applying for schools in different districts

glitter_fairy82

My husband and I have recently separated. We have two children 10 and 11. Our 11 year old is starting secondary school in September at a school by our old family home. His dad still lives there.

I have moved in with my parents in a town about half an our away, the children spend most of the time with me and stay with their dad when he is not working.

My dd is in year 5 and we will be applying for secondary school in a few months. there is a very good grammar school near me we would like to send her to, but if she doesn't pass her 11 plus, or doesn't get accepted we would like her to go to the secondary school her brother will be at by her dads house.

Is it possible to apply for both?

They are different school districts.

peachyprice

Grammar schools tend to have a wider catchment and will cover a number of districts, so you need to find if your OH's address is within their catchment.

If you want her to take the 11+ you would usually put the grammar as your first choice and the other school as your second, but you can only use one address for your application, which will have to be your OH's for your second choice to be considered.

glitter_fairy82

peachyprice wrote: »

Grammar schools tend to have a wider catchment and will cover a number of districts, so you need to find if your OH's address is within their catchment.

If you want her to take the 11+ you would usually put the grammar as your first choice and the other school as your second, but you can only use one address for your application, which will have to be your OH's for your second choice to be considered.

his address is just outside the catchment. This is such a hard choice. the other schools near mine are terrible.

Thank you for your help x

Spendless

Where's the sibling criteria for the school your eldest is going to be at in September? It could be above or below catchment.

glitter_fairy82

Spendless wrote: »

Where's the sibling criteria for the school your eldest is going to be at in September? It could be above or below catchment.

I will look into that thank you x

Janepig

By "district" OP do you mean LEA? If so, can you not apply to the grammar school from your address, and the school near your ex from that address? If they are in two different LEA's I can't see them comparing notes. If you just mean catchment areas though then that'll be different, although he can apply for out of catchment, you've just got less of a chance of getting in.

Jx

glitter_fairy82

Janepig wrote: »

By "district" OP do you mean LEA? If so, can you not apply to the grammar school from your address, and the school near your ex from that address? If they are in two different LEA's I can't see them comparing notes. If you just mean catchment areas though then that'll be different, although he can apply for out of catchment, you've just got less of a chance of getting in.

Jx

yes different lea.

do i need to apply from the address the cb is paid to?

noregrets

Assuming you live in England or Wales, you apply to the LA where you live but can apply to both schools. I certainly wouldnt advise making two applications as data is often shared and checked and you would be making a fraudulent application if you applied from both addresses which may well lead to a place being withdrawn if you are caught.

You need to check the rules on which address to apply from as in most cases it is the address where the child lives most often which in your case would be your address. However often having a sibling at the school will give you a higher priority than where you live too. Also, sometimes you can apply for a grammar school alongside a non-grammar without it affecting your chances.

Without knowing the rules that apply to each school it's hard to give definite advice so I would strongly suggest ringing the school admissions team for each LA, explain the situation and ask them to give you some advice.

glitter_fairy82

noregrets wrote: »

Assuming you live in England or Wales, you apply to the LA where you live but can apply to both schools. I certainly wouldnt advise making two applications as data is often shared and checked and you would be making a fraudulent application if you applied from both addresses which may well lead to a place being withdrawn if you are caught.

You need to check the rules on which address to apply from as in most cases it is the address where the child lives most often which in your case would be your address. However often having a sibling at the school will give you a higher priority than where you live too. Also, sometimes you can apply for a grammar school alongside a non-grammar without it affecting your chances.

Without knowing the rules that apply to each school it's hard to give definite advice so I would strongly suggest ringing the school admissions team for each LA, explain the situation and ask them to give you some advice.

Thank you will do that x

peachyprice

Janepig wrote: »

By "district" OP do you mean LEA? If so, can you not apply to the grammar school from your address, and the school near your ex from that address? If they are in two different LEA's I can't see them comparing notes. If you just mean catchment areas though then that'll be different, although he can apply for out of catchment, you've just got less of a chance of getting in.

Jx

That's a really bad idea.

Janepig

peachyprice wrote: »

That's a really bad idea.

I didn't say "do it", I just put it out there. Do LEA's really cross check with one another? I wouldn't have said communication is an ability most Local Authorities seem to possess. It may be the case that the particular LEA's that the OP wishes to apply for have rules in their small print (which should be checkable online OP) stating that in the case of parents being separated then the address where the child spends most of their week is the one that should be used, but again, how would an LEA check up on that?

I know we only had to supply a council tax bill as proof of residency with our applications, and both the OP and ex would be able to provide those. I know there can be consequences for applying to a school from an address where you don't actually live, but I've not heard of consequences for this type of situation. But I'm prepared to be corrected.

Jx