Year 3 appeal guidance

[PKRAJ]

Hello team,
Last year we got school very far away from our home and my son attended that school in year 2. I was going to job and managing school pick and drop but now I can not do it as my job location changed which is about 12 miles away. My wife can not drive and if we go by bus it takes about 2 hours each way. Also last year his attendance also reduced and few lates as well due to my work situation. Now this year I have applied to nearby schools. We have a school which is 9 metre away from our house but it has already 2 children extra. My son is managing with homeschooling at the moment which is tough for us. We informed about above siutation to council and applied for appeal but they have not given any appeal date. We have applied to nearby schools and put on waiting list.
Now, to address our questions:

1. Should we consider submitting another appeal since our last one was filed in June 2023?
2. Can you provide guidance on how to strengthen our case for a successful appeal?
3. Is an appeal for Year 3 subject to infant class size restrictions, and which category does it fall under?

Thank you for your assistance in navigating this challenging situation.

What happened with last appeal. The school should have followed their appeal process... I think you should have had a response within a set number of day (14 maybe) - did you follow their process and complete the paper work correctly?

No - infant class size does not limit y3.

Definitely stay on the wait list.

You will need to prove why admitting your child is not to the detriment of the other children. If they are already at 32 that will be tough.

How did children 31 and 32 get in? Was it from the wait list or an appeal?

If waitlist - was that applied correctly?

Reapply to the school as some schools don't hold the waitlist open over the summer. Then restart the appeal process.

Was the June 23 appeal for y2 or y3?
Y3 is not an infant class size appeal.

Have you applied for any schools you can get to?

With the further away school they should have been helping with transport if more than 3 miles away as they placed your DC at it.

Why can't your wife drive?

Is the school near your house a “through school” ie everyone from year 2 moves on to year 3?

Did you apply for a year 3 place in the usual round of applications ie submitting the form in Jan 2023?

If so, did you only apply to this school or did you apply to several?

If the school is more than three miles away, your son should have had transport in year 2.

Year 3 is not governed by ICS.

Thank you for your reply.
Yes paper work completed correctly.
Council said they have recieved it but not processed yet and no reason behind it.
If it is not infant class size then what type of school appeal is this and how it is different from infant class size.
How can I prove that taking my child would not affect other children
They have 31 in each class of year 3 similar to last year and we are on number 1 in waiting list for 14 months.
Last year we applied for first appeal in Nov and they refused.
Second appeal we did in June but they said it will be heard after Holidays but now they are not giving date.
We sent child in far away school with private pick and drop with a family but now they have moved ., my job location changed and wife can not drive.
We have applied to nearby schools and put on waiting list but that list does not do anything apart from using papers and emails.
Transport is far disable children as per transport team.
Yes it is through school.
I applied for year 2 in July 2022.
I applied for year 3 in September 2023.
I was liaising with council but no body mentioned to apply on Jan month.
They mentioned in year applications are directly dealt by schools. You can fill the form anytime and submit in schools you want to apply for.

Have you removed your child from the school he was at? I assume that was the school allocated by the LA when you applied, as there was nothing nearer.

Having offered you a school place, the LA doesn’t have to offer another one closer to you and you can stay on the waiting list for closer schools or ask which, if any, closer schools have places.

Your appeal would be based on the fact that the school your child went to is at a distance and difficult for you to get to, but that isn’t a reason that would carry any weight.

OP

If you appealed in Nov 2022, then you would not be able to appeal in June 2023, I believe - you can only appeal once per school year.

Anyway, an appeal for Year 3 has more chance of success because the panel's hands are not tied by Infant Class Size (ICS) regulations and they can admit more than 30 children in a class if the balance of prejudice is in your favour rather than the school's favour.

Could your wife learn to drive as a back up?

"We sent child in far away school with private pick and drop with a family but now they have moved ., my job location changed and wife can not drive."

So did you choose this current school when you applied in reception, on grounds you had private transport there at the time?

To check -

• you were allocated a school some distance away - how far? - in year 2; (or year 1?) presumably you moved into a new area after your son had started school? If the school was centrally allocated to you and is more than 2 miles, you should have been offered free transport for your child, though that could be a bus pass.
• Or were you allocated this school in Reception as one of your choices, having selected it over nearer schools your would have got a place at? If that is the case transport would not be provided.
• you appealed unsuccessfully for a Year 2 place in Nov 22. Unsurprising, as this would have been an ICS appeal.
• you then lodged another appeal in June. This could not be heard until this term, as you cannot appeal twice for the same academic year, unless there is a very significant change in circumstances. So the LA is correct in delaying, but should be arranging this appeal now term has started again.

The Jan application would only be relevant if the school had an official intake in Year 3 - some areas have a 3 part school system still, but it doesn't sound relevant here.

An appeal for Year 3 would be a prejudice appeal; you would need to show that the prejudice to your child of not attending this school is higher than the prejudice to the school and the education of the existing students of taking another pupil.

Have you pulled your child out of school and are officially home educating?

You need specific reasons why this school suits his needs - clubs, subjects, etc -that show why he needs this school. Unfortunately the class already being at 31 will make the appeal harder.

Have you appealed for any other schools, and are you on the waiting lists for every school you would accept?

To check –ANSWERS to checks

· you were allocated a school some distance away - how far? - in year 2 ; 5.9 km in straightline but 7 miles if you drive, presumably you moved into a new area after your son had started school? If the school was centrally allocated to you and is more than 2 miles, you should have been offered free transport for your child, though that could be a bus pass.: No help from transport team.
· you appealed unsuccessfully for a Year 2 place in Nov 22. Unsurprising, as this would have been an ICS appeal. Yes true
· you then lodged another appeal in June. This could not be heard until this term, as you cannot appeal twice for the same academic year, unless there is a very significant change in circumstances. So the LA is correct in delaying, but should be arranging this appeal now term has started again. Thank you

An appeal for Year 3 would be a prejudice appeal; you would need to show that the prejudice to your child of not attending this school is higher than the prejudice to the school and the education of the existing students of taking another pupil. Please guide me how to do that.

Have you pulled your child out of school and are officially home educating? Yes

You need specific reasons why this school suits his needs - clubs, subjects, etc -that show why he needs this school. Unfortunately the class already being at 31 will make the appeal harder.

Have you appealed for any other schools, and are you on the waiting lists for every school you would accept? YES

No help from transport team

As @PatriciaHolm says, if the school was more than 2 miles away by the shortest safe walking route, the LA was required by law to provide free transport for your child. If they refused to do so, you should complain. If complaining to the council doesn't get you anywhere, you should refer the matter to the Local Government Ombudsman.

You need specific reasons why this school suits his needs - clubs, subjects, etc -that show why he needs this school. Unfortunately the class already being at 31 will make the appeal harder.

This answers your "please guide me how to do that" point. You show why your child will be disadvantaged if he is not admitted to this school. What is it that this school offers that he won't get elsewhere.

Why on earth would you want your child to be in a class of 32 or 33? That is enormous. Even from a practical perspective, most classrooms are built to accommodate desks and chairs for. 30 pupils. I'm lucky enough to teach somewhere with small classes and genuinely don't think you have a hope of properly supporting everyone once numbers go over about 25.

If it's more than 2miles (up to 8? Or 3 mikes over 8 they are entitled to transport as long as it's the closest school offered. Your mp is the person to contact to get things moving. It seems that instead you have off rolled at which point they arent obliged to provide a school until you reapply