Hideous Primary School Admissons Offer - Advice needed, please!

[Dworkin9to5]

Hello, I'll try to give all the details, but it will probably be long, so apologies in advance. I don't want to give my location, if that's okay, but we live in England.

My son will be 4 in May. We live in a smallish town, where there are 4 decent primaries. We live just round the corner from one, in fact, we can see it from one of our bedroom windows. We applied for all 4 schools in our area, although our no. 1 choice was the second nearest - still under 1mile away.

I didn't get a letter or email on Thurs. 16th, so I went and checked the offer online. We had been rejected for all 4 choices, and instead, given a place at a school we've never heard of, in another town nearby. When we checked on Google, we discovered that it is an hour's walk away, over 20 mins by car, and is not served by public transport. It is also a new school, in an old building, and the second Google hit for it is a local newspaper article condemning the use of the building because it is crumbling, with exposed asbestos, and so on. There is no OFSTED report yet because it is new. Looking on the map, there are SIX schools nearer to our home than this one. I know they legally have to provide transport, but I've checked, and it would mean my son travelling in a taxi without me, and I simply refuse to allow that.

More facts: I cannot drive, and I have mecfs. I sent a Dr's note in with the original application stating that I cannot walk far or drive, so need my son to go to a school within reasonable walking distance. My partner, his father, cannot do the school run due to work hours. I am a SAHM, and DS does 15 free nursery hours at a lovely local nursery that's not affiliated to a school. He is our only child.

My son is bright (has taught himself the alphabet, how to read and count to 100), but is Summer-born, emotionally immature, very shy, to the point of nursery worrying about elective mutism, very clingy to me, very nervous of other children, wears glasses and has a speech impediment. He is also not very gender-conforming, and likes pink, dolls, etc. (We don't believe in gender-stereotyping children). So we were already worried about him starting school before this development.

We are going to appeal, but what worries me is that we're only allowed on the form to say why we want him to go to his first choice. We're not allowed to give reasons why the admissions offer is unsuitable, or even say that we're happy for him to go to the other choices, so long as it's not the offer school! If they've already rejected us once, despite our existing suitability, what can we say to change their minds?!

Everyone else we know has got their 1st or 2nd choice, we don't know how come we've been so unlucky, especially living in such close proximity to two schools, and what with my mobility issues.

I really need some advice with the appeal, because there is no way we are going to send our son to the offered school. We will not send him to school this year if it's our only option. Please help?

No, they have our address and postcode correct, they have us down as living here, etc. None of the 4 schools are faith schools (in fact, we could've chosen a 5th school, which is a faith school - which is also the furthest away in our specific town - but didn't because we're Atheists).

My 7 friends I met at NCT classes and we've stayed close. So I know all their children are not adopted and none have SEN. And they are all either only children or have younger siblings/mum is pregnant. They all agree, it makes no sense that their kids have got decent places and my son's is for somewhere so far away.

tiggytape, I know you're not meaning to be depressing. Your advice is actually very helpful. I just meant it's depressing because it just further confirms to me that A) their decison makes even less sense and B) I don't know what to put in an appeal when the only reasons we can use in an appeal are the very reasons that clearly weren't enough to get my son a school place anywhere near home!

There must have been a distance mistake then. Find out what distance they have for you, and what the furthest distance offered a place was.

I think there must have been an error. We completed the online forms in plenty of time and triple-checked them, etc. However, I'm sure that the class will have its maximum of 30, as it is the most popular school in the area (and best OFSTED results).

I'm going to ring first thing tomorrow and ask the specific questions tiggytape and Penguins have listed, thank you. I've asked along those lines, but not used those specific words. Am already fed up of them fobbing me off. 3 different people so far have told me they can't see why my son was rejected for the other schools and offered. Cynically, we all locally think it's because they're trying to fill up this new school, and children who don't fit any of the sibling/adopted/looked after/SEN, etc., criteria are randomly being sent there. It's the only thing that makes much sense.

No, didn't apply late (see above), and have email confirmation to prove it.

They can't randomly send children there if they would qualify for one of their preferences.

Cynically, we all locally think it's because they're trying to fill up this new school, and children who don't fit any of the sibling/adopted/looked after/SEN, etc., criteria are randomly being sent there. It's the only thing that makes much sense.

I know you want to find a reason for what's happening, but this isn't it.

They cannot do this. They wouldn't do it - because they would be found out and all hell would break out at appeal stage.

If they need the extra school places, there will be enough children who don't get in to another school to fill the places, without trying to rig the process.

Well then, it must be an error - which is hopefully good news for the appeal.

I don't know what to put in an appeal when the only reasons we can use in an appeal are the very reasons that clearly weren't enough to get my son a school place anywhere near home!

