Secondary schools

[shaggy78]

I have read through the admissions criteria available online for Charter School, Kingsdale, and Haberdashers Aske, but am a little confused. I have three questions at the moment:-

1. Why do Charter School state clearly that 'no' they do not have a catchment area, but then go on to describe how once initial places are allocated based upon criteria that I do not think apply to my child, the remaining spaces go to 'children who live nearest to the school'? To me this seems to imply a catchment area... am I missing something?

2. I have not found references on the Kingsdale website do to catchment areas or similiar, but I read on this forum and also I think somewhere on the Kingsdale website that places are allocated by lottery. Does this mean that it is entirely down to luck whether one gets a place, and nothing relating to location or ability? I see though that there are various scholarships offered, which seem to me to mean that it's not entirely 'luck', but also attainment based assessment?

3. Haberdashers do I think seem to have a catchment area, measured from the school gate... but I cannot find what that distance is ... does anyone know?

[malumbu]

Charters may fib about catchment areas

Kingsdale has been accused of cheating

https://www.channel4.com/news/questions-over-london-school-cheating-inquiry

Not sure about Haberdashers (it's a nice cycle to Telegraph Hill) and you haven't mentioned Harris East Dulwich

Ps this is probably for the parents part of the thread, a safe haven that I never visit.

[Siduhe]

You may want to post in the Family Room discussion section. Lots of threads on school selection there and lots of people who've been through the same process as you in previous years.

[tomskip]

The Charter school does not have a catchment area, I don't think any local schools do. A catchment is a defined area, inclusive of certain addresses, which is fixed every year. The Charter school and many others give places to people who live closest to the school and outwards (after their first few criteria) but this distance may change from year to year depending on who has applied. You are interested in their "furthest distance offered" to non-siblings and other higher ranked pupils in recent years to give you an idea if your address might or might not qualify for a place.

Yes, Kingsdale is a lottery and so it is down to pure luck. There is a scholarship band but being offered a scholarship does not guarantee a place, a lottery is also drawn within the scholarship band.

Getting a place at Haberdashers is still highly unlikely for anyone living in SE22, but I don't know what their "furthest distance offered" has been in recent years.

[esme]

Really unhelpful talking about cheating accusations from years ago! Like the ONE knife incident from 2015 people still talk about.

malumbu Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Charters may fib about catchment areas

>

> Kingsdale has been accused of cheating

>

> https://www.channel4.com/news/questions-over-londo

> n-school-cheating-inquiry

>

>

> Not sure about Haberdashers (it's a nice cycle to

> Telegraph Hill) and you haven't mentioned Harris

> East Dulwich

>

> Ps this is probably for the parents part of the

> thread, a safe haven that I never visit.

[Renata Hamvas]

Tomskip has got it right. None of the local schools have a catchment area.Last place distances can vary significantly from year to year. Haberdashers last place distance tends to be similar to the Charter schools and therefore in previous years children from SE22 haven't tended to be offered places unless they are allocated places on criteria other than distance.

Renata