Didn't get village school - appealing, but need your advice wise MNers!

[MillieMoodle]

DS didn't get allocated our first preference school, which is the village school. It's the first year ever that children living in the village weren't all offered a place. We've established that there are 4 children who live in the village who didn't get a place. We are the only one on our side of the village - all other children on our estate got in. The 4 children have been allocated places at 3 different schools. All 4 parents are appealing but we are also getting together to put pressure on the school (academy), diocese (it's a CofE school although faith isn't part of their oversubscription criteria), MPs etc to accept them all. I have two main questions, but any advice is gratefully received!
First, at appeal, has anyone actually won on the ground that the decision not to give the child a place was so perverse in light of the facts (or whatever the wording is!)? If so, what exactly was it that convinced the appeal panel? We are in a situation where there are 3 sets of twins in the year, which is a very unusual circumstance. If they let all 4 who didn't get a place in, it won't really be setting a precedent as it is hugely unlikely that there will be over 30 children next year, the village just isn't very big. Can we use that as an argument? What else can we use as an argument? I'm thinking isolation from village community, socially excluding him, emotionally damaging to him (he'll be heartbroken), DS already at preschool in village, allocated school has no before/after school provision, we can't walk there, we can't even park there to drop him off, etc.

Secondly, what info should I be asking the village school for? I've already asked what distance the last child to get in lives (0.28 miles), what distance we are (0.33 miles) where we are on the waiting list (4th), where they measure to on the child's home (front door/boundary of property etc - await a response as the school don't know) and whether those that have been offered places have to provide proof of address (await a response as the school don't know). What else can I request?

I don't know how likely it is that we will be successful at appeal, but I have to know that I've at least tried and have done the best I could for him.

Thanks if you've read this far

Lol or even just as Admission says check you were put in category 4 and was it applied. My suggestion is ridiculously over complicated!

Thanks both, I will email the school again tomorrow to ask. Also it's quite a small village so it shouldn't take me too long to find out whether children living in the roads which fall outside the parish have been offered places. Fingers crossed for good news!

As to who is appealing, all 4 mums definitely are. Without a shadow of doubt. One has lived in the village her entire life and went to the school herself so she is not going to accept not getting a place!

Wishing you good luck. Surely it must be a fairly big village to have 34 children who are 4 years old?

Thank you. It's not really a very big village, this is why everyone is so shocked that there are children in the village who didn't get in. Preschool has 25 that live in the village, but that includes 3 sets of twins which in itself is unusual.

Oh yes, I know that tiggy. And thanks for all your advice today too, I have learnt a lot. What I meant is that she will definitely appeal. It was in response to someone saying that if the o/s criteria was applied incorrectly such that all 4 of us should have been given places, they would only actually give places to those who have appealed.
Yes all 4 of us who haven't got a place are definitely in the parish.

Also just as an aside (this won't really help you unless any teacher's children have been admitted this year)
"3. Children of teaching staff employed by X school at the date of admission."
breaches the admissions code which states:
"Children of staff at the school
1.39 Admission authorities may give priority in their oversubscription criteria to children of staff in either or both of the following circumstances:
a) where the member of staff has been employed at the school for two or more years at the time at which the application for admission to the school is made, and/or
b) the member of staff is recruited to fill a vacant post for which there is a demonstrable skill shortage."

Thanks tiggy and Betsy.
I've established there is at least 1 child who lives in the village but not the parish, who has been offered a place. That, plus the lady who received an offer letter for the school and another school, despite being outside both the village and the parish, suggests that they have made mistakes in applying their o/s criteria.
Now I've just got to hope that they have made mistake which have cost at least 4 children their places!

Betsy, how would I find out whether any teachers' children have been given a place? Can I ask how many children are in each o/s category?

Is there a danger that they will agree that mistakes have been made but still not admit all 4 children, as they genuinely cannot cope with 34 children in class?

Good question, I think they have to accommodate them don't they?

I mean they have to accommodate them if those children would have got a place but for the school's mistake?

When it comes to any appeal the admission authority will have to detail exactly the numbers admitted under each category. So you will find out whether a child of a teacher has been admitted and maybe the admission criteria could well be illegal as pointed out by BetsyBoop.
If the admission authority (and that in this instance is the school) have not righted the wrong and sent all the cases to the admission appeal panel, then it will be up to the appeal panel to decide how many pupils have been disadvantaged by any failure to apply the admission arrangements correctly. Having decided how many problem admissions there have been (and this could be more than the four) then the panel will agree which pupils should have been admitted.
Only then will they decide whether or not the school could cope with the extra pupils. This is as much as anything a classroom size issue aligned to how many pupils do they think one teacher can teach effectively - they are not allowed to insist an extra teacher is employed. That figure could actually be 30 if the rooms are very tight but from my experience is not likely to be more than 34 or 35.
The school as the admission authority can admit if mistakes have been made and in a village school with a village community they would be well advised to consider the longer term ramifications of not admitting any pupils who have been disadvantaged by a failure on the admission process.

Thanks for your advice all. So possible reasons supporting the grounds for appeal:

1. The o/s criteria for teachers' children is incorrect and does not follow the code.

1. I have reason to believe the o/s criteria has been incorrectly applied because:

(a) no distinction appears to have been made between 'village' and 'parish'. A child living in the 'village' but not in the 'parish' has been offered a place which I believe to be a mistake. (b) someone living out of village and out of parish has been sent an offer letter. (c) the head teacher told me on admissions day that they didn't have their final pupil list because there had been a 'glitch' at the local authority.

Is there anything else I need to be saying?

Why can't they create a composite class?

I don't know if they would do that but we are going to put pressure on the school/diocese to consider this. It's an academy so they could do if they wanted to.

You say you've found someone out of parish who has been allocated a place, which is good for you.

Another category of child who should be below you is children in parish with a sibling at the school, but who live further away than you do. You might want to try to get confirmation in writing that no such child has been admitted.. though if you could unearth one that has, that would create another hole in their case.

This does sound very promising. I hope you are able to get this rectified and that there is enough space for your child.

In relation to 2(b), could that child be in one of the higher categories, e.g. medical reasons?

I don't think so. I've spoken to the diocese this morning (they manage the appeals) and even they thought it was meant to be the village (not parish), so hopefully the school have it wrong.

That sounds hopeful!