Raring2go! Guildford

25 Parents of children born between 1 September 2017 and 31 August 2018 have until 15 January to apply for a primary school place for the academic year starting in September 2022. But how do you go about choosing the right school for your child? It can be a confusing process but here are a few top tips to get you started… 1. Do your research All primary schools have websites and many will produce brochures too. Just by looking on a website you’ll start to get a feel for the school so it’s a good place to start. 2. School Visits & Open Days Given the pandemic, you may not be able to visit the school in person but look for dates of virtual open mornings or details of virtual tours. Get a good feel for each school and and whether the pupils seem happy and well-behaved. 3. Check their Ofsted Report All the reports are available to view so make sure you check FINDING THE BEST SCHOOL FOR YOUR CHILD them out. You can also view details of Sats results on the Department for Education website. 4. Understand the process Your local authority’s admissions guide will explain how to apply and will list the admissions criteria for your area. Information from previous years such as whether schools were oversubscribed, how places were allocated etc will also be published. 5. Make a list List your schools carefully. Most local authorities ask you to list a few schools in order of preference. Make sure to include at least one where you are virtually sure of getting a place – otherwise, you risk being offered an undesirable school some distance away. Above all you know your child better than anyone else so think about what would encourage them to learn, progress and develop socially. EDUCATION Raring2go! raring2go .co.uk