pm
Location: Lincolnshire

Post by Alex »

Hi,

So long as your authority use an equal preference system the order in which you place your preferences should make no difference at all to your chances of getting in to a particular school.

The schools will rank their applicants, without knowing the order of preference, according to their published criteria. The education authority will then allocate you a place at whichever school is placed highest on your list of preferences which is able to offer you a place.

Therefore, even if you have placed a school bottom of your preference list, were your higher preference schools to be unable to offer you a place, you would still gain a place at that last preference school ahead of a child who had placed it first preference IF you better met the admissions oversubscription criteria.

Hope you get what you want.
Guest55

Post by Guest55 »

This does assume you get a place at one of your choices! This is not always so - you might be offered another school entirely ...
Guest

Post by Guest »

I am also worried sick about where my daughter will end up if she doesn't pass her 11+. In Plymouth we have three preferences and I of course have put down the two girls grammar schools as first and second choice and then an out of area comprehensive as third. I was informed by the local authority that certain schools fill their quota on 1st and 2nd choices only so have had to hedge my bets and plump for a school that is further away but appears to have spaces in the past for 3rd preference choices. This is all assuming it doesn't also get filled up on 1st/2nd prefs as the school becomes more popular. We do not want our daughter going to the local comp. at all but the reality is that we may not even be offered a place there and may end up with an even worse one!

This is why I am so stressed about the 11+ exam, its either a case of getting the school of our dreams or ending up in the worst school you can imagine. If this turns out to be the case then I think we will have to consider going private - not that we can afford it!
Guest

Post by Guest »

Dorset parent'
If your authority operate an equal preference scheme ( and it sounds like they do) and you are well within catchment for your local comp (and you are happy with that as one of your options) then I would stop worrying. You would probably be incredibly unfortunate not to get one of your choices. If you are really worried ring the council and ask them how far catchment boundaries have extended in the last few years. They hold that information and should be happy to provide it to you.

Jj
I'm slightly more worried about you as you said in a previous post that you were right on the boundary for your decent catchment comp and your other option was a failing acadamy. Perhaps if you let us know which area you are in someone may be able to give you more of an insight about schools/catchment etc.

Loulou
Jj

Post by Jj »

LouLou

Just wanted to say Thanks you've been really supportive. This whole process is hard on the emotions!!!! It does not help that I am a paroniod mum and tend to over analyze everything :oops: . There is not much I can do until March now.

I've checked with the council, and there is a chance ( slim) that we may get the comp if places are not accepted.

I hope I did not mislead you, the sink school was not an option, I am worried that if we do not get any of our choices the LEA will offer us a place there, as it is the closest school to us.

This site has been great because not only has it helped with advice pre, during and post 11+ it has given me the opportunity to express everything and know that there are others going through the same thing.
In a strange way it's comforting.

Thanks again
loulou
Posts: 445
Joined: Sun Oct 29, 2006 11:05 am
Location: LONDON

Post by loulou »

It does not help that I am a paroniod mum and tend to over analyze everything .
I don't think you are paranoid - just that you care about your son and want the best for him. Just being on this forum show that. I hope he is OK now after the QE stress.

Its really hard to have to give ultimate control over your sons future to an education authority. When thats compounded by the fact they makes you wait 5 months to let you know what they have decided its not surprising that you end up feeling stressed!!

I'll be in your shoes next year, although I am in the fortunate situation of having a decent comp on my doorstep (where my other son is at school) and yes it is nice to know that this forum is full of like minded people.

I'll be keeping everything crossed for you for March

Loulou
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