Can anyone recommend a solicitor or advisor for help with a school appeal

speedfire22

Hi everyone, 
Can anyone advise? I am moving from Hull to Halifax in August. As the move is fairly new, I have recently applied for 3 secondary schools for my daughter. She will be going into year 7. This week we received a letter to state she has got a place at the 3rd choice. The thing is the school is not a good school at all and I really don't want her to go there. It has been rated inadequate by offstead. There is a 36.9% persistent absence rate, and its a rough school in a not very nice area. Its 40 minute walk from our house. I am going to appeal it but I dont feel confident enough to do this myself and would like to pay a solicitor or advisor for there services, can anyone help? 
I have read up that I shouldn't use the fact the allocated school "isn't a good school" the only grounds for my appeal is the distance, and the fact my daughter is moving to a new city and the only friends she has attend the preferred school. She is really upset about it all, but I'm not sure this will be anough to win the appeal. 

Any help or advice would be appreciated. 

74jax

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/391020/school-appeals-help-offered#latest 
Try the above thread, but I think the main question will be why did you put it down as a preferred school (albeit your third choice) if you don't want your child going there.....

speedfire22

Thanks, ill take alook. 
I put it down because there are no other schools. 

74jax

speedfire22 said:

Thanks, ill take alook. 
I put it down because there are no other schools. 

Sorry I meant when you speak to a Solicitor. 
Obviously if you only listed 2 schools and were given a place at the 3rd you didn't list - then I could see how you could perhaps have a stronger case, but as you listed it as a preferred school I'm thinking a Solicitor will question this.  

speedfire22

I thought i had to list 3 schools

pinkshoes

speedfire22 said:

I thought i had to list 3 schools

No, you can just list one school if you like. It doesn't make you any more likely to be allocated it though.

Have you put the name down for the 1st choice school? If not, make sure you do and find out how far down the waiting list you are. A LOT will happen between now and September so you might find she actually gets a place. Or she may get a place for Y8. I teach at an over-subscribed secondary and our start list changes from allocation to September. Then things happen in the year and kids leave...

Is home educating an option until she gets a place?

On the plus side, if the school is inadequate then the only way is up! Plus at 40 minutes walk, does this mean it is over 3 miles and she qualifies for transport there? Are there any other schools further away that DO have a place?

Spendless

I had my kids at an oversubscribed Outstanding Secondary school, that I'm an ex pupil of and still have many friends from my schooldays sounds ideal doesn't ? t. One of my kids has PTSD, severe anxiety and depression caused by school trauma, because heads changed, an Outstanding Ofsted (under the old head) meant they didn't have to be inspected again (8 years and counting) and the school became oblivious to things other than their results (which also turned out to be smoke and mirrors, my other child was dropped from an exam because of a predicted D/E - I found out too late that they shouldn't do this) which led to the situation we have today. 

My point being I wouldn't get stressed about being a rough school in a not nice area or an inadequate Ofsted. What's the pastoral like (mine ended up in the rough school and the pastoral was better than any I've ever come across)? Are the kids happy?  What subjects are available for them to study for GCSEs? Do they insist that kids study certain subjects (inc ones they actively dislike that aren't core subjects) for them? Consider all this for both the school offered and your preferred one.

I may be wrong but my understanding of a schools appeal  is that the application hasn't been processed correctly. Do you believe that has happened in your case.