Thousands of school children in the UK received the token to their future on the 1st of March. After ploughing through the admissions criteria and preparing for exams and tests, children in year 6 went through ‘Prescribed Day’. They had found out which school they would be attending from year 7 onwards. Anushka Agrawal, a girl who has received her second choice of school says “[she is] happy with what [she] got, even if it was not [her] first choice. [She is] really excited to go and make new friends!”
What if the child does not get into his/her preferred school? A question you may well ask. Well, there is a procedure to appeal. Contacting your local council about this issue causes the process to begin. A letter will be sent which will say exactly how. Each rejection must be appealed against separately.
It is important to know that a child may have their preferred school yet are still putting their name down on the waiting lists of other schools and this is damaging to the future of others of the same generation. While this child may have the school they want, it does not mean other children do. If children - with their preferred school - put their names on unnecessary waiting lists when the chance that they might end up going to a different school is minute, then what about the children who actually need the waiting list for that school? What if they are not able to commute that far and not able to move in time?
The right secondary school is very important for a child nearing the end of their primary school education. After all, everyone is different and no one can force them to become someone they are not. There are many schools out there, ranging from private schools to schools that specialise in sport or engineering. There are mixed schools, girls’ schools and boys’ schools which all promote different things such as teamwork and communication skills. Girls’ schools heavily promote young women going into science and maths careers with talks such as Newstead Wood School (as pictured). The education of the next generation - the future - matters.
Additti Agrawal, Newstead Wood School
