Well the places are out now for Primary and Nursery school and it seems there are a lot of very disappointed and anxious people about! What is going on?!

The publication of league tables make a very few schools more popular than others. Competition, in this situation, just aggravates a bad situation. Schools with good quality, committed teachers who work hard to get the best out of their pupils are now seen as second-rate, because they weren’t at the top! Well, there is not room for everyone at the top. It doesn’t mean that those schools who aren’t at the top, are necessarily no good. And if they are lacking in some way, then parents should work together with the school to help it. Let’s face it, the most successful schools appear to be the ones that have the most parental support – so who is to blame I ask?

Ideally, children, especially very young children, should go to their local school. The benefits are - they are close to home, so it is not so scary for them, they have friends that live close by for ‘tea’, local parents who can perhaps help out in the odd emergency/pick up etc and if they are sick or have forgotten something it is not so far for mum or dad to rush back to school. Avoids all that traffic too! If things do go wrong, then speak with the Head or class teacher and work it out. If not, if your child is really unhappy, being bullied, not making expected progress and the school cannot resolve matters then you can always change schools, it is no big deal. Children are quite resilient and cope with change and you have a real choice then as to what school to go to. Vacancies often arise as families move home for various reasons and all schools find these later places much harder to fill. But, quite honestly, if the school close by is not your first choice and is not performing too well, then give it your support.

Parents are sucked in to believing their child has to go to the very best school or else they will fail! They might resort to lying about where they live or spending a fortune on buying a property close to their preferred school, getting in a state if they are not offered a place. It is ridiculous! Every school reflects its community. No school will be successful if parents do not support them by listening to their children read, helping them with their homework, ensuring they wear the correct uniform, following the rules and better still helping them to fundraise to buy those much needed extras.

Education is also a very individual thing. Schools vary in size and children vary in their needs. Some children may benefit from a larger school, where they might have more friends, can move classes if they clash with a particular teacher or group of friends, can go in early for breakfast club or have music lessons, whereas others might prefer a small school with less children. There is no way a parent can really know their child’s educational needs at 5 years of age! And if they think they do, you can guarantee they will change before the end of the year is up. So, give the other schools a go and see how it pans out and Don’t Worry!!!

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