How to secure a school place - the small print!

It’s not just about you finding the school you want, it’s about the school agreeing to take your offspring too.

Being prepared to pay for an independent education does not guarantee you a place.

How that process works depends on where you live within the UK and which sector you are looking at, as explained below.

Admission to independent schools

Independent schools are free to choose who they admit and many are quite choosey.

In vastly oversubscribed areas such as London they may be very picky indeed; in less populated areas very good schools may be underwhelmed with applicants so ‘getting-in’ is easier.

Wherever the school, the process can be lengthy and costly. Most will ask you to pay a non-refundable registration fee, ranging from £25 to £250. Closing dates for registration varies; some senior schools close their books a good 3 years or more prior to entry and it isn’t unknown for pre-preps to have waiting lists full of embryos.

Expect a child to be put through their paces (and for you to pay for the privilege) with many demanding a pre-assessment deposit of hundreds, even thousands, of pounds years in advance of actual entry. Selection will range from a gentle ‘play based’ assessment for the wee ones, with older ones subjected to full blown, computerised pre-pre-testing followed by interviews and assessments for those who cleared the first hurdle, then Common Entrance for any left in the race. Any child with recognised special needs and entitlement to concessions such as extra-time should be granted these in pre-test situations. Sixth form entry is getting tougher too, with an abundance of A∗s at GCSE demanded by many first division schools. Even those languishing at the foot of the league tables will demand good passes in the subjects to be studied. Regardless of age or stage, most will also want references from the child’s current school.

Remember too that even seemingly fairytale marriages end in divorce, with you, or the school, pulling prematurely out of what you both thought would be a long and happy relationship; as discussed in this chapter.

State school admissions in England

Admission to all maintained (state) schools and academies, in England, is regulated by the School Admissions Code (Feb 2007). This revised code has tightened up on the many scams and ruses used by parents and schools to select by the back-door. With the exception of admissions to maintained special schools and maintained nursery schools, admissions are coordinated by the LA.

Bribing or badgering the head will not secure a place, indeed head teachers, school officials etc are not allowed to inform parents of any possible offers – only the LA can.

Co-ordinated admissions aim to ensure that, ‘as far as is practical, every child living in a local authority area who has applied in the n...