As you read  in our post about West London Free Primary, Toby Young is soon applying to open a 2 form of entry primary school (which he’s calling a ‘Lower School’) at Cambridge Grove.

Within a one mile radius there are

• 12  Community Primary Schools
• 5 Voluntary Aided Primary Schools
• 15 Independent Primary Schools

View Primaries – 1 mile radius from Cambridge Grove in a full screen map

The two closest schools to Cambridge Grove is single form of entry Flora Gardens Primary, is only .21 miles away.  That is 338 metres.

This small, successful one form of entry primary could be significantly destabilised by a two form of entry opening on its doorstep, especially if they open both forms of entry at one time and/or open enrollment to both children entering Reception and Year 1.

Toby intimated the admissions criteria for the ‘lower school’ are likely to be straight line distance.  Given that the current admissions criteria for the 4 forms of entry ‘Upper’ School includes 45% entry straight line distance, nearly half of future WLFS Y7 cohorts are likely to be drawn from the WLFS primary.

UPDATE: 12/01/2012:  It has become clear that the new primary is intended to be a ‘feeder’.

The plan is to join the two schools together, so any child at the primary will automatically go on to the secondary without having to submit a separate application. – from the WLFS Primary website

Anyone who wants their child to go to WLFS just has to get their child into the WLFS Primary.   This will create an admissions feeding frenzy amongst parents even if only to organise the longstanding stability of family logistics and end the ‘secondary question’ for – well – everyone who gets into the primary.  This will create a massive and artificially inflated ‘demand’ for the school.  It could also spell trouble for local schools – particularly Flora Gardens Primary – because there is still no evidence of sustained numbers of children waiting for primary school places.