11 plus meeting

bexley 2 · Post by **bexley 2** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 7:05 am

Hi, went to the meeting last night, much as I thought, school almost too scared to talk about test in case it's thought of as coaching somehow. School said they would not be sitting practice papers formally, just going through them together. I've heard of others taking the practice tests like a real exam, getting them accustomed to what they are going to be doing for real. Do you think we are at a disadvantage or is this quite normal?
School also said that you can put a few grammer schools at the top of the application and if the child does not pass, the first comp. listed will rise to the top as a first choice school. Is this correct? I've heard that only the 1st grammer school is scrubbed somewhere. I really hope the school are right on this one.

bexley 2 · Post by **bexley 2** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 10:47 am

Hi I just thought of something else that I thought was quite odd. Maybe someone who has already taken the test can let me know, but I was also told that the children must not mark the question paper. Why it's not as if they are going to be used again. My child always crosses out the obviously wrong ones as she goes along so much easier than jotting down notes on a spare piece of paper as the school has suggested.

Anne42 · Post by **Anne42** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 1:21 pm

In Medway , my daughter's school has said , all working out must be on the question sheet , they are not allowed spare paper.

bexley 2 · Post by **bexley 2** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 2:29 pm

Thanks for reply ,
that makes more sense to me keeping the workings out with the question .It makes it easier to go back and check on work that way.

Dawn · Post by **Dawn** » Sat Sep 29, 2007 10:03 am

My understanding from the Transfer meeting at my sons' school was that your LEA will contact each school on your list telling them that a place has been requested but not telling them their position on your form. Each school is then required to reply to the LEA advising as to whether they are offering a place based on their admission criteria (so tests for selective schools, distance from school for community schools etc). The Lea will then apply this info to your list and if your first choice school offer a place they will write to you with an offer at that school. If your first choice don't offer a place but your 2nd choice do, you will be offered that place and so on down the list until the LEA reach your highest ranked school that have offered a place.

We were also told that you can only appeal if the school you are appealing to was ranked on your form above the school that you were offered. I know this may sound obvious but I do know people who were planning on putting their first choice comp down ahead of their first choice grammar because they thought that if their child passed the grammar test they would get a place regardless of the position that they had put it on their form.

I never thought that applications for secondary school could be so stressful or contain so many opprtunities to get it wrong! I will be so glad when it is all over!

KB · Post by KB » Tue Oct 02, 2007 1:34 pm

It's actually very simple.

Put the schools of your choice in your GENUINE order or preference. If you match with your first choice (e.g. you put a grammar school first and the 11+ result is good enough for that school) you will be offered it and they will not expect you to appeal because that was your first choice. If you don't match with first choice, the LEA will work down your list of choices until they find a match. If no match is found, you will be offered a place at the nearest school that has places available (that's when you need to appeal!!).

Schools do not know which order you put them on the application, as each one automatically moves up to be your first choice if you don't meet the admission criteria for the one(s) above it. So, the important thing to get right is your order of preference.

Good luck.

Guest55 · Post by **Guest55** » Tue Oct 02, 2007 2:59 pm

You MUST put Grammars at the top or you will not be offered one above your first choice.

Your choices WILL be made available if you go to a transfer appeal after allocation day ...

Kent Mum · Post by **Kent Mum** » Wed Oct 03, 2007 12:30 am

It's really not worth hedging your bets over the CAF. It could backfire!
For example, parents want little Freddie or Mildred, or whatever, to go to a grammar- but want to 'play safe' with a good local comp- so on the form they list:

Local Comp
Grammar
Other Comp

Freddie/Mildred passes the 11+- but the school offered on the 1st of March is the Local comp, because it was listed in the highest place on the form.

Had they put
Grammar
Local Comp
Other Comp

Freddie/ Mildred would have been offered the grammar. If he/ she hadn't passed the 11+, then there wouldn't be a grammar place offered- and the Local Comp would be the school offered, as it was the next on the list that the child was eligible for.

Of course, oversubscription criteria plays a part- but that's pretty much how it goes.
Probably teaching Grandma to suck eggs, mind you.........

1guest · Post by **1guest** » Fri Oct 05, 2007 12:06 am

Some people told me that you should put only the schools you want on CAF form. They said if you put local comp just in case (not to be allocated the nearest one with places left), then you will definetely get it.
I do not believe any of this. Admission criteria will be applied, and if you qualify for any higher preferences, then you should get it. And if not, then, at least, the local comp was the one you considered, not the worst one.

Sally-Anne · Post by **Sally-Anne** » Fri Oct 05, 2007 2:01 pm

Hi Richie

I have moved your post on Parmiters School to the Hertfordshire, where you will get a more informed response.

Sally-Anne (Moderator)