No primary school offered. Thinking of appealing on the following grounds....is it worth it?

[pollmeister]

My daughter didnt get offered a place anywhere. My first choice is where she currently goes to nursery and is the nearest to my house (973m). There were only 60 places - HALF of these went to siblings. We are about 29th on the waiting list. The teachers there cannot believe she hasnt got in, and pull me aside regularly to ask what the latest is (they are very fond of my daughter).
I am thinking of appealing on what are probably feeble grounds. Of course I have the obvious grounds: I work full-time (at home), dont drive etc. My husband cannot help with school runs as he leaves the house before 7am every day. But the most important thing for me is because my daughter is an only child I want her to have friends that live locally, who she sees in the local park, live down the road etc. Also my parents help me a lot but they are both over 70 and quite infirm (my mother has a disabled badge) - they can only manage short journeys (to pick her up from school) - they live about a mile from this school.
Is it worth it? Im clutching at straws arent I?

Panelmember: Thank you for you help - much appreciated. I guess I will be offered a place at the next round of offers - hopefully it will be somewhere we can physically get to in a civilised way!

You're welcome!

Can you explain this 'second round of offers' to me? This is the second thread (at least) where it's been mentioned. In this LEA, there's one round of offers, and any vacancies created when places are declined will be filled by the next child(ren) on the original admissions list plus any late additions (as parents can join as many other waiting lists as they want). This, though, is all done in an ad hoc way and there isn't a second round of offers. So how does it work?

Panelmember: Hmmm Im not entirely sure - I guess when you dont get a place after you've first applied (and Im not the only one round here that got offered no place) - they wait until all the other places offered have been taken up / not taken up - then they must give the spare places to those who didnt get offered a choice in the first place - Oh, I dunno, I dont really understand myself; some people I know got offered places that they didt even put on thier lists - I dont know why I didnt......the whole thing is baffling enough without all this disappointment....sigh

I think I know what the second round is because I'm in the same situation - when you get the offer you get a date by which to accept. After that date (think it's a week after as they have to write to parents to check they don't want their places), they publish a list of which places have spots open so you can apply to them. And those on continued interest lists can be reconsidered based on the same criteria. Apparently there is a lot of shift in some areas as people decide actually they would rather send their kids private than take what's been offered.

In my case, I've been told by the school to go on continued interest and NOT appeal (because I wouldn't win - it's class size again) and that they will hopefully find a space. But it's all very tenuous at the minute and worrying.

Poor buggers, not their fault they were born in a year when the birth rate rocketed :(

There is an interesting question here. You did not get an offer of a school place when you should have done. The council now appears to be drawing up waiting lists and you still have not been offered a place, when most admission criteria are quite clear that late applications are only dealt with when all applicants who were on time have been dealt with.
Assuming that you were not a late applicant I would go back to the council and point out to them that they are obliged to offer apalce and if they offer anybody a place in some kind of second round before you have been made an appropriate off then you will report the LA to the Local Government Ombudsman for maladministration.
It is quite likely that the offer will be miles away and a rubbish school but it might at least make them do something.

Where we are we have been told that at the point at which they go to second round, anyone who has not accepted an offer or has not been offered anything will be equally treated and then late applicants will be considered. But before this point I can apply to any schools which have space. I don't know how this can possibly work because it seems to me that one contradicts the other. But then I only have a human brain not a computerised matching system for assigning places to schools

I live in the same borough as Pollmeister which is Merton, but i know they are doing this in Croydon as well. Basically second round offers are given to those who did not get any place, and is based on people given up their original places and the creation of bulge classes.After second round offers, Merton will tell you were you are on the waiting list.....

Merton has just updated their website with this

All parents without the offer of a school have received a letter advising them of what they should do. Since the offers sent out on 4 April the Council can confirm that two additional schools - Dundonald and Hillcross - will each provide an additional 30 reception year places. We hope to announce a further school in Wimbledon towards the end of May. The second round of offers will be sent on 16 May. We will be allocating the additional 60 places and any vacancies that have arisen as a result of applicants rejecting offers made to them. We would like to reassure parents who require a place for their child this September that we are monitoring the position very closely to ensure there are sufficient places available.

YvieE - ah thanks for that. I added Hillcross actually (not ideal as totally not walking distance, and no idea where it is to be honest, but it just got an Outstanding Offstead wotsit so I guess it will suddenly become desirable). Can you still stay on the waiting list for you nearest school and hope someone leaves before Xmas or summat? I have no qualms about moving my DD from one school to another after a few months.....the walking distance thing is paramount to me. I work (from home) full time and havent the time to be fannying about with public transport in the rush hour, sitting in traffic etc etc moan moan moan kills self

I Also live in Wimbledon and after the second round wwere announced my daughter still has no school. Of the three closest schools (Holy Trinty, Pelham and Prior) she is 19th, 24th and 36th on the waiting listm, so there are atleast 60 other kids ahead of her. When I asked Merton what would happen if there was no plave I was told she does not have to legally start school until 5 so you can keep her at home! What a Joke. They said I have to just sit and wait for a place to come up! So she loses her place at Nursey and I have to pay for someone to look after her while I work! This is just a joke. All of us parents in the Wimbledon Area need to get together and force Meerton to do something moe than they are already!

That is completely wrong. Legally they have to offer a place in the admission round that is taking place, even if you then as parent decide to delay them starting. The LA have got that completely wrong way round.
I would actually ask them to put that in writing. If they are idiots they will do so, if they have half a brain they will not. If they do I would send it directly to the Schools Adjudicator and ask them to discuss with the LA when and how they are going to allocate a school place. My guess would be that is just a delaying tactic to keep you off their backs whilst they try and figure out what to do about the lack of places.

Agree completely with Admission. This is a direct breach of the Admissions Code. They MUST offer a place. Under paragraph 2.65 they MUST provide for the admission of all children in the September following their fourth birthday.

We have just moved to Cardiff from America and I can't get my 2 children in any school. The council sent me a helpful list of all the schools and wrote full on all of them except the one that is closing greeters...