At some point early on in your child’s life, you will have to make that tough decision on schools. Will you go private, local community or maybe even a faith school? Just when you think you have it sorted you’ll then have the big hurdle of getting into your choice. Late registrations, catchment areas and church reference can all set you back unless you are well informed early on and act on it!
In my experience there are three choices a parent can make – those who only take the state school / faith school route, those who will only consider private and then those who would like their local school but are gambling with their catchment area.
LOCAL COMMUNITY SCHOOL (STATE)
Around 90% of children attend State schools which are run by the Local Education Authority (LEA) and start at Primary level then move to Secondary. Funded by the state and the British taxpayer, the LEA owns their premises and employs their own staff. They also decide how they will admit their pupils especially if the school is very popular. They can use the priority admissions area and/or use sibling priority.
FAITH SCHOOL
There is a combination of private and state faith schools around the country and are recognised by their religious characteristics (sometimes they have links with religious organisations).
Some faith schools admit through locality and not through parent’s belief, but a large percentage of faith schools in and around London select applicants mainly on their religious status. More often than not, proof will need to be shown ie a reference from their place of worship or birth certificate. However schools are becoming much more wary that some applicants are joining the church with their child’s education in mind. They are tightening up their policy and are now looking at how often their applicants go to church, when the children are baptised (be warned that if it is not within the first year, this can arouse suspicion) and sometimes even if they are on a flower arranging duty.
INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS (PRIVATE)
As the term suggests, independent / private schools (no difference in the name), are self-regulating and independent from the Local Education Authority. Their funding comes from schools fees which parents pay usually on a term basis and can vary in amount according to location, size and age. It is regarded that a child would receive a better education from the private sector as the class sizes are smaller and covers an array of subjects. However many would debate this.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A SCHOOL
You may have heard about the school from recommendation or reputation but that doesn’t mean to say it is the right school for your child. Whilst school is a place to study it is also a place to socialise and a safe haven to building confidence. In a right environment your child will thrive – in a wrong environment you child’s confidence can suffer. So research your school first. How local is it to you? For example will you meet other parents and children on the school walk? If you work does the school offer a breakfast club / afterschool club or afterschool activity? If you are paying – what are you actually paying for ie school meals? Swimming? It doesn’t mean to say the less expensive private schools are better value for money.
Visiting the school during an open day and asking question can give an indication of what the pupils will cover, however use ears and eyes to guide you as to what the school might really be like, for example, how well stocked is the library? Do the children in the class look interested, bored? What does the school sound like? Noisy, quiet, studious? Does the school have a PTA (parent, teacher association)? Visiting at the beginning or at the end of the school day also gives clues such as do the parents hang around chatting or do they pick up and go home? You may want to talk to other parents who send their children there for a better idea of how it is run.
It is worth getting to know key representatives associated with the school as they can give you more of an insight into the school. Key figures such as the Chairman/woman or Committee of the school’s PTA; school office; parents of older children; even Parish Leaders can advise on faith schools
TOP TIPS
- Look at your Priority Admissions Area and the schools within it. Which schools do well on the league table? Do they have a good Ofsted report? To check what PAA you fall into, go to your local council’s website as all the information about the school, their Ofsted report and SATs results are open for public viewing.
- Remember you don’t have to put a school within your PAA as your first choice. It might be that a better school outside catchment may have a low sibling intake that year or you could be living near the boundaries. It is recommended, to put at least one school in your PAA on the list (be it further down), as if you don’t get into your preferred school, you may face going to a one further away.
- Try to establish a good relationship with the office at your preferred school. If you are on the waiting list they are sure to have an idea of what position you are and can advise accordingly.
- Bear in the mind the implications of moving children to different schools, especially mid term.
CATCHMENT AREA (PRIORITY ADMISSION AREA)
A majority of boroughs in and around London have a standard procedure as to how a child is admitted into a primary community school. A Catchment area is an invisible boundary around the school which determines who has been accepted – however this boundary can get bigger and smaller each year depending on how is applying to that particular school. Whilst your borough states you can apply to any school within the super Catchment area (a much larger boundary surrounding several areas making up a first part of a postcode) if a school is popular there will be a lot of competition to get into that school.
Each school will only ever be able to offer a certain number of places so the council had to create a priority list of who will be admitted first and once accepted, move down the list.
The priority list usually consists of the following :
- Children in public care (in and outside PAA regardless)
- Children who have exceptional medical or social circumstances (in and outside PAA regardless)
- Children who have a brother or sister attending that school (includes blood, step, foster). Proof is required they are living at the same address (in and outside PAA)
- Children proximity to the school (the nearer you are to the school the greater chance you have of getting in) – within PAA
It’s a gamble when applying for a school, especially the popular ones as each year has different ratios. One year a large number of siblings will be offered, leaving a few places free for families living closer to the school, while other years a low number of siblings may apply and children from the surrounding boundaries may be offered a place.
It’s impossible to predict until all the applications have been submitted and the priority list formed. However your Local Educational Authority should have a brochure about their policies, what schools are available and what the intake is for each school (usually the numbers from the previous year).
This posting was contributed by Juliet Golz, founder of the website chiswickschools.co.uk, who help to make it easier to navigate the education options available to families and provide valuable information on the process.
