realistic advice please

[katka1311]

So if I would put St. Marks on my last option- it is also out of our borough- it belongs to Ealing I think, and only 20% of Hillingdon children get admission there...I am thinking is it the reason why the head said what she did?

Regarding not having a sure choice: yes it worries me too, but there is not a huge choice around where I live. That is why I feel I need to gamble, but somehow realistically.
The comp's admission criteria was a simple non verbal test, which my DD took. No results yet, they will offer place according to the banding...less children in top and bottom banding, more in the mid range group.

So how exactly do the allocation rounds work?

Yes I am interested in transport, done my homework today, there are few transport links, and pick up points..would love to know if there are some kids from hillingdon borough attending Bucks schools..bucsk admission sent everyone a previous statistic from last years allocation...quiet interesting one, number of children allocated to each school from in and outside of the borough...so I was thinking to put down those with higher allocations outside of the borough, only if I can get transport for those schools, of course.

[hermanmunster]

St Mark's looks like it is in Hounslow - the admission require a certificate from the priest :

Evidence of Catholic practice will be sought from the Certificate of Catholic Practice. This certificate
is issued by the family’s parish priest (or the priest in charge of the church where the family attends
Mass) in the form laid down by the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales. It will be issued if
the priest is satisfied that at least one Catholic parent or carer (along with the child, if he or she is
over seven years old) have (except when it was impossible to do so) attended Mass on Sundays and
holy days of obligation for at least five years (or, in the case of the child, since the age of seven, if
shorter).

Then the oversubscription criteria applies:

[quoteCategory One: Catholic “looked after”¹ children and Catholic children who have been
adopted² or made subject to child arrangement orders³ or special guardianship
orders4
.
Category Two: Baptised, Catholic applicants with a Certificate of Catholic Practice.
Category Three: Baptised, Catholic applicants without a Certificate of Catholic practise. etc etc ][/quote]

the 20% the comes in here:

Applicants in each category will be placed into groups, depending on the Deanery in which they
reside. A proportion of the places will be offered in each Deanery as follows:
Hounslow Deanery 54%
Hillingdon Deanery 20%
Upper Thames Deanery 13%
Ealing Deanery 13%

so 20% of the places at the school will be for Hillingdon children

then if there are more children from that area than allocated places they allocate as follows:

In the event of oversubscription in each Category, the following criteria will be used to place
applicants in order of priority.
(a) Children with a brother or sister (including step/half siblings) who will be attending the school
(including 6th Form) at the time of admission.
(b) Children with a parent employed by the School for two or more years at the time at which the
application for admission is made.
(c) Distance tie-break
St. Mark’s Catholic School use the LA’s measuring system. The route from home to school
has been measured using the “shortest designated route”

[katka1311]

Yes it is in Hounslow I was not sure which borough it belongs to..anyway..yes I have mentioned that we are a practising catholic family, yes I do have a certif from our parish priest..would it be worthed to put it down as the 6th option? Just in case?

[scary mum]

number of children allocated to each school from in and outside of the borough...so I was thinking to put down those with higher allocations outside of the borough, only if I can get transport for those schools, of course.

They may have admitted children from outside catchment, but how far outside? Have you looked at the actual distances allocated previously that I linked to above? Which school were you thinking of?

[mad?]

Yes it is in Hounslow I was not sure which borough it belongs to..anyway..yes I have mentioned that we are a practising catholic family, yes I do have a certif from our parish priest..would it be worthed to put it down as the 6th option? Just in case?

St marks is such a highly performing school that it is usually heavily oversubscribed. You are extremely lucky to have it as an option but you must put one school down which you know you would get if all other options fail otherwise your DC will end up travelling halfway across London to the lowest performing of schools. Have you thought of Douay Martyrs? I don't know exactly where you are in Hillingdon but there are some very good schools there.

[hermanmunster]

..would it be worthed to put it down as the 6th option? Just in case?

I don't think St Mark's would be the "just in case" school - it has too much oversubscription for that.

I would suggest that you go for :

1. St Bernard's (appeal)
2. Burnham
3. Bucks GS (just check on travel - you may find logistics difficult and it may not be free travel)
4. St Mark's - contact them to check the max distances for Hillingdon over last few years
5&6. Other more local schools that you have a much greater chance of getting into, with reasonable travel.

[katka1311]

Yes I have checked the maximum distances for the bucks grammar school. So Burnham said 10 miles/ offered a place for 101 students OA last year/ and the other one down on my list would be Wycombe High. We are 16.28 miles away.Last year they the last child allocated a school place OA lived 11.83 miles away, but a year before that 24.58 miles away. They offered 43 places out of catchment. We tought about chesham as well they offered places to 66 OA children and we are 15.47 miles away..but they all these places were offered up to a distance of 5.8miles so not sure if it is worthed to put them down. I will phone St.Marks as well...yes we are not too far from Douay Martyr's but DD did not particularly liked that school.So you think I should put St.Marks higher on the list along with the other popular comprehensive /it was Swakeleys/..ehen you said some very good schools are in the area which one were you thinking of..
So to ensure a grammar school place it does not make sense to fill up the 6 places with all grammat schools hoping something eill work out- is that correct? Or there is a chance if we wait for all the allocation rounds to finish?

[scary mum]

How far are you from Burnham in a straight line distance? They may have gone to 10 miles in the end, but the distance is shrinking each year, and the journey would be terrible. The reason they have do many from out of area is that they are found on the boundary of the county. The number of OOC students is irrelevant, it's the distance that is important. I don't think you would get Wycombe High School, the 24 miles was a strange one. And how on earth would your DD get from Hayes to High Wycombe? I would seriously investigate local schools. You asked for realistic advise. No-one knows what will happen & won't know until March 1st.

[streathammum]

So to ensure a grammar school place it does not make sense to fill up the 6 places with all grammat schools hoping something eill work out- is that correct? Or there is a chance if we wait for all the allocation rounds to finish?

You will not be able to "ensure a grammar place" by putting only grammar schools on your CAF. You will only be offered a place at a school you qualify for, be that a grammar or a comp. If you don't qualify for any of the schools on your CAF you will be offered a place at an undersubscribed school that could be some distance from your home.

You should put at least one school on your CAF that you are confident of getting a place at and which you are reasonably happy with.

[katka1311]

Yes I do appreciate honest suggestions there is nothing wrong with that, after all this is the first yime I am applying for a secondary school place/ primary was a bit more straightforward/.
We are 10.06 miles from Burnham. Spoke to the head yesterday. He said it was a fair chance but we all know he does not know what the situation will be this year. High Wycombe wecwere thinking of a car share with another moms but yes it is a bit more diff to get there. Burnham school has a coach and a rail so that should be ok. I think I should mive up St.Marks and Swakeleys on my lost maybe somewhere around the 3rd position...so if I am correct..if children who put these schools as their first preferance and they qualify for it they will fill up the spaces therefore i might end up loosing out on these choices...does it make more sense to move them higher on my list?