st johns and st clements primary - catchment area?

[pilsbury]

hi all

does anybody know how far the catchment area for st johns and st clements is "reaching" this year? we live on ondine road towards the end nearest the school, but having read their admissions policy online, i'm starting to get a little concerned that perhaps we're still not even close enough (we aren't (and won't be) church goers and we don't have an older sibling there). we won't be applying for another couple of years still, but I was just wondering if anyone knew?

cheers!

[Mrs TP]

Difficult one to call but I would think you are more of a yes to get in than a no.

I have had one child go right through the school another in the juniors and one to start this Sept. We were initially a new child on a non church place but obvs there wasn't as much pressure when we first started there.

It has always been a popular school but as other local schools are becoming more popular too I know of some around the immediate St John's area who are non-religious and are choosing non-faith primaries and so taking some local kids out of the equation for getting in there. So people up this end preferring and getting into GooseGreen and Bessemer for example because they have blossoming reputations and are non-religious.

St John's catchment is always going to appear skewed because there will be some children from what seems relatively far away that are either on a church place or are siblings to those from the bulge year, where the school took many non-church children from up towards the other end of Lordship Lane and into Camberwell the other way (and has had to tweak its admissions policy to make sure their siblings will get in).

I don't know if it is possible to get the furthest distance for new non-church children from them but worth asking them / Southwark council.

All a bit rambling but still think (and can't promise) worth applying and reasonable chance of a place.

All that said I was chewing my nails until our sibling place was confirmed earlier this year. Good luck all more daunting that the reality and you have a few good schools in the area. You are close to St Johns and GooseGreen and are not in a black hole of a road without any obvs primary.

[toffeese15]

As a non-church going parent whose child goes there and lives much further away than you (admittedly bulge year), I'd be amazed if you didn't get in living that close.

[akc74]

I contacted them to ask and was told the furthest place offered this year (excluding siblings and church places) was 721m away.

I guess a "Satisfactory" Ofsted, the non-faith alternatives and the rather stiff local competition just down the road, means it hasn't quite hit the 200m catchments you hear about, although obviously this can vary greatly from year to year.

[pilsbury]

thankyou for all your info guys, really very useful

I also emailed asking them for the info but hadn't heard back, so its great to hear your first hand experiences and puts my mind at rest. plus, as you noted, we have goose green school almost as close away, so we are really lucky (unlike some of the stressed people I've heard about living on the edge of schools like heber and Goodrich).

thankyou again :)