social/medical needs for admissions - what is accepted?

[auntevil]

The only secondary school that children in the road I live have been offered in the past 2 years is a specialist sports academy, with one of the lowest academic scores in the LEA. The OFSTED report gives its extra curricula offerings 'outstanding' and that its 'specialist status permeates throughout the curriculum'. It is an all boys school
DS is on SA+, he is dyspraxic, hypermobile with sensory processing disorder. He is however academic. He is highly unlikely to get a statement as he can access education with general TA support.
His paediatrician says that he must concentrate on his strengths - academics, and she will write 'what is required' to ensure that he gets to a school that suits his needs.
Strangely, last year all children who put this as a preference got in - regardless of distance , but the next closest state school had 1.1km as its cut off distance, which we would be out of (although, only a 10 minute walk from the other)
So what to do? We will look at all potential preferences, but feel despondent that as a child who by disability is not sporty but academic, may have as his only option a school that reflects the reverse.
Any ideas as to how I could use his medical needs to put another school as a credible preference? Looking at the instructions from LEA, all schools provide a suitable education and provide support where required and that without a statement he is treated as with all other applications.

[BeingFluffy]

It is extremely difficult, but you have to find a way of showing that the school you want will meet your son's needs in a way your local school can't. Is there any way you can visit the desired school and meet with the SENCO etc and find out what sort of support they offer to kids with similar needs to your son? As you say all schools should be able to support kids with needs like you son, BUT some may be better at it than others.

You are quite right that the academic need will not succeed on it's own because schools unless they are grammars do not select on that.

The paediatrician must name the school you want and say explicitly why he must go there and not another school. At the application stage you should also put on your form that you want school A because of x, y, z in the comments space (assuming they have that in your area), Despite what the LEA say, some schools do have discretion for admitting children without statements, so get as much good quality evidence as you can. Study the admissions criteria for the school you want, is there anything else you can use to your advantage?

Hopefully you won't have to appeal. But as an appeals panelist I would be looking for hard evidence that your son has to go to a particular school in the form of letters from doctors and other professionals, stating why he has a need to go there. Saying he can't go to B school won't really help.

[auntevil]

Pretty much all the schools in our area that are state schools have the same admissions criteria - we're in the PAN London system.
2 years ago, the SENco at this school advised that my neighbour's grandson - who was living with them, did not apply to the school, as he would be a target for bullies. Another child a few doors away lasted 1 term before parents removed him - he is very sporty, but had already been singled out as 'too bright'
Its hard to argue that school A is not suitable as it will give him an education of sorts - all be it in an environment to which he is not suited, but that school B which is only 10 minutes further away, will provide him with far more opportunities - and is still only an averagely academic school, just significantly more than school B (mid table in the Borough - as opposed to second from bottom)

[Blu]

Social and medical need does not depend on havcing a statement.

If you have a statement you can automatically say which school you want, but you can also evidence s&m need without a statement.

Visit the school you prefer, and as BeingFluffy says, document all the facilities or advantages they have that would particularly suit your DS - specialist SENCO provision / facilities / buildings or journey that fits his dyspraxia / sensory needs. As BeingFluffy says (actually, why am I posting - all I'm doing is echoing her!) the wording of the professionals' letters is important - they should set out the condition, the effects and practicalities of the condition and must say 'In my opinion XX needs to attend this school because...' and NOT 'XX's parents tell me that this is the best school for XX because..'.

DS was admitted on M&S criteria without a statement, with letters from his GP and consultant. (I drafted the letters for them - largely because I was aware that i was giving them yet another job - but also to ensure the all important language, and in both cases they actually emphasised the case more than I had in their copies). It sounds as if you have the support of your paediatrician so you should be OK.

Some authorities won't take NEW information at appeal. (I think?) Make sure your first letter is thorough, covers every point and includes all the evidence.

[lisaro]

That's the trouble with specialist academies. Why bother if you still work on area for admissions. We worried about getting the oldest into a specialist sport academy even though he represented the county at athletics and rugby.

[auntevil]

Interesting point Blu. I might have a word with current school SENco, who has written that he could make a suitable transition to MS secondary school with suitable provision, and check what his take on the provision is, and see who is prepared to self fund this.
Writing the letter for the paediatrician a good idea also.

[stressedi]

We have failed our oversubscription appeal and panel were purely looking for medical / social reasons .
I have spoken to few parents at our school who have suggested that allocated school is consistent with admitting majority of ethnic minority pupils and our DC is of mixed race it would help for him to attend well balanced / mixed school. Would appeal panel accept it as social reasons?

[prh47bridge]

No it won't. However, if you are certain the appeal panel only looked at medical/social reasons and did not consider other justifications for needing a place at the preferred school that would be grounds for referring the matter to the Local Government Ombudsman.