Before considering a school change, talk to your child and the staff at their school to try and find a solution to the problem.
You may consider requesting a school change for your child for reasons other than moving house, including:
missing school, bullying, exclusion, additional learning needs, and other issues.
Most of these issues can be resolved without changing schools.
Consider carefully if a transfer is the best option for your child.
Missing school
Talk with your child and try to find out the reasons why they are not attending school.
You can also talk to their teachers.
Bullying
Contact your school and ask for a copy of their safeguarding, bullying or emotional wellbeing policies.
Let the school know if you think they are not following these policies.
Schools are equipped to deal with bullying and responsible for addressing it.
Contact the head teacher or the board of governors if you think they are not dealing with it appropriately.
Exclusion
Talk to your child’s teacher, head of year or head teacher.
Check if the school identified your child as having special educational needs, or if they have a pastoral support plan.
If they do, ask for a review of their pastoral support plan.
Additional learning needs
If you think your child has additional learning needs, talk to the teacher in charge of additional needs (ALNCO) at the school.
You can contact the ALN casework team on 029 2233 0711.
Other issues
Discuss your concerns with the head of year, class teacher or head teacher.
You can raise the issue with the board of governors if you think the school does not respond appropriately.
These complaints must be taken seriously.