Please stop thinking like this. You have listed lots of personal stuff that, whilst I understand it is hard on you personally, and important to you personally, isn't relevant to admissions. It isn't about whether you 'made a good enough case' to get into one of the schools you listed. A computer applies the criteria and allocates the places. If, as you think happened, people in the same admission category and further away got places, it is reasonably likely a mistake was made.

Honestly, from what you are saying so far (particularly that you didn't get into a school you can see, that you are sure people got into from futher away within the same admission category, no faith admission, etc) it seems reasonably likely that a mistake was made. Once in a blue moon, daft things happen - like the applications of two children with similar names getting switched, or incorrect data entry meaning your distances have all gone to pot as they have you living 2 miles away from your actual address.

Sounds like an error to me. It makes me wonder if they didn't get your application (esp as you didn't get the email/letter before having to chase it) and you've therefore been allocated whatever space is left after everyone else is accounted for. Bit strange though if you have a confirmation email from the online application. Def call them tomorrow and ask for more info on why you didn't get any of your 4 choices - very unusual not to get any of them esp if they are all so close to your house.

Without revealing it, they won't have got my son's name mixed up with someone else's. He has both our surnames double-barrelled and it's an unusual combination (and not particularly common first name either). And it didn't get in late, I checked to make sure. They confirmed all this stuff, but did seem nonplussed as to how come he's been given this place, so I do think it is seeming more and more likely that it was an offer, and their nervousness when speaking to me on the phone indicated that it had worried them. Well, I hope so, anyway.

Needmorechocolate, the email/letter was the one with the offer in. The one confirming we had applied in time wasn't late. Some other people got their offer ones late too, including 2 of my friends whose DC have got into the local schools.

Penguins, when I talk about the original reasons why we thought our son would get in, I don't mean personal ones, just the location and it making sense that he goes to a local one. If there's not been a mistake, and they've already rejected my mobility issues as a mitigating factor, I am stumped as to what to put in an appeal. Just reiterate the same stuff about proximity again, I suppose,

Are parents allowed to ride in (council funded) school taxis?

If 8 children, in same admission band, apply for 7 remaining reception places at 1 school (else 30 limit might be exceeded)... how does council decide which one child doesn't get a place?

(I can't even run a mile in under 10 minutes)

We have been through the appeals' system for infant places (and failed). Because of the rules about class size, it is very rare to succeed. The only cases I know of were errors, e.g. in one case, the medical needs of the child were overlooked. In those case, a place won't be removed from a child who was given one to make room for your child, the class would go over 30.

When I go running I run at 10 min miles. I cannot believe that people can walk at that pace with children. I know I am slow but not that slow!

so I do think it is seeming more and more likely that it was an offer, and their nervousness when speaking to me on the phone indicated that it had worried them.

What do you mean it was 'an offer'? If you mean it was a mistake and there has been a dawning recognition of a cock up, you could be quite right. If someone on the other end is thinking 'How many kids does this affect, how bad is it' etc I wouldn't be that surprised that they wanted you off the phone to look into it!

It really wasn't some sort of random allocation conspiracy to fill another school though. It really, really wasn't.

The answer here is very simple. It is unusual from what has been said by the OP to be in the position they find themselves of no offer from 4 schools involved. But the answer is not going to be found on here, it can only be found by asking the right questions of the Local Authority and appealing.

So ask the Local Authority in writing to explain for each of the 4 schools in which admission category you were, what the distance was from the school and what the longest distance was that was admitted. You are legally entitled to that information and you need it in writing.

Then fill in the form for your number one preference as an appeal and say that you wish to appeal on the basis that you wish to have a place at the school and that you will give further details of the appeal at a later date.
Do the same for your second, third and fourth preferences on separate forms.

Thirdly ask in writing to go on the waiting list for all four schools and make sure you get confirmation in writing that the Local Authority have done this.

OP my friend was allocated a school in error two years ago. She had applied on time, correctly stated her preferences etc. Instead of the school she wanted she was given a place at a school several miles away which was actually in another county. The schools had very similar names and it was just by chance that she realised when she drove past the wrong school a couple of days after allocation day. The LA were utterly baffled as to how it happened.

My point is mistakes DO happen and it sounds like one has been made here. Please don't let them fob you off if you genuinely believe there's been an error.

Penguins - I did mean error, not offer (bloody auto-correct) :)

Right, I have compiled a list of questions, and info that they are obliged to give me, and am getting on the phone to refuse to be fobbed off again, right now...

Good luck - let us know how you get on!

How did you get on OP?

Good luck, OP. I must admit my guest thought in reading your posts was that you have the chance to home ed your son for a year. Next year he will likely be much more confident than he is now, as he's a summer baby only child and very quiet.
But that's a different thread, or a different line of thought.
Anyhow, good luck!

First thought, not guest! Autocorrectness often not correct!