School appeals - help offered

thegirlintheattic

GCSE and Ofsted results are not grounds for appeal - I would leave them out of your appeal, mentioning them will not put you in a good light.

Transport - you would get council provided transport (which may or may not be a free bus pass depending on your area) and it is assumed that a child without special needs will be able to make the journey by themselves. So your objections to the journey on safety, money and distance will likely not be upheld at appeal.

Wouldn't mention your views on the allocated school as a dumping ground in your appeal. Stick to pure, unemotional facts.

Her personal history - was it disclosed in original application? If not, can't be used. In any case, it is unlikely to help your case.

What you need to do is get a copy of the admissions criteria. I agree with peachy, your only chance is if the school breached it's own admissions criteria, which does happen on occasion.

As for your options if your appeal fails: get your DD on the waiting list for preferred school - most schools have 1 or 2 kids that don't turn up on the first day so you may get lucky. As for home schooling, whilst not necessarily bad, you need to consider it carefully:
Have you got the time and experience to teach her?
Have you got the money for resources and/or a tutor?
Has your DD got, and will easily keep, a good circle of friends?
Have you got access to support in the local area for home ed?
Are their extra curricular activities?

If you cannot provide her with a suitable education maybe consider trying the allocated school, if only for a few months. The ratings change fast and are only really 'accurate' (if at all but that is another debate entirely) on the day they are given. A school with a 4 rating will be getting A LOT of help to improve and this usually means students make good progress whilst the help is being provided, and often this lasts. For example a local school went from being in special measures to being outstanding in just a few years. My school is rated 'good' so a 2 but our children have a better value added and are more rounded than at the local outstanding school.

N9eav

What was the reason she was refused a place?

What are the schools criteria for entry?

Chances are the school is full and so the criteria have identified others who are first to get a place. If the school is full then there would have to be significant reasons for an appeal to succeed for the school to break its own max student rules...

Any more info?

helphelphelphelp

Hi

Thanks for your responses

I put in my applications about the childcare being local but not about the bereavement bit. I thought because we were in the catchment we would get in and to be honest didnt really want to go round using it almost as an advantage if that makes sense? So just used the normal stuff such as the school is in walking distance, childcare arrangements. Have taken your points about the other school though and will amend it. Thank you, Did think I was getting a bit emotive!

Yes, feeder takes precedence over catchment. Am kicking myself now (sort of).

There is no way she is going to the allocated school. It was ofsted rated in 2009 and got a 3, done again in 2011 and got a 4.

Is it too late to apply to another school just in case this appeal fails so I have a plan to fall back on?

peachyprice

Yes, feeder takes precedence over catchment.

So you need to find out if there are other children who were not at the feeder school but live further away than you that were offered a place. That would be legitimate grounds for appeal.

I think you can still apply to other schools and ask to be put on their waiting lists if they have no spaces.

To be honest, childcare isn't really taken into consideration as it is with primary school. It's expected that by secondary age children should be gaining more independence and many would be able to make their own way home from school and let themselves in until their parents get home. Many childminders don't even take children past primary school.

helphelphelphelp

How can I find out which children have been accepted under which criteria?

Unfortunately childcare is an issue for me as I have to work unsociable hours (until 8.30 at night, and over night) so my daughter will have to stay there over night and make her way from the child minders to school in the morning as although I wouldnt mind her being at home on her own for a few hours during the day, I dont think either of us are ready for her spending the night on her own just yet.

busiscoming2

This is a very good source of help and information and they have threads for different parts of the country (as the systems seem to differ) I used it and a book, can't quite remember the title but something simple like 'how to win your school appeal'.

http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum/11plus/viewforum.php?f=35

grey_lady

You can't appeal on the grounds you have mentioned - because they wont grant the appeal on emotional grounds.

What you need to do is find valid grounds and present it properly - which I'm sure is possible, but dont rush into anything, take a deep breath and search for the thread on school admission appeals on here.

I'm sure others will be along to point you in the right direction but as a previous poster pointed out it's all about the schools admission criteria, you have to make your reason for wanting your daughter to go to that school fit in with that admission criteria, if it doesnt they will turn you down.

I'm so sorry about the loss of your son.

PM me though if you get stuck, i've just been reading a book by a london headmaster on this, if nothing else i could send you the book for you to have a read.

ikati5

I successfully won an appeal when my daughter did not get into our local school, 10 minute walk away and was given a school 7 miles away. Usually it is a case of oversubscription. The school is allowed to take quite a lot of children over the numbers at appeal but hope that you will accept the alternative and not press for a place to keep their numbers as close as possible to the allocation.

Keep calm, stick to the facts and do not under any circumstances bad mouth anyone, they all work for the same people!! The reason you wish for a place is that it is your local catchment school, you live within the area and to send your daughter to a different school does not make any sense. I am sure you will be successful, you may not have to appear at the appeal, they may conceed before the hearing.

Should this not be the case and you do decide to home school by way of protest, which is easy to do, DO NOT remove your child from the local education authority school role. They will push you to do this with threats of court etc but once you do you lose all funding including college!

Good Luck

Savvy_Sue

The first thing I would be doing is asking to go on the waiting list for a place at the preferred school. If you are high on the list, then there's a really good chance you'll get a place before September - families move, change their minds, go private etc etc etc.

Then I would ask the school how many children were admitted other than from the feeder school, and their distances from the school.

Noonar

I have appealed and won, however where I live when you first send your application in, you don't get to put in your reasons for wanting a particular school unless there are special circumstances ie a statement of special needs. I agree with the previous posters, whatever you do, don't bad-mouth the school you have been offered, or mention anything other than what is relevant to your daughter. It really won't help your appeal.

Can you find out where you are on the continued interest list? I did this and found that my daughter was 2nd on the list for another school which I would have been happy to accept. I was way down low on the school I really wanted as we live in a different catchment area.

Your transport concerns I don't think are going to help you, we live in quite a rural location with very irregular buses and they just said they would provide transport to get her to the school 10 miles away.

I felt exactly the same as you about the school I had been allocated and had decided to homeschool until a place became available if I had not won my appeal. I am very lucky in so far as my Mum is a retired Teacher and my Sister is a senior school teacher so my DD would have been well catered for at home, although it is not a good thing to do to them socially! If you do end up going down this route, contact your local Schools/Education people everyweek and tell them that you would be happy to stop home schooling when they find a place for you at your desired school.

I think your key points should be that you work shifts and access to your childminder really needs to be considered and that your DD has gone through lots of emotional shift and needs the support of her friends. They will consider each appeal on individual circumstances and they do have places that they can hand out at appeal on grounds other than them failing to follow the entrance criteria.

All the very best wishes I hope your appeal is successful.

Noo

PS Going to the actual appeal is horrible so make sure you take someone along who is not going to get emotional and can make your points for you should you find you are too upset.