«Breaking News» One in five children are set to miss out on their first-choice secondary school today

Parents are facing the worst year ever for children missing out on their first-choice secondary school as allocations are announced across the UK today.

A record 115,000 children are expected to be disappointed following a growth in applications of around 23,000 since last year.

The explosion in the school-age population is due to a baby boom a decade ago fuelled by high migration in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Experts at the Good Schools Guide say 18.8 per cent – around one in five – will lose out on their first choice, up from 17.9 per cent last year.

They also warn of a rise in children getting none of their listed choices, after this happened to 4.1 per cent last year. This can be a disaster for families if they are landed with a school which is performing poorly or a long commute from home.

The worst area is set to be Hammersmith and Fulham in London, where 48.6 per cent did not get their first choice last year

The figures come from analysis of Government data by experts at the guide. A record 606,000 pupils need places this year, and today most parents can see their offer online, although some will receive it via post. Depending on the local authority, families were asked to list between three and six schools in order of preference on the application submitted in October.

Bernadette John, Good Schools Guide director, said: 'It has been known for a long time that secondary schools would need to accommodate increased pupil numbers but little action seems to have been taken.'

The worst area is set to be Hammersmith and Fulham in London, where 48.6 per cent did not get their first choice last year, and 14.1 per cent got none of their six choices. Other hotspots will be Reading, where 33.7 per cent missed out in 2018, and Birmingham, where 32.1 per cent were disappointed.

Mrs John added: 'Some parts of the country simply do not have enough places to satisfy local demand and elsewhere, many under-performing schools are rejected by families, resulting in the desperate rush as parents put their hopes in the good local school which, of course, is hugely oversubscribed.'

Mike Pemberton, head of the public law team at Stephensons Solicitors, recommended disappointed parents always accept their allocated place before appealing. They should also sign up to any waiting lists for their preferred schools. And the guide suggested that as only a quarter of appeals are successful, parents should re-examine their allocated school as a 'bad local reputation could be based on out-of-date information'.

Other hotspots will be Reading, where 33.7 per cent missed out in 2018. Increase in school-age population is due to 1990s migration-fuelled baby boom

In Birmingham 32.1 per cent were disappointed  last year. Of 606,000 pupils needing spots, 115,000 are expected to miss their first choice

'In the end, you may have little choice but for your child to attend the school you've been given, no matter how much you dislike it,' the guide warned. 'The job of getting your child settled there will be much harder if they know how negatively you view it.' Last year, 104,314 of the 582,761 applicants did not get their first choice.

The Government has previously admitted that the baby boom which occurred in the 2000s was down to high migration because migrant women had a higher birth rate than UK-born women. Official projections from last year show secondary pupil numbers were due to rise by more than 600,000 by 2023.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders' union NAHT, said councils need more freedom to create places. He said: 'For too many, there will be huge disappointment. In some parts of the country, it will mean children having to travel long distances to go to secondary school or being separated from their peers.'

However, school standards minister Nick Gibb said: 'This Government is determined to create more choice for parents when it comes to their children's education and we have created 825,000 school places since 2010, and are on track to see that number rise to a million by 2020.' 

11-plus 'doesn't harm pupils'  

Putting children through grammar school entrance exams has little negative impact on their mental health, a study suggests.

Debunking a myth often cited by left-wing campaigners, research from University College London found that pupils who live in grammar school areas are just as happy as those who do not.

The findings come amid a crusade against grammars led by Tony Benn’s daughter Melissa, who claims entrance tests cause too much stress.

Researchers analysed Millennium Cohort Study data from 4,784 children at age 11 – when the test is taken – and 14, when any ‘lasting impact’ might have become apparent.

Of those children, 1,094 lived within ‘selective’ areas – where children routinely take the 11-plus exam – such as Kent and Buckinghamshire.

The other 3,690 lived in comprehensive areas, where most secondary-age children simply go to their local school without taking an exam.

Each child was interviewed about their mental health and given scores.

The analysis showed that on average, children reported ‘similar levels of wellbeing and school satisfaction’ at both 11 and 14 regardless of which type of area they lived in.

Lead author professor John Jerrim said: ‘If exposure to the academic selection process affected pupils’ mental states, then we could expect to see an association between living in a selective area and pupils’ social and emotional outcomes around the time they take entrance exams, but we observed no such relationship.’

The study is published today in the American Education Research Journal and was funded by the Nuffield Foundation.

Theresa May has said she is still keen to encourage grammars to expand after she was forced in 2017 to scrap her plans to create a raft of entirely new ones.

Miss Benn is currently vice-chairman of pressure group Comprehensive Future, which wants to stop the expansion of selective schools.

Link hienalouca.com

https://hienalouca.com/2019/03/01/one-in-five-children-are-set-to-miss-out-on-their-first-choice-secondary-school-today/
Main photo article Parents are facing the worst year ever for children missing out on their first-choice secondary school as allocations are announced across the UK today.
A record 115,000 children are expected to be disappointed following a growth in applications of around 23,000 since last year.
The explosion in...

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