appeal next week!

[GreenGoth89]

We're appealing on the basis of me having limited mobility, don't drive, use a mobility scooter and can't really travel on multiple buses to do school run. We've been given a place at a school 3 miles away, which I really don't think I'll be able to get him to reliably as I have a fluctuating condition. DP will be working full time and the school has no before or after school clubs and we can't afford additional childcare - the prices we've been quoted wouldn't be covered by tax credits. I've got plenty of medical evidence about my conditions and how they effect me, but we also feel it's really important to reflect the importance of him having consistent attendance - how can we best do this?

Is there anything else I could or should flag up? There's other stuff relating to DSS that I've added in our statement to the panel but I'm wondering it there are certain phrases worth using or things I can quote? There's no reasonable adjustment for disabled parents regarding school places in law is there?

We're looking at places - it's very expensive - nearly £20 a day! Ok we will now get 70 % of that paid but it's still £150 a month to find! And my partner is likely to be working a minimum wage job by the looks of it! :/ I don't know any of the parents at this school and I wouldn't be happy with just letting him go with them unless I knew them well - I very much doubt there will be any one going to the school living this far away!

Could I not say that the fact that I'm not able to take him school interferes with our right to have a normal family life as it will put us at a major financial disadvantage? I know I'm clutching at straws but we're 4,5,26,19 on the different waiting lists so we're hoping that even if we don't win we will move forward in the queue and he'll get a place that way - if not we'll just keep waiting but it's not ideal!

Oh and there's no childminders within walking distance that will take him to school so DP will have to take him to the nearest out of school club to the school and pick him up from there. They also seem to be one of the most expensive in the area but the only one that picks up from there

Unfortunately that argument won't fly either. The panel can't find in your favour to save you money. They have to strictly follow the appeals code and as this is an ICS appeal the grounds are so strictly limited that they can't take prejudice into account. If it wasn't an ICS appeal, they could take your disability and circumstances into account a little. Are there any schools nearby that are not PAN 15/30/45/60/90 and therefore not ICS? That might be the best way for you to go - find a school that you could launch a prejudice appeal for.

As far as I'm aware there are no schools in a 3/4 mile radius which aren't at capacity, but the ridiculous thing is that come the first day of term that might not be the case - if people decide to keep kids off til their 5th birthday or have gone elsewhere but not informed the school. It's entirely possible we will have to move him within the first week of term, and then buy 2 bloody uniforms!

They can't take everyone's personal circumstances into account, that way lies madness. Everyone has their reasons for preferring a particular school, whether it be disability, working hours, costs, liking the school more, or any other reason that people pick for wanting a different school than the one they got. There is a criteria so that it is applied fairly across the board, otherwise who could say that the single parent who works full time has more right to school X than the disabled parent with a partner, or the person that doesn't want to take the bus, or the person who's PIL live closer to the school and can do pick up, or the person who likes the school library better? It would take forever to be able to go through every single case and decide who had more reasons for wanting one school over another.

Just to let you all know we won our second appeal for our most local school on the basis of my mobility - I think quoting the equality act and lack of reasonable adjustment provided by the council got it.

Good for you sounds like it was the right decision. A couple local to us won their appeal as the father is visually impaired (allocated school was a train drive away) and they argued it was unsafe for him to travel.