Calling all secondary schools appeals experts - help!

[Feelingfighty]

We have our meeting next week and are appealing on grounds of social needs. How do we prove to the panel that the pastoral care offered at our preferred school is better than that at our offered school? Thanks.

I don't think anyone can really advise on this unless you explain your reasons for thinking this. Your problem is that the LA will say that all local schools have got pastoral care organised, and you need to demonstrate why your dc has to go to this particular school and no other.

You need to look for features at the appealed-for school that will benefit your DC. You are not appealing against the currently allocated school, but for the one you want, so you need to stress the benefits at that one.

If there is need for specific pastoral services, have you got evidence of the need lined up (HCP, previous school, SS ?) and you will also ave to show why that need can only be met, or met in a vastly superior way, by the appealed-for school.

Thank you - what do the acronyms mean, AuntieStella ?

We have a good letter from the Head but I am trying (and struggling) to find differentials. Our preferred school best suits our child's low self esteem/confident nature, plus his best friend is in the year above. He is desperate to go there.

What is the pastoral system at the new school. Are there any specific policies or things like a Bullying alert phone line? Does he have any kind of diagnosis? What does the head teachers letter say - how specifically does the school you are appealing for meet the needs the Head raises in his letter?
Does the appealed for school offer social groups, extra support, monitoring systems? Even things like a House system could be relevant.
If you don't know, searching the website or even a phone all to the school should give you answers.

Have you spoken to the SENCO at the new school?
HCP means health care professional.
SS is social services.

It really does depend on the pastoral services are at the school you are appealing for. If (as your last post suggests) there is nothing to differentiate the provision at the appeal school and the provision at the allocated school, you are unlikely to get very far at appeal. Many children are unconfident and appeal panels will generally take the view that any school should be able to offer appropriate support. Likewise, many children want to go to secondary school with a particular friend or friends but, in an oversubscribed system, schools can not always accommodate this.

If, on the other hand, your child's confidence and self-esteem issues are such that he is receiving help from health care professionals, and they can provide evidence that in their professional judgement there are aspects of the provision at the appeal school that make it the best one for your child, then that would carry rather more weight at appeal. Whether you would win the appeal would depend in part on the strength of the school's case not to admit.

Thank you all again. We will inspect things closely and see what can be identified. Our preferred school does send the Y7's on a 4 day residential in the first term which the offered school doesn't - good for team/confidence building, etc. Would this hold much water?

I don't think it would. You need to consider how the systems are different at the school you want. At the moment it just sounds like you'd rather have this school (for no clear reason) and he wants to go where his friend is.

I doubt one 4-day trip would be a good enough argument (what if your DC was ill and missed it or the centre had to cancel or something?)

You could however use it as evidence of a wider approach that would benefit DS, but I think you'd need to expand on it quite a lot.

You could try to argue that the residential trip indicates that the appeal school is better at settling-in new pupils, but even that seems rather a stretch - it may be that the allocated school has arrangements that are different but in their own way just as good. Anyway, I doubt that one residential trip will be enough to clinch an appeal for you.

OP - In your second post you say Our preferred school best suits our child's low self esteem/confident nature

If you truly believe this, then can you not pinpoint the reasons why you think this, and use as examples in your appeal?