Appeal based on fact I'm working at the school

[Polarchi]

We got offered a place at our 3rd choice primary school yesterday. I'm currently working part time at the school and my son is at the nursery and there have been some issues since we made our choices with me using using the staff room etc because of confidentially reasons.

Has anyone successfully appealed to get into another school because they are working at the school they have been offered?

I think the school has major issues. My DCs schools have had teachers children at the school, and no one has had these kinds of issues.
I'm not sure you would win an appeal on these grounds. But you can put your children on the waiting lists for any suitable schools (more than just your original 3 or ).

I think that if you are a paid employee at the school then they have to make reasonable provision for you to have somewhere to take your breaks. As far as confidentiality goes, you are bound by the same code of conduct as other staff at the school.

What is your role? Are they accusing you of breaking confidentiallitty? Either they need to trust you or take disciplinary proceedings.

The fact that they are not allowing you to use the staff room like any other member of staff needs to be taken up by the union. You need to lodge a grievence that you are being unfairly discriminated against.

I tend to agree but I have had a discussion with the deputy head and they are sticking to their initial decision. I've got an email trail with all the detail in that we might use in the appeal.

I'm afraid this is unlikely to be the basis for a successful appeal.

If the school for which you appeal has classes of 30 in Reception, Y1 or Y2 your appeal will be infant class size. That means it should only succeed if you can show that the LA has made a mistake in refusing to admit your child to the school.

If it isn't infant class size you have a better chance but you will need to show that the prejudice to your son due to not going to the preferred school outweighs the prejudice to the school from being forced to admit an additional child. The fact you are working at the offered school and have had some problems does not really give you a case. Even if you could convince the panel that your child shouldn't go to the offered school, it doesn't give them a specific reason for admitting your child to the preferred school. Any school other than the offered school would do so that shouldn't lead to a successful appeal.

Sorry.

I have heard of some instances where people who have jobs which might bring them into conflict with members of the public - police officers and social workers - have been able to argue that their child might suffer if they had to go to the same school as their clients' (for want of a better word) children. But I've never heard of someone who works at a school saying that their child shouldn't go there - in fact, I've heard at least one appeal where a parent working at a school was appealing to get their child into the school.

Most schools have come across this situation before, where staff members are also parents at the school. I'm not clear what the confidentiality issues are. Are they saying that you have been breaching confidentiality because you have inappropriately passed on things you've heard in the staff room? Or are they saying that your being in the staff room means that other staff can't discuss issues freely because they might involve your child? Either way, these are school management issues and not really anything to do with the admissions criteria.

You can join waiting lists or appeal for any other school you'd be willing to accept.

Polarchi, you need to make a formal grievence to the chair of governors. You will have a meeting with the head teacher and chair of governors. The meeting will be properly minuted. If that does not work then you can take your appeal to the board of governors. Your grienvence needs to be in writing. Email is too informal. The school should be able to give you details of the formal grievence proceedure.

It is wrong for the school to treat you in this fashion. Like any other employee you need social interaction at break time. You need an area to relax at your break time that is away from the kids. The school should not treat you as a social pariah.

The school should lock away confidential material and not have it plastered on a staffroom wall. It is wrong. The school has to look after your needs as an employee. The school has obligations under the health and safety act.

As a school employee you will inevitably come across confidential info whether you enter the staffroom or not.

The fact that you work part time at the school should not be a problem. At my dds school there are several parents and grandparents who work there as TAs, LSAs and one class teacher and the school manages this very well. Parents do work with different classes to their child/children and the teacher works in a different year group to avoid conflicts of interest.

I seem to remember having the opposite problem to you - I was working part-time at a local school and my dd was offered a place at another local school (our first choice). They were very disappointed that my child wouldn't be going there!