Settings primary school appeal- please help!

[Rorymum]

Hi, my daughter has been offered a place at our third choice. We are considering appealing. What sort of arguments are put forward in appeals? Are you supposed to criticise the allocation system, sell your child to the school, or beg, or tell the school they really need your child, or an emotional argument as to why we chose that school in the first place? What are legitimate grounds for appealing? Our first choice was out of our catchment area, our second was well within but a faith school so we were bottom of the criteria. Is it unreasonable to appeal just because you're unhappy and feel a school is not well suited to your child? Thank you

I’m not an expert but I think that you can only appeal n the grounds that a mistake has been made or that it is completely unreasonable that she hasn’t got a space
Also you appeal FOR the school you want, not against the one you have
Not sure what your grounds for appeal would be

No that won’t win an appeal.

For key stage 1 appeals, only if a mistake in applying the criteria has been make which has denied your child a place or the LEA has make a decision which would usually be considered unjust.

If neither of these apply then unfortunately you won’t win.

Are there 30 pupils in a class in reception, year 1 or 2?

If so, then the appeal will be under ICS (infant class size) rules and thus very hard to win. You would need to prove that the admissions authority made a mistake which cost you a place, or their criteria were unlawful, or the decision to admit was so legally unreasonable no sensible person would have made it. None of your arguments would be relevant I'm afraid.

If the appeal is not ICS, things are a little easier, as then what you need to do is show the detriment to the school of admitting another child is less than the detriment to the child of not attending. This is hard to show, and most primary appeals do fail, but it's not impossible.

As PatriciaHolm says, if this is an ICS appeal, it will be very hard to win and none of the tactics you suggest in your post will help. You have more chance if it is not an ICS appeal, but even then you need to focus on why this is the best school for youir child, not how (in your proud parental view) your child is the best one for the school!

Your first choice was out of catchment so presumably you lost out to children who live a lot closer to the school (after siblings /LACand children with statements) and for whom it IS their catchment school.

Your second was a faith school and by your own admission you were at the bottom of the criteria heap for that application too.

Presumably your third choice was a local , non faith school where you had a hope of getting a place , which you have done.

I don't see your problem, you used up two applications on schools you realistically didn't have a chance of getting a place at , if there were other schools where you did have a chance of getting a place at you should have applied to them.

They are yet to build a school with elastic walls.