# Compare: Primary School Castleknock NAtional School & Educate Together Castleknock S



## Dec12 (8 Jan 2014)

Hi All,

Happy New Year 2014!

We are under a lot of pressure at the moment.  My son is going to start junior infant in September this year.  We are looking for the right primary school for him.  We are new in the Castleknock are.

Would any member have any experience with Castleknock National School and Education Together National School in the Castleknock area?

Would be most appreciated with any comment.

Thanks,
Dec12


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## emeralds (8 Jan 2014)

Have you been offered a place in each school?


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## Dec12 (8 Jan 2014)

We have offered a place from an other school in the nearby area.  But I am interested in these two school as well by looking at the background of this school.  I am thinking should we accept the one we got offered or continue to wait for these two school?


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## terrysgirl33 (8 Jan 2014)

Have you approached the schools to see what their entrance policies are, and how many places they have?  Have you received an offer of a place?  What age exactly is your child?

In my experiance, the best way to choose a primary school is to visit it.  A lot of how a child gets on comes down to the attitude of the principle, and of the individual teachers, and the best way to guage that is to visit and meet the principle at least.

I don't know the schools in Castleknock, but my children go to an Educate Together, and offers of places are made starting in November, though the last children to be offered a place can be in August!  However, there is usually a long waiting list (you need to contact the school) and in this case you are probably too late to get in.  The ONLY way to know is to talk to the school involved, they are all different.

You will need to talk to each of the schools you are interested in, as they all operate individually.

Best of luck!


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## terrysgirl33 (8 Jan 2014)

You can accept the offer from the first school, this has no bearing on whether or not your child will be offered another place.  Again, go and talk to the schools you are interested in and explain your situation.


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## Dec12 (9 Jan 2014)

Thank you all for your suggestions.

I will visit the schools tomorrow and try to arrange a chat with the principle.


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## emeralds (9 Jan 2014)

It would be better to phone them to make an appt rather than call unannounced.


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## RainyDay (9 Jan 2014)

terrysgirl33 said:


> You can accept the offer from the first school, this has no bearing on whether or not your child will be offered another place.


True, but it does make things very difficult for principals, boards and eventually other children if you accept a place and then don't show up. Principals are planning their class sizes and teacher allocations based on those who have accepted places. This may lead to disrupting classes and teachers by rejigging allocations in November if significant numbers don't show up.


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## TarfHead (9 Jan 2014)

RainyDay said:


> Principals are planning ..


 
I think, in principle, the principal has to stand by their principles.  This should be their principal priority  !


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## emeralds (9 Jan 2014)

RainyDay said:


> True, but it does make things very difficult for principals, boards and eventually other children if you accept a place and then don't show up. Principals are planning their class sizes and teacher allocations based on those who have accepted places. This may lead to disrupting classes and teachers by rejigging allocations in November if significant numbers don't show up.



These are schools that are in high demand and they always have more applicants than they have places. If a child does not show up on 1st September then that place will be filled within 24 hours!


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## RainyDay (9 Jan 2014)

emeralds said:


> If a child does not show up on 1st September then that place will be filled within 24 hours!


By a child who is then leaving a vacant place at another school, which may end up in that school losing a teacher.


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## emeralds (9 Jan 2014)

Not in Castleknock/Dublin 15. I would be very surprised if any school in that area has an issue filling their Junior Infant places. I agree that in other places it may be a huge problem for Boards of Management.


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## RainyDay (9 Jan 2014)

emeralds said:


> Not in Castleknock/Dublin 15. I would be very surprised if any school in that area has an issue filling their Junior Infant places. I agree that in other places it may be a huge problem for Boards of Management.



Ultimately, it HAS to result in a vacant place. There may be chain involving a number of children, but ultimately, if a parent holds two places for their child and accepts one, this will cause disruption for some school, somewhere along the line. It's a very selfish approach.

The Dept/Minister have spoken about moving to a CAO type system for choosing  schools and allocating places. In the absence of such a system, holding two places for one child is fairly anti-social.


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## lou2 (10 Jan 2014)

OP, my daughter will be starting in Castleknock Educate Together next September. I put her name down fairly soon after she got her PPS number (at about 6 months old) and even then there were over 100 children on the waiting list before her. She was offered a place a couple of weeks before Christmas. I haven't visited the school, but I researched it as much as possible on the web and have talked to people who know of it and feedback seems to be very positive. I have also heard very positive things about the national school in Castleknock however this wasn't an option for my daughter as we don't live in the catchment area so would have never been offered a place there. Good luck with your decision.


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