Support thread for parents of chilldren sitting the transfer test in 2011

caz100

Can u appeal on the basis that increasing numbers of applications from outside of the town is making local children lose out? I mean as confused mummy pointed out someone she knew appealed on the basis that the schools criteria method was unfair!? Any thoughts please?

leftieM

You might find this useful

http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/appealing-a-school-place-decision

Also (from BelTel)
"Parents who are not happy with the post-primary school their child has been placed in have until 4pm on June 11 to appeal. It must lodged with the education and library board. An independent tribunal will decide on whether or not a school has correctly applied its admissions criteria. If an appeal tribunal finds a board of governors did not apply its criteria correctly, and that the child would have been admitted if it had, the tribunal will award that child a place at the school concerned."

To be honest, Caz, unless they state in their criteria that proximity to the school is a factor in selecting pupils, and is higher up than admitting pupils based on academic criteria, you will not win an appeal. There is no onus on a school to change its admission criteria to suit individual parents.

caz100

leftieM wrote: »

You might find this useful

http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/appealing-a-school-place-decision

Also (from BelTel)
"Parents who are not happy with the post-primary school their child has been placed in have until 4pm on June 11 to appeal. It must lodged with the education and library board. An independent tribunal will decide on whether or not a school has correctly applied its admissions criteria. If an appeal tribunal finds a board of governors did not apply its criteria correctly, and that the child would have been admitted if it had, the tribunal will award that child a place at the school concerned."

To be honest, Caz, unless they state in their criteria that proximity to the school is a factor in selecting pupils, and is higher up than admitting pupils based on academic criteria, you will not win an appeal. There is no onus on a school to change its admission criteria to suit individual parents.

I understand the system ....I just don't think it's fair to all children that a school who entirely accepts a grades discriminates against children who live locally that have one mark less than someone who lives 1 hour away. I completely agree with the selection process if it was giving a child a place with a d grade over a child with an a grade but when we are talking one or two marks in determining children who have equal academic ability, I think other factors should come into play!

BallyclareMum4

caz100 wrote: »

I understand the system ....I just don't think it's fair to all children that a school who entirely accepts a grades discriminates against children who live locally that have one mark less than someone who lives 1 hour away. I completely agree with the selection process if it was giving a child a place with a d grade over a child with an a grade but when we are talking one or two marks in determining children who have equal academic ability, I think other factors should come into play!

I totally agree. Proximity should come into criteria. I don't understand why having a sibling attending a school necessarily takes precedence over the distance a child has to travel.
We are extremely happy with our second choice school (the only problem being location) or we would be appealing decision too.

Good luck.

confused_mummy_3

Distance from school is normally part of the criteria. Each school has its own criteria and you have to find out if it was correctly applied.

Pmum

Is it worse to ask one child to travel than to ask one family to travel in different directions to different schools?

Probably depends on which category your own child/family is in.

No system will ever satisfy everyone and when schools are over subscribed they have to find a way to ration their places.

caz100

Well I for one don't understand why children from different areas that have grammar schools in their area to specifically cater for them are coming to surrounding towns and taking those places from children who live locally that wouldn't even consider travelling to surrounding areas!

annoyedmum

caz100 wrote: »

Well I for one don't understand why children from different areas that have grammar schools in their area to specifically cater for them are coming to surrounding towns and taking those places from children who live locally that wouldn't even consider travelling to surrounding areas!

Here here!!

Pmum

I suppose all parents are trying to get the best education they can for their child?

Should someone be disadvantaged because of where their house happens to be?

None of this is easy but while we have some schools that perform very significantly below that of other schools we will continue to have some schools which are more popular than others.

If every school in the province was as good as our best ones we could get shot of all this nonsense altogether.

Even then some might be more popular for other reasons.

They do have to find some way of deciding who gets and doesn't get the places. I don't know of a completely fair "test" or set of criteria to allow that to happen.

I can totally understand that it is unfair, I'm just not sure that "fair" exists.

confused_mummy_3

Caz do you know of any children that have the same or lower score than your child that have been admitted ahead of your daughter?