Advice on appealing needed please!

[Suziejtaylor]

We have an appeal hearing on the 26th September for which I would welcome any tips or advice on. We moved house during the summer holidays but my eldest son (in year 6) has been refused a place at the local school (which is only half a mile away) as that year group already has 30 pupils and that is what they set their limit at. They can take my daughter (year 3) and youngest son (FSU). If he doesn't get a place it lessens his chance of getting into the secondary school we want (for which we are in catchment, but being in catchment would be the only criteria we would meet if he is not at the local school which worries me). And if he did get a place at the secondary school just on catchment he would have to go there without knowing anyone! He is shy and has had trouble with being bullied at primary school so this is a predicament that concerns us. If anyone can offer any advice at all I would be most grateful! Thanks

Have they ever had more than 30 in a year group before?

Is there anything this school offers eg music, drama that particularly suits your son?

Given that he is in year 6, you need to be appealing on the basis of the need to form a local friendship group and that it is the local school, plus all the things he can do there which he cannot do if he is at another school. I would link his shyness to the need to form friendship groups and this is what all the extra-curricula activities will help him do. Whilst it should not in any way influence the panel, it is also worth stressing that you are a close knit family and that the younger two children will expect that oldest is going to the same school, as they did previously.
The issue over secondary school is I am afraid not going to influence the panel and actually could do you harm if they think the whole reason for wanting the school is so you get into the right secondary school.
You do need to do research and ask the school for information on the number of pupils that are in each year group and also the maximum number of pupils that are in any year group. Any over 30 will help your case that taking an extra pupil over 30 is not a problem for the school.