Newstead making a mockery of the admissions procedures.

WesterhamMum · Post by **WesterhamMum** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 3:17 pm

I remember reading a thread on this site last year about a girl who was offered a place directly from Newstead Woods School despite having been offered a place from her local authority at TOGS. It transpired that this was not the first year Newstead had done this and the Headmistress had been warned.

This year, my daughter and her best friend both obtained their first choice place at TOGS (out of area) and this morning we both received a letter from Newstead to inform us that our daughtersâ€™ had â€œperformed sufficiently well in the Newstead Wood Entrance Test to meet the entry criteria for a place at this schoolâ€

medwaymum · Post by **medwaymum** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 4:26 pm

Hi WesterhamMum, can you explain how you know the Headmistress 'had been warned' or is this rumour?
Thanks.

WesterhamMum · Post by **WesterhamMum** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 5:25 pm

This post was taken from a thread here on the Kent section last year:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tired Mum wrote:Ok spoken to LEA who......... agree that what has happened is completely at a variance with the agreed CAF procedure. Apparently, N did this last year and had promised not to do so again. Also apparently they have spoken to the Head this afternoon (wonder why) who has said it won't happen again - again!

[link added by WP]

Desperate Dan · Post by **Desperate Dan** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 5:56 pm

Hi WesterhamMum,
Do you know what the out of area cut off was for TOGS?

georgex · Post by **georgex** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 6:01 pm

Just read under allocations that it was 412.

SSM · Post by **SSM** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 6:01 pm

Desperate Dan wrote:Hi WesterhamMum,
Do you know what the out of area cut off was for TOGS?

Sorry, can't do links, but on the 'Allocations' thread it says 412

georgex · Post by **georgex** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 6:03 pm

Do you the cut off score for Newstead just out of interest to see if it is higher than previous years?

Desperate Dan · Post by **Desperate Dan** » Thu Mar 05, 2009 6:04 pm

Thanks SSM.

Tired Mum · Post by **Tired Mum** » Sat Mar 07, 2009 5:35 pm

I can confirm that I spoke directly to Bromley Admissions in 2007 and was told by them that the Headmistress had been told that the practice of offering to those girls, with scores higher than the cut off, who did not appear on the list once it had been sent to them from Bromley Council was forbidden.

That is absolutely true. Bromley also offered to submit a complaint for me however as I was intent on appealing I did not want to damage my chances.

I understand from posts elsewhere on the site that the cut off this year is 222, which is higher than the past three years. The cynic in me hopes the practice of not advising the scores to those that have been offered a place is not another way of manipulating the entry process.

perplexed · Post by **perplexed** » Sun Mar 08, 2009 9:26 pm

I'm a bit confused with this thread. The OP does not say that Newstead Woods has offered to pupils who achieved the cut-off mark but had been allocated another school on allocation day. It says she has written to people to let them know they were on or above the cut-off score.

Is there any harm in this? It just lets you know that you might stand a reasonable chance on the waiting list or at appeal for this school. As long as the school is operating the waiting list correctly, what has been done wrong? Or is it in contravention of Data Protection Act or something like that to write out to parents of kids who took the test but for whatever reason were not offered a place?