Just lost our reception appeal

[Fizzyboo]

And now I don't know what to do.

I thought we had a great case, and even had the head teacher stating in the questionnaire that he could take on one or two extra and it have no impact.
We had supporting letters and reports from nursery and appealed on the grounds of DD's heavily medicalised life having a psychological impact on her, needing a small setting as she's so easily overwhelmed.

Does anyone ever win at appeal?

I think some appeals succeed but they're about the LA's failure to follow procedure correctly.
Go onto the waiting list and keep your fingers crossed that a place comes up before yr 1.

Did you apply on medical grounds? Strange that it failed if the school wasn't averse to taking extra pupils.

The LA said they decide a schools capacity not the head. We were rejected on class size (15 intake but blend to dual year groups later)
Yes I suppose it was on medical grounds, but they've dismissed it anyway.

We don't have an EHCP though.

When does your child turn 5? Can you postpone starting school until a place comes up?

Unless the LA made a mistake in law no one wins infant admission appeals so I hear.

However if you was to appeal for a ehcp assessment then the law is on your side. I have won many ehcp appeals.

Ask for a assessment and if they say no, appeal it. But with a legal 20 week turnaround it wont get your school named for September.

Just stay on the waiting list and hope for movement

ICS appeals will only look to see if the admission arrangements were correctly applied. It’s unlikely that the LA would not have corrected a mistake before appeal if this was the case. Read the schools admissions policy to see how they came to the 15. It’s likely you’re not in catchment ?? Or applied late. Granted the Head has confused things by saying he can admit more but the truth is he can’t (ICS law) and really shouldn’t have put in the doc.
The panel were right in refusing.

She's literally just turned 4. We are out of catchment. Zero movement on the waiting list.
I don't know how much autonomy, if any, a head has on in year admissions, as I'd hold her back at home if I thought a place becoming available reasonably soon was likely, but I've no idea how long we'd end up waiting.

Accept her original place and make her excited. She'll soon settle and would probably be very disruptive to move once she's settled. Kids adapt well. She might surprise you.

The problem is half the people who didn’t get a place have some sort of story or reason why their child should go to the school, they can’t let everyone in no letter haw compelling the reasons. They have to draw the line somewhere hence the admissions criteria.

Most appeals
Fail
At primary level unless the LEA has made a mistake when processing the application eg have calculated the distance to school as 500mtrs instead of 50 etc. You will get some people saying ‘oh we won our appeal because little Johnny was so upset about not getting in/we pushed and said we had childcare issues etc but I’d put money on them being first on the waiting a list and a place coming up at the same time as them appealing.

Have you looked around at other schools that also have small classes or only 1 class per year?
There are cons to small classes - less children to find friends in. You often find the parents quite insular if it’s a small village that you are not part of.
Try finding the pros of the school you have been allocated and making it as positive a transition as you can.

I don't know how much autonomy, if any, a head has on in year admissions, as I'd hold her back at home if I thought a place becoming available reasonably soon was likely, but I've no idea how long we'd end up waiting.

Ask.

Legally she doesn't have to be at school until September 2021. In your position I would either

a) accept the school place that the LA has offered at a different school but approach that school explaining your concerns about your DD and asking to work with them - perhaps by going part-time until your DD has settled. Also asking how they will address any difficulties. Maybe you could ask the headteacher who supported your appeal how best to outline your concerns. In the meantime I'd explore EHCP.

b) send DD to a small private nursery while investigating EHCP.

Children are often more resilient than we think and it might be that your DD will settle in well at her allocated school and flourish there.

A head has no autonomy for reception places. They have to follow their admissions policy, ie, rank applicants according to the admissions criteria. If they don’t, they leave themselves wide open in future appeals. Accept the place she’s been given and work with the school. They can judge whether her special educational needs are significant enough for an EHCP.

You are out of catchment and there was no error on the LA'a part. I agree it's not up to the Beas to decide how many they can take otherwise you could end up with favouritism/bias/possibly even bribery to get children into school.

Sounds like you'll just need to accept the place you've been given

You'd be better off moving into catchment and trying to move her in a year or two

*Head