Anxious parents whose children have yet to secure a place at a Jewish secondary school in London for September are waiting to see if a bulge class will be offered to cope with demand.
One parent said that hers was one of 37 families who had appealed for a place at JFS.
Over the past few years, at least one school has opened a bulge class to ensure no child missed out on a place at a state-aided Jewish secondary in North-West London.
Sacha Myers said this week, “My daughter is one of only two students at her school not to have a place at a Jewish secondary school. This has been a hugely stressful and emotional time which has been compounded by a possible direct consequence of covid- 19.
“Worryingly, there has been very little movement in the system. In previous years schools have opened up bulge years to accommodate students and although the schools have said they are all talking, action has yet to be taken.”
Yavneh College laid on a bulge class last autumn, though has no plans to repeat the offer this year. JCoss offered bulge classes in 2017 and 2018.
Both schools have applied to the Department for Education for education for funding to enable them to expand entry permanently.
Rachel Fink, headteacher of JFS, said, "JFS along with the other Jewish schools are well aware of the increased demand for places at Jewish schools in September. We are exploring various avenues to do our best to alleviate what we appreciate is a very stressful time for parents.”
According to previous projections by the Institute for Jewish Policy Research, this year could see a peak in first-choice applications to London Jewish secondary state schools, rising from an estimated 1183 in 2019 to 1239 this September.
There has been speculation that some parents whose preference might be private schools are holding on to places at Jewish state schools as a fall-back while they assess the impact of the lockdown on their finances.
Gary Griffin, headteacher of the fee-paying Immanuel College in Bushey, which has enjoyed a boom in numbers in recent years, said, “The numbers for next year’s Year 7 remain buoyant and, so far, the effects of the pandemic have not impacted upon the uptake of places in any adverse way.”
The school gave parents a discount on fees this term, which along with savings on travel and lunches, amounted to a 17 per cut.
The DfE rejected an application to open a new secondary Jewish free school in Hertfordshire last year.
