So how does the waiting list operate in a school that allocates places by lottery rather than distance? Jerry, both the Charter School Herne Hill and Kingsdale are very over-subscribed and have long waiting lists. If you move to within the Charter School "catchment" area you will automatically go above someone who lives further away from the school than you do, no matter how long they have been on the waiting list. Distance is all. With Kingsdale, there isn't a catchment, so I'm not sure how they manage their waiting lists when new people apply.