Primary school place

[Snips]

Can anyone help?? We did not get our first choice of primary school, despite having two siblings at the school. We are out of catchment (and always have been), but our other two got in. I think we are going to try and appeal (know it will be difficult), but just realised that the school have measured the distance to the school using an old entrance to the school which is no longer used. Our distance shortens a little bit using the entrance they presently use. May be a silly question, but should I call the LA and tell them this, or use it for our appeal?? Thanks

If the admission criteria clearly state that the measurement should be to the gate used by Reception children and they have measured to a different gate that would seem to me to be a clear mistake. However, as I've said before, they cannot measure the distance from your home to the correct gate and compare that with the incorrect measurements for everyone else. If they do anything they will need to remeasure everyone and determine who should have got in. That may not include your child - indeed, on the measurements you have posted I suspect it will not include your child. Your appeal should only succeed if your child would have been admitted if the LA had measured from the correct gate.

You can certainly mention the difficulty regarding siblings as well but I doubt it will have any effect on the outcome one way or the other.

Snips,
As the appeal will be infant class size, you need to prove a mistake has been made if you are to gain a place by appeal. As such the siblings is irrelevant at the appeal, other than impressing on the panel what a difficult position you are in.
On the posts you have made, you need to go with the arguement that the LA are measuring from the wrong gate and that everybody needs to be re-assessed. From what you have said that will bring you closer on distance and will make others further away, who live the other side of the closed gate. You do not know what that will do to your position, it may mean that you should have had a place, you might still be too far away. The only way is to mount the argument but you should know that no matter what happens no pupils will loose a place by mounting the arguement, so do not feel concerned for others.
Another thought that I have had is to check when the current admission arrangements came into force. Was there this arrangement of siblings and out-of-zone siblings when your siblings joined the school? If not you could also make the point that at the time of entry you had a reasonable expectation of all three siblings getting a place and that the school as the admission authority have made a change that was unreasonable. Its a very weak arguement but every little helps!

Hi all

Thanks for all your help with this-was away for a week so could not post. I have the appeals form through so will be completing it soon and will let you know how I got on.