Over 125 children in Northern Ireland do not have a place secured in secondary school.
At the weekend, families across Northern Ireland eagerly waited to hear what school their children would be going to next term, however some were left bitterly disappointed when they discovered that they had not been allocated a place in any of the schools they had picked.
As of May 24, 23,800 children had secured a place in school, but 135 children are waiting to find out where they are going to go.
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Jamie-Lee Francey from East Belfast said that her daughter Leah was one of the 135 children yet to receive a school place at the weekend and that she felt "let down and left out" not knowing where she would be starting school, when all of her friends knew their places.
She said: "We were all quite anxious to find out where Leah was going to be going to school next year and had all gathered round to open the email together.
"Then when we saw that she had not got a place in any of the schools that we had chosen, it was a massive blow to her and instead of celebrating and talking to her friends about her future, she just went back to bed for the rest of the day, very disheartened.
"As a parent it was heartbreaking to see her like that, especially as all of her friends in school knew where they would be going and were starting to make plans with those who would be going to the same school together and getting to know each other better.
"Every year there are children who are in the position, struggling to get a place in school, and there must be a better way to ensure that there are no children waking up to a huge disappointment."
Thankfully, Leah was offered a place at a school this week and is now excited and looking forward to starting the school year.
An Education Authority spokesperson said: "As of May, 24, 2023, 23,800 children (99.4%) have been placed in a school and we will continue to work closely with DE, parents and schools over the coming weeks to ensure successful placement of the 135 children that remain to be placed.
"Parents of each child who has not yet secured a place for September 2023 received an email on Saturday 20 May, outlining the next steps in the process and signposting to help and advice available. EA Connect will allow parents to supply additional school placement preferences."
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