Fears strike could hit admissions

School admissions forms are due in tomorrow in London and Surrey

Councils in England are reassuring parents the postal strike should not affect school admissions applications.

Manchester City Council has extended its deadline for secondary school applications by a week, to next Friday.

London and Surrey are keeping their Friday deadline, but are advising parents to apply online, give forms in by hand or keep a proof of posting.

More areas with deadlines of early November could be affected if three further days of strikes go ahead.

The Local Government Association had earlier warned that children might miss out on their first choices if the strike continued.

Local decision

In a statement it had said: "The proposed Royal Mail strike could cause confusion and concern for families and could throw the school admission process into disarray.

"Uncertainty caused by any potential strike could leave councils in a quandary about how to make sure the school applications process runs smoothly for parents."

But the LGA later said it expected local councils to take steps to ensure that parents and children did not fall victim to the strike in this respect.

Different local authorities have different deadlines for secondary applications. For those in London and Surrey, it is October 23.

A spokeswoman for Manchester City Council said: "Applications should have been returned by tomorrow, but due to the disruption in mail delivery services because of the strike the deadline has been extended to allow for any applications that may be affected by this.

"The new deadline also applies to on-line applications which will now also be accepted until the new deadline of 5 pm next Friday 30 October."

A spokeswoman for London Councils said: "The pan London co-coordinated admissions scheme has informed us that it was unable to extend its deadlines for applications, however, local authorities have been putting in place various arrangements to minimise disruption.

"Where possible parents are advised to hand their applications by hand or use online services."

'Secure'

Surrey County Council's cabinet member for children and learning Peter Martin said: "Parents in Surrey needn't worry about getting their admissions forms in on time for places next September because we have a simple and efficient online system.

"Parents can change the preferences right up to the closing date and they get emailed confirmation that their application has been safely received.

"The number of applications made online for places this year more than doubled on the previous year and this is the easiest, quickest and most secure way for parents to submit their forms."

He also urged anyone sending a paper form to get proof of posting before the deadline or hand it in directly to the child's current Surrey school for junior and secondary transfers or directly to the admissions team in Guildford by the closing dates.

He added: "Parents who miss the closing date reduce their chances of getting one of their three preferred schools because their forms will not be dealt with until after all the other applications have been processed."

A spokesperson for the Department for Children, Schools and Families said: "Each local authority has set their own deadline for applications - there is no national date.

"Local authorities are best placed to identify the level of disruption and put in place the most effective measures.

"But we are clear that no child should lose out because of the postal strike, and we would urge parents to consider all possible routes to ensure their application arrives on time."

Are you worried about your schools admissions form being delayed?

Name

Your E-mail address

Town & Country

Phone number (optional):

Comments

The BBC may edit your comments and not all emails will be published. Your comments may be published on any BBC media worldwide.

Terms & Conditions