"It was a long, damp, cold night here and we've another night to go, " said Annette Kelly, who was holding a place for her daughter Amy, 11. "It's been hard on everyone, especially for people who have younger children and had to organise childminding."

Over 100 parents had joined the queue outside Loreto River Valley Secondary School in Swords, Dublin, by yesterday afternoon, as word spread that the race for places had begun as early as 6.30am on Friday morning.

Nor could those near the end of the queue be sure of a place for the 2007 school year until the allocation of places at 9am this morning.

"This is the only all-girls school in Swords and it's three minutes away from our house, " said Aidan Morris, who was hoping to get his daughter Caoimhe a place in the school. "The alternative is to get a bus to a mixed school at the other end of Swords and that's just not viable for us."

"It's the same old story, the schools are all packed and there's not enough places for everyone, " added Marie O'Neill, who was waiting with her daughter Sarah, 11. "This is very important for the girls who want to be with their friends. If one of our daughters is left out, that's very hard on them."

Of the 120 places available for the 2007/2008 school year in Loreto, an unknown number is kept for girls who have sisters attending. A percentage of places is then divided amongst the five feeder primary schools in the area, but allocation of places can only be guaranteed by enrolment on a first-come first-served basis.

"My daughter goes to school just there in Holy Family, but it's not as simple as that, " said John Thornton, pointing at the building across the road. "There's no automatic feeder. So this is what we've had to do. It's been a good night: we had sleeping bags and a few jars. There's good camaraderie."

Certainly, the scene outside Loreto College could be mistaken for a concert ticket queue at first glance. Dozens of tents are lined up opposite rows of deckchairs as people huddle under rugs and sleeping bags and drink tea from hot flasks.

Minister for Education Mary Hanafin may have insisted that parents in Swords do not need to queue for school places in that area, but parents who want their child to go to an all-girls school say they have no choice.

"We're not just doing this for one daughter, we're hoping that by doing this we can get the rest of our children into the school, " said Catrina Seery, who, along with five friends, was camping out for her daughter Amy. "It's a worthwhile investment."

All of these women have enrolled their daughters in Loreto College in Balbriggan, but are hopeful it won't come to that.

"It's an awfully long way to travel and it would be very upsetting if they were separated from their friends, " said Karina Lawlor. "If I want my child to stay with her friends at close proximity to home without having to use transport, this is what I have to do."

"This would never happen in Belgium, " added Veronique Butler, originally from that country, who was queuing for her daughter, Megan.

Loreto River Valley was built for 550 students and already has an enrolment of 630. The only way to accommodate the rapidly expanding population of Swords is to build an extension to the school. However, any such solution will come too late for these parents.

In a field adjoining the school, members of the Loreto school hockey team played a Saturday morning match, oblivious to their privileged status.

"I just hope my daughter appreciates everything we went through to get her into this school, " said John Thornton, as a few drops of rain began to fall.