School Application Imminent! Do I need a doctors letter for my DS?

[NikkiP456]

Hi, I am applying for DS's school place at the end of the year. It is a very popular school and out of catchment siblings (DD is in yr1 but we are out of catchment) have been turned down at appeal for the first time recently.

I feel my son has a 'special need' to go to this school with DD as last year he was very poorly which has left his torso substancially scarred, and I am worryied about the hightened possibility of bullying at PE and swimming at another school.

Does anyone think I have would have a higher chance of getting a place for him at our preffered school if I went to the doctor and got a letter regarding his scarring and if this comes under the category medical or social reasons on the application???

I would be grateful if anyone has any experience in this issue!! Thanks!

My experience comes through sitting on a school admissions appeal panel. It's late so I'll try to be brief -

What are the school's admissions criteria? Make sure that your application is very clear about which heading of the admissions criteria you're applying under.

In our LEA, a doctor's letter explaining why a child needed to attend a particular school would be considered, but it wouldn't necessarily win the child a place. For example, our LEA would expect your doctor's letter to explain why your preferred school could cater for your child's needs in a way that another school couldn't: why (for example) do you think your child would be less at risk of bullying in your preferred school than in any other?

HTH

We appealed earlier this year for disabled dd to go to out-of-catchment secondary school.

Basically, we had to prove (through doctors' letters etc) why the catchment school would be bad for and why the school we wanted was the only one that would do (they of course wanted to fob us off with some other school, miles away, with a grotty track record).

In your case, I think it would be difficult to prove that he would be bullied at one school and not another, particularly as LEAs tend not to like see criticism of their schools in applications. What I would do instead would be to focus on the emotional and social support that your dd would provide for him in his fragile state.

That is what you ask your GP to put in his letter: ds is emotionally fragile due to scarring, and needs the support of having his sister in the same school. (if any of his friends are going, mention that too). Apply under social and medical and attach the letter.

We used this as part of our appeal: that dd is sensitive due to an invisible disability and it would help her to go to the school her best friend is going to.

Thank you so much for your good advice . I guess the route now is to ring/book to see the GP and ask him for a letter regarding DS needing support of DD/friends at the school. Do you know if there is a charge for this.

Also Cory, even though you send all this info with your application, you were still turned down and had to appeal?? We are similar to you - only live 100yards from catchment (0.5miles from school)! second choice school we need to drive to!

Thanks again for advice, anymore advice you have will be greatly recieved!

You're welcome!

Can't add much more except to say that schools have to abide by their published admissions criteria because, if they make an exception for one child, other families may then appeal on the grounds that an exception ought to be made for them too.

By all means mention that your preferred school is also your closest one but, again, this probably won't be enough on its own to get you a place. Lots of schools here are so over-subscribed that the farthest home-to-school distance on which places are awarded is about 200m, which means that there are dozens of children for whom it is the nearest school who still don't get a place.

Cory's advice seems excellent to me.

I have just spoken to our GP and he is going to write us a letter to go with the application .

Fingers crossed eh.

Thanks again!

NikkiP456 on Mon 15-Sep-08 10:07:29

"Also Cory, even though you send all this info with your application, you were still turned down and had to appeal?? We are similar to you - only live 100yards from catchment (0.5miles from school)! second choice school we need to drive to! "

Errr, no. We were turned down because we failed to include the relevant doctors' letters in our application- so they had to go in the appeal instead

Oh I see!!! Oops! Thanks for your advice..... I'm hoping it helps us with our case!

Hi I just wanted to thank cory and madbandanddangeroustoknow for their excellent advice in September.....I have just found out that my DD has been offered a place at DS's school today!!!! We are over the moon!! Thank you so much!

Oooh, congratulations! Excellent news!