The anxious countdown begins (School Admissions)

Member Name: Rhiana

Product:	School Admissions
Date:	21/04/09 (158 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Choice

Disadvantages: No choice

WOW! I am absolutely gobsmacked to find this here already, having only suggested the topic this afternoon to DooYoo. I'm really pleased though, as tonight I wait with baited breath. Why you ask? Because tomorrow a small envelope will drop through the door, revealing whether or not my 4 year old daughter has been successful in gaining a place at our local primary school, thus determining the quality of her Education for the next 7 years.

Those who have not experienced the trauma of applying for school places ever or recently, may wonder why I'm so anxiety ridden and expecting a sleepless night. Well, in brief, when your child reaches school age, or secondary school age, you are now allowed a 'choice' of three schools, stating your first, second and third choice. You are no longer bound by catchment areas and are free to express a choice in any three school's within the local council area.

So what's wrong with that? Well for a start, you actually don't have that much choice. You can quite easily find your child being placed in a school that wasn't your 2nd or even 3rd choice. Or indeed wouldn't have been your 4th, 5th or 6th. This happened to my son last year.

Reaching the age of secondary education, we dutifully went and examined all schools within a reasonable distance, and 'chose' the nearest 3. Our first choice was the furthest away, so that was a bit of a gamble. Th other 2 schools where the 2 nearest to us. However, due to one secondary school in our city being closed completely, and another temporarily for 3 years while it was rebuilt in a huge shake up of education in the area, all secondary schools in the city where over subscribed. Except one. Despite not being one of my three choices, this is the school my son was placed in. Apart from having a dismal reputation on possibly the roughest estate in the city, it was 2 bus rides away. Past BOTH our second and third choice schools, it would take my son an hour of traveling each way daily.

There is an appeals system, we appealed and lost. Altogether this happened to 8 children from my son's junior school and received a lot of publicity in the local news paper. I didn't know what to do, I was so dismayed and my son absolutely terrified. And then my parents offered to pay for him to go into private education.

It's not something I had ever considered, even sneered at in the past. However in this situation, we went and had a look. It was nothing like I expected and I fell in love with the school. I have no regrets. My son is thriving, being the type of child who would easily get lost in a large school and be positively eaten alive in the rougher school. My concerns about the 'bad' school he was allocated have been justified by the way, this year saw the school put under emergency special measure, constantly policed, bouncers on school buses going to the school, mass walk outs by pupils and teachers, extreme cases of bullying. Every week there's a different story in the paper. I am eternally grateful to my parents, who have made a huge and generous commitment to which I do feel guilt. I feel so let down, by a system that forces me to accept my parents savings to pay privately for my sons education.

So a year on and here I am again. Only this time it's for a primary school place for my daughter. Due to the 'shake up' last year, mentioned above, one of three local (to us) primary schools where also closed down. And the reason? Choice. The area is made up of 3 estates, and did have a school on each estate. The less 'nice' estate (yes, council, shoot me) was closed due to being under subscribed, instead of children automatically going to their nearest school, parents where choosing to send their children to the better 2 schools. But of course when that school closed, the good two became over subscribed with capacity classes, port -a- cabin class rooms and huge waiting lists. Last year 20 primary school children in our local area didn't get into one of the 2 schools in the area. children as young as 4 are being 'taxied' (at a cost to the tax payer of £100 each a week) across the city to other schools that still have places. Usually the ones no-one wants to go to. Some parents have felt forced to remove their children from school completely and home school.

So this is where I won't win any popularity contests, be deemed a snob...whatever. If 'choice' was took away then everyone would have to go to their local school. In or area at least that would mean 3 moderately subscribed schools. OK, so if the school nearest to you isn't the best? Move. I did. I pay higher council tax, rent privately (through the nose) to be near the school I'd like my child to attend. I had a choice. I could have rented or bought cheaply on the local council estate, but I didn't. I worked hard and paid extra to live in this particular area, going with out other things, to be near a good school I'd like my child to attend. So now why should we be the one's to be turned down for places at the local school, and forced to send our children to poorly performing schools?

Alright, I realise that it's not always possible to just move, and every child is entitled to a good education. But surely if everyone attended the nearest school then a mix of pupils would attend, rather the schools deemed poor becoming dumping grounds for the poor kids who's parents don't win their 'choice' or just don't really care? Surely that would create a win win all round? All schools would have an even number of pupils per class, rather than some being at maximum capacity and others very under-subscribed.

I'm sure there's people who can explain why the current school admissions system IS fair, please just bare in mind I'm an anxious Mum awaiting the verdict on my daughters future education, which could shape her life. And don't be too harsh on me (I don't usually enter into debate and opinion type posts, usualling being a bit of a fence sitter!)

Well enough of my ramblings on the subject I think. I probably won't convince you, but really I'm not a snob. A lot of the issues I've raised are quite possibly local being as our local area is suffering great turbulence amongst it's education provision at the moment. And I really do wish for good education for all children where ever their parents live. I just feel that giving us 'choice' has inadvertently took it away from us and created 'horror' schools, where people desperately want their children kept away from and are extremely disappointed if they can't manage to. As I realise not everyone is lucky enough to have parents who made the generous offer mine did. If they hadn't of been able to, then my sons education would have been beyond my choice, and there would have been nothing I could do but hope he made it through OK.

Wish me and Little Lu luck for tomorrow. I'll update and let anyone who is interested if we have been lucky or not.

*** UPDATE *** (23/4/09)

Well after accosting the postie yesterday and not recieving our letter from the education authority, another days anxious wait (relieved by my visit to The Dancing On Ice Tour last night) brought the much anticipated little letter. Postie delivered and ran, bless him. So where we lucky?

YEEESSSSS!!!!!

Huge sigh of relief.

I can now relax for another 8 years until my daughter is old enough for Secondary Admissions!

Thanks to everyone who read, rated and wished us luck.

Summary: I might get a lot of rating done tonight if I can't sleep!