• You know of a woman who has used her sister's address to register her child for a particular school because their own home is just outside the catchment area. You live within the catchment area, but your child did not get into the school when you applied because by that time it was oversubscribed. Would you expose her?
&149 Tracey, 40; Anne, 38; Jennifer, 42; Debbie, 36: all from GlasgowTRACEY: The whole schools issue is a disaster. What's wrong with sending your child to the nearest school? I think it's totally ridiculous that people are movi
ng house, or cheating the system in some way, to get their children into a certain school. It's a little pathetic.
ANNE: If I was in that position, I'd be really furious, but I wouldn't expose her for doing what she did. In the end, she's just trying to do the best for her child, which I can understand.
JENNIFER: No way, I'd definitely expose her. I mean, it's not her fault that we've now got a system which means some schools are much, much worse than others, but you can't just flout the rules. That's so unfair.
DEBBIE: Unfair, yes, but that's more about how dodgy some schools are, rather than the actions of parents. I can understand why people try to get their children into a decent school. It's so important that children get the best start and if they're not supported by a good school, with good teachers, then it's that much more difficult for them.
TRACEY: I do understand people's concerns about their children at school. My daughter is only three so it's not really an issue yet, but of course I would want her to go to a decent school. However, I live in an area where property prices have rocketed because there's a good secondary school nearby. It actually gets listed on the schedules for houses that are for sale round here: "In the catchment area for…" It puts thousands on the asking price and I think that's ridiculous.
ANNE: There have been stories of schools hiring private detectives and all sorts to try and weed out the parents who tell lies about where they live. That's how bad it's getting in some areas. It seems a bit extreme, but if I lived in an area that was lucky enough to have a good school, I'd be really annoyed if my child didn't get a place at what is actually their local school, when other parents were lying to get their children in.
TRACEY: The other thing is, people are always moaning about the fact that children don't walk to school any more. They don't exercise enough, they don't get to be independent and walk to school. But then you've got parents getting them into schools that are nowhere near where they live. So what other option have you got but to drive them? It's bad all round.
DEBBIE: It's true. I used to love walking to school with my friends. It was part of the day. It would be awful if children were all driven to school by their parents, dropped off at the gates and picked up again there at the end of the day. Children should get a bit of time on their own, they shouldn't be swaddled up and over-protected all the time.
TRACEY: But to be honest, I can't imagine letting my daughter walk to school on her own, no matter how close it is. It just wouldn't feel safe doing that. Really, I can't imagine it.
JENNIFER: Sorry to get a bit political about it, but I find it disgusting that our education system has got this way – that schools are so mixed in terms of quality that people are buying houses in certain areas just to get their children into good schools.
It's basically another form of private education, isn't it? It's like, if you can afford to live in a certain area then you get the good schools. If you don't, then you're just abandoned. It should be that schools are good enough – and let's face it, teachers earn enough money – that it doesn't matter which one your child goes to.
DEBBIE: I understand what you're saying but you're just not describing reality. Some schools are dreadful. It's as simple as that. And I wouldn't want my child going to one of those. I wouldn't lie to get them into a better school, but it would be really awful to think that your child was getting a second-rate education.
The full article contains 775 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
