Can you delay entry to Y7 due to oversubsciption?

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Apial
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 30, 2007 2:51 pm
Location: Lincolnshire

Can you delay entry to Y7 due to oversubsciption?

Post by Apial »

Hi,
I don't know where this question should be posted, but please move it to wherever it should go.

I was talking to my primary teacher wife about my sons refusal for a place at grammar school due to over subscription, despite obtaining a respectable mark in the 12+.


Children in primary are sometimes held back a year to catch up, and sometimes moved up a class if they are bright enough. This year our local grammar school is expecting that there will be a lot of unfilled places due to insufficient 11+ passes. Therefore is there any reason why it would not be possible for my son to start Y7 one year later than normal?

People often take gap years out before going on to tertiary education, so I can't see a long term problem in doing this, but then I don't know the "rules" on this matter.
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Re: Can you delay entry to Y7 due to oversubsciption?

Post by Etienne »

An interesting question. I cannot immediately spot anything in the new Admissions Code about this. The previous Code stated: Although most children will be admitted to a school within their own age group, from time to time parents seek places outside their normal age group for gifted and talented children, or those who have experienced problems or missed part of a year, for example due to ill health. Admission authorities should consider these requests carefully and make decisions on the basis of the circumstances of each case. Parents refused an application for a place outside the normal age group have a statutory right of appeal.

My feeling is that authorities tend to be rather inflexible about admission outside the normal age group, and would not be sympathetic to your argument.

Bear in mind too that they may well have a rule that the qualification is valid for one year only.
Etienne
yoyo123
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Joined: Mon Jun 18, 2007 3:32 pm
Location: East Kent

Post by yoyo123 »

technically perhaps not, but I would be VERY wary of doing this. A child needs to be with their peers. Keeping a cild back just so thatthey may go to grammar school seems a very bad didea to me. Grammar schools take the top 20/25% , how wdo you propase to keep a bright child challenged in their repeated year?? it is difficult enough finding extensin activities for teh brighter children at teh best of times.

so , a year later the child may pass, but at what price??
Apial
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 30, 2007 2:51 pm
Location: Lincolnshire

Post by Apial »

The longer that my son remains on a waiting list, the longer he will miss out on a grammar education. Currently he must wait until 6 people leave before he will be admitted because the school is already 5 over PAN. This could take for years. Naturally I shall be appealing, but I think the chances are slim of succeeding in the appeal about over-subscription. Any succesful appeals in the meantime will just increase the wait.

The last time I asked, there were a dozen or so on the waiting list. For most, passing the 12+ has only been of psychological benefit, as they will never get a place.

Bear in mind that he has just passed the 12+, so there is no argument about academic ability, just that in his year group too many pupils have passed. We already have another sibling who jumped up a year, and this did not create any problem.

Keeping him challenged is already a problem because he is "waiting" in a comprehensive, and there is only 1/2 a year left. The peer age is not such a big issue. Some local primary schools have 4 age groups in one class, and even within the same age group different levels of maturity exist.
Guest55
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Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Post by Guest55 »

You might find he has to resit - so do find the facts out first -
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

Assuming that the qualification remains valid (or that your son resits successfully), no reason not to try.

I suspect that a Local Authority would resist and that you would have to go to appeal. If so, it might be worth contacting the grammar school headteacher to see how strongly they would support the LA's refusal.

If it's a foundation school handling its own affairs, it's just possible they might be more flexible than a LA would ......
Etienne
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Post by Guest55 »

One of the reasons they will NOT be keen is that your child will count as zero GCSEs as it is counted when they are the age to be Year 11 and your child will only be in Y10.
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

Another good point .........
Etienne
Apial
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 30, 2007 2:51 pm
Location: Lincolnshire

Post by Apial »

There is no worry about doing a resit, its just a bit controversial though. On a plus side, the school would get extra funding that it would have lost had it left the places unfilled.

I can but ask the Head of the foundation grammar school what they think.

If the choice does end up as grammar schoo,l never, or grammar school one year late, I think I would have to choose the latter.

The GCSE statisitics are quoted by no of pupils in Y11. They never mention age. Of course there will be different ages in Y11 anyway, some taking the GCSE a year early too.

Clearly the idea, and it is only an idea at this stage, rocks some peoples' boat. Keep the arguments coming. It really helps brainstorm the idea.
Guest55
Posts: 16254
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Post by Guest55 »

Apial - I know age does matter in Year 11 - if you take it early your stats are used the following year not the year you sat the exams in. I think any GS would not want a 'zero' in their stats -
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