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Primary School - Notice of Appeal Received

12 replies

Emperzar · 21/04/2018 21:38

With their covering letter they have sent a copy of a letter dated February 2015 regarding Infant Class Size Appeals.

It states that:

"An Appeals Panel can only offer a place to a child where it is satisfied that either:

  1. The admissions of additional children would not breach the infant class size limit;
  2. The admission arrangements did not comply with admissions law or were not correctly and impartially applied and your child would have been offered a place if the arrangements had complied or had been correctly and impartially applied; or
  3. The decision to refuse admission was not one which a reasonable admission authority would have made in the circumstances of the case.


The threshold for finding that an admission authority's decision to refuse admission was not one that a reasonable authority would have made is high. The Appeals Panel will need to be satisfied that the decision to refuse to admit the child was "perverse in the light of the admission arrangements" ie it was "beyond the range of responses open to a reasonable decision maker", or a "decision which is so outrageous in its defiance of logic or accepted moral standards that no sensible person who had applied in his mind to the question could have arrived at it".

I went with the unreasonable decision option. I am terrified that I haven't got enough grounds to appeal and perhaps I should withdraw it?
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Highfever · 21/04/2018 21:39

What's your circumstances?

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prh47bridge · 21/04/2018 21:41

The bar for a decision being unreasonable is very high. What is your case?

However, even if you don't appear to have any chance, I wouldn't withdraw. You won't lose anything by appealing and you never know what will come up in the hearing.

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Emperzar · 22/04/2018 09:09

Sorry for not replying, i didn't get any notifications!

I'm the mother of a disabled child who lives 0.32 miles from the school and was refused due to distance and infant class prejudice. Daughter does not have a statement or an EHCP. An EHCP was applied for but got refused. I've since seen the form and was horrified at how bad it was filled in.

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Emperzar · 22/04/2018 09:14
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PanelChair · 22/04/2018 09:35

I commented on your other thread.

As I said there, although the bar is high, you should (in my view) push hard on the “unreasonable” point. IIRC, the weakness in your case is that you didn’t provide supporting evidence with your application but - as your child is a wheelchair user and you have to push her to school - I think you’ve got a decent argument for wanting the nearest school. There’s no guarantee, but the panel might agree.

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Emperzar · 22/04/2018 10:04

Thank you. I was panicking when I read their letter because it advises you very strongly not to continue if you can't meet their criteria.

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Emperzar · 22/04/2018 10:06

Would it be ok to mention in my appeal that I've been very disappointed by the EHCP paperwork submitted and feel that she's been let down? Or does that sound too critical? I do feel we have been let down by the county Senco.

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butterfly990 · 22/04/2018 10:09

Emperzar i have heard that a lot of EHPC's are initially declined and that often when you appeal they are accepted.

It would be a good idea to get SENDIASS involved.

www.kids.org.uk/sendiass

Flowers

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Emperzar · 22/04/2018 10:35

I will contact them, thank you. The Senco hasn't mentioned appealing, only reapplying "once we have further information to submit"

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PanelChair · 22/04/2018 13:01

Rather than criticise the Senco or the ECHP process, turn it around slightly and say that (as the panel no doubt knows) the process is slow and you’re still going through it. Do follow up on getting specialist advice there.

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Emperzar · 22/04/2018 13:38

PanelChair thank you xx

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admission · 22/04/2018 17:05

Do not be put off by the letter, it is designed to make sure that parents who are appealing realise how difficult it is to win an infant class size appeal. Far to many parents arrive for such appeals believing they have a good case that it is unreasonable in the circumstances, when it reality they are perfectly reasonable. They then realise this at the beginning of the appeal and recognise that a large percentage of the cases are not actually going to be anything but a refusal of a place.
It is infuriating to panel members as well at times, when a case is clearly one that under normal circumstances would be allowed.
In terms of your particular case, I would look to ensure that you have as much information as possible about why your EHC Plan application was rejected because one would have expected any child who is in a wheel chair and as such a disability to have such a plan. If that EHC Plan had been in place then you would have had the opportunity to name the school you wanted your child to go to.

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