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Is there a shortage of school places in this area?

David BarryDavid Barry
edited May 2013 in Local discussion
I was wondering if anyone was experiencing difficulty in getting a place for their child in this area of N. London? <div> In particular are you having to travel further than you would like?</div>
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  • boxrunnerboxrunner
    We just went through this with our eldest in FP, looking for a Primary School.<br><br>We didn't have a problem in the sense that we got into our 2nd choice which we're very happy with, and it's a 5 min walk from the house.<br><br>However our first choice (Ashmount) had it's catchment area shrunk by 50% from last year to this year (0.6 miles to 0.3 miles).  Partly that's due to the new building, but it's also due to the population boom in the UK (sharpest rise since WW2 - http://www.statistics.gov.uk/hub/population/births-and-fertility/live-births-and-stillbirths) and the fact that successive recent Governments have not increased provision (and with Gove's freeze on LAs ability to spend on building, this is now limited to Free Schools).<br><br>Not sure if any of this is helpful to your question though, but there you go......<br>
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  • David BarryDavid Barry
    So the short answer was, no. (Cos although you did not get your first choice, you got a second choice you are happy with; excellent. Thats what we all need, being a short distance away from a school we are happy with)<div><br></div><div>The curious thing about the "population boom" in school age, or to be more precise school starting age, children is that it is not happening, at least not to the same extent in Islington. Thats both according to Islington Council figures and some early feedback from Islington admissions. Also, this year, I have not heard any of the horror stories over people in Crouch End - ie Haringey - not getting into local schools at all, which have been a staple over the previous two or three years.</div><div><br></div><div>I am surprised by the shrinkage in the Ashmount radius. I do think that the fact of the new building mattered -it was noticeable that Ashmount originally  became oversubscribed two years ago once the incoming labour Administration had formally confirmed the project (long delayed! another story partly discussed elsewhere on this site) so parents knew that the terrible old building was a passing thing.</div><div><br></div><div>The other thing is that the school move attracted a lot of publicity, formal and informal so there may well have been rather more people aware of the school - all those joggers on the Parkland Walk -</div><div><br></div><div>It will be interesting to see, and this cannot be known until a few weeks into the autumn term, where applicants have come from, and what effect, if any, the physical move in location has had, as admissions have been measured from the new site for the first time this year.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div>
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  • PapaPapa
    Where did you get into in the end Boxrunner and where roughly do you live - just trying to get a handle on the geography of the issue. Fortunately I have a few years before I need to worry about this.<br>
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  • boxrunnerboxrunner
    @David Barry.  I haven't seen the Islington figures, but I know of a number of schools in the local area whose catchment has shrunk like Ashmount's has (Duncombe, St Aidens) and the national figures that I posted indicate a change at national level which the newspapers have been writing about for a number of years.<br><br>I agree it will be interesting over the next 2-3 years to see how Ashmount's catchment changes, and whether this year was simply a blip or not.<br><br>@Papa L.  We live near Wray Park, and the school is Stroud Green.<br>
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  • AliAli
    You will be okay at SG School<br>
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  • boxrunnerboxrunner
    Thanks @Ali.  We think so too.  We have a friend whose child is already there in Reception year and seems to be really enjoying it.<br>
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  • vetskivetski
    @boxrunner, come say hi at the SG school cake sales - am usually there representing the WI!
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  • boxrunnerboxrunner
    @vetski.  Lovely, will be nice to see you again! :-)
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