summerbornchildren

The DfE has published a new report this week:
“Delayed school admissions for summer born pupils Research report (September 2019)”

This follows its 2018 report, which the Summer Born Campaign reviewed here.

The 2019 report conclusion confirms an ongoing postcode lottery:

Continue reading →

Following years of complaints from parents of summer born children, the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman has published new ‘Guidance for practitioners‘.

Unfortunately, the LGO supports the practice of parents applying one year early, for a school place they do not want, so that admissions authorities can make a decision about which year group their 3 year-old summer born child should enter when they turn 5.

This additional layer of bureaucracy was recommended in the DfE’s 2014 (non-statutory) Advice on the admission of summer born children, but it does not appear in the 2014 (statutory) School Admissions Code, contrary to the LGO’s inaccurate assertion (see bold below). Continue reading →

The Summer Born Campaign welcomes the DfE’s Delayed school admissions for summer born pupils report, as it confirms:
– the DfE is fully aware of the admissions postcode lottery
– the DfE knows children are being forced to miss a year of school
– parent requests for CSAge entry are increasing
– the DfE needs to improve communication of admissions information, and ensure equitable access for, all parents (as we predicted in 2014)
– the DfE needs to widen its focus from academic attainment to social, emotional, cognitive and behavioural benefits (these don’t appear in the report or parent survey)

What’s wrong with the report?
Just some key points:

1) Exclusion of summer born children with SEN
“We have limited this analysis to pupils that do not have a SEN flag in both Reception year and Year 1.”

This hides important data. Continue reading →

In recent weeks, parents of summer born children have been receiving correspondence confirming whether or not their child can enter Reception at CSAge without further battle.

“‘I’ve got a yes!” “Mine’s a no.”

The educational fate of these children is entirely in the hands of subjective opinion and a postcode lottery, and Stephen Hammond (Conservative MP for Wimbledon)’s efforts to push for promised progress have yet again seen the DfE stalling.

The DfE says it’s still busy “gathering evidence“, concerned that “the costs could be significant“, but given the lack of action since Nick Gibb MP‘s promises in 2015, it’s very likely that this evidence will be designed to justify a decision that has already been made.

Even the simplest financial calculation can recognise the cost-savings in SEN support alone, but the DfE will likely focus on the problem of summer born children finally getting access to the same 6 terms of pre-school funding as autumn born children.

These are Minister of State for Education’s latest responses to Mr. Hammond’s questions on March 27: Continue reading →

In the latest issue of ‘Teach Early Years‘, early years campaigner Richard House interviews co-leader of the Summer Born Campaign, Michelle Melson, about why the DfE is dragging its feet over promised changes for summer born children, and the seriously adverse effects this is having on their education.

Read ‘Summer-borns are still losing out‘ here.