Appeals
On what grounds can my child be refused entry to their preferred school?
The only grounds that you can be refused entry to a state school on are that you don't meet the criteria for entry and/or that you come too low down the list. So, it will always be clear what reasons are given for your child not being admitted to a school.
We didn't get our first choice school is there anything we can do?
Yes. You can appeal. It's worth doing it professionally. There are people who will help you. If you're in the Army or one of the organizations like that there will be people within the Army's Family Federation that will help you do it. Other than that, there are organizations that will charge a modest fee for helping you, but the good ones will double your success rate. It is a question of focusing your appeal on the things that make a difference in that school, of making sure you are producing all the evidence to support your particular need for your child being at that school. It is judged by a human tribunal at the end of it. If you've got a really good case, whatever the basis for it, it's worth making it.
How do I appeal if my child doesn't get into their preferred school?
The system will be set out again in the local authority brochure, or if you are dealing with a school that has its own admissions authority because of its religious or other associations, they will tell you how to do it. There are governances on the timescales. Generally you have to appeal quite quickly, but beyond that it is best to go by the local book and not by some national rules which may not be being applied in your particular case.
What will an appeal involve?
It will involve you doing a lot of work, to get your case together, to marshall your arguments, to produce the evidence for it, to produce the support for the supporting evidence, where other people's opinion matters. And you must expect to be opposed by the school, or opposed by the local authority. Don't take that amiss, they're doing their job, they're trying to keep school numbers under control. And you're making the best possible case for your child, and you will be being judged by an independent group of people, so it is not something to treat antagonistically. It is something to treat as constructively and as positively as possible, and keep your fingers crossed.
How many appeals can I make?
You can make one. You can go to judicial review afterwards. I've not heard of it happening. You just take your chance at the tribunal, and be satisfied with that. If it's in some ways totally biased, totally badly run, you might have a chance at law, but it would cost you 25 thousand pounds to prove it.
What happens after an appeal?
You get a decision and you live with the decision. You get into the school or you don't. There's really nowhere to go beyond that.
