home education has meant our child is not able to access secondary school

[woodlandwonder]

I am wondering whether there is anyone who has had a similar situation happen. We are in Manchester and the admission criteria for oversubscription places anyone at a state funded primary school and academy before anyone else. This has meant that our home educated daughter has not got in, is 87th on the waiting list and on appeal we have lost. We are awaiting their reasons. Despite the admissions code stating they are not allowed to disadvantage a social group our appeal has failed. We are considering ombudsperson, judicial review etc. Has anyone done this? Children at independent schools are also caught by this criteria.

Has she been denied a place full stop or just denied a place at the school you want?

What is the full list of criteria? Are you in catchment for the school? I'm guessing at 87th that there must some other criteria you're not meeting other than not attending a state primary school.

For us feeder school is way down the list below catchment area so, if you go to the feeder school but don't live in ctachment then you'll be below a home schooled child in catchment.

Are you in the catchment area for a particular school or is she 87th on the list for any secondary place?

Did you apply for a place in the main admissions timeframe ? Certainly it can also affect independent school children if they operate a feeder policy.

So no place in any school or no place in your chosen schools?

Quick google shows manchester secondary criteria are:
1 looked after children
2 medical/social need - backed up with medical evidence
3 sibling in the school
4 attends manchester la/academy primary school
5 everyone else

Then within each of those categories once the PAN is reached then distance is used.

So, someone moving to manchester with a child at say a Leeds primary school would be 5th

Well I'm pretty sure they have to find you a place somewhere.

We homeschool one of our children, and we know that means we have opted out of things that are aimed at those who are state schooled. That's just common sense.

What is it that you feel is so unfair that you are appealing? You have not been denied the option of a secondary state school, it just may not be the one you'd like, same as for all other parents in the state system.

There are also 11 schools with places according to the Manchester.gov.uk website. Looks like as in most areas there are over subscribed popular schools.

we are within catchment. the criteria are: 1st looked after children, 2nd medical reasons, 3rd siblings already at the school, 4th manchester state primary, 5th others. She is 87th at this particular school but we would have the same problem with the other nearest co-ed, non faith school. We have been offered a school which is single sex and 4 miles away. We applied on time. There is no feeder school policy in place.

I would just like equality for all children who live in Manchester regardless of their previous educational choices. She has lived all her life here. She would be in her local community.

For in term applications someone from Leeds would jump ahead of our daughter. For the waiting list anyone who lives on the other side of Manchester is ahead of her too.

Tiggytape we thought the same as you quoting both 1.9 and 1.8 of the admissions code. We have been told that her appeal was refused yesterday with written reasons to follow.

You should refer this to the LGO - it is possible they will find these criteria illegal. However they could then only ask Manchester to change their criteria for next year. They could not ask them to disregard this as a criteria and rerun the process for this year.

Am not sure what you mean by you are in catchment. There is no such thing as catchment in your case. And why would someone from a Leeds school be above you if like you they hadn't attended a Manchester school?

These are not named feeder schools

Not sure that is the case. I think most of the secondaries have specific feeder primaries, and when 'it says at a primary' it means the particular schools linked to each secondary rather than a general any primary.

The trouble is there are not enough places! Can you carry on with home ed and wait for a place to come up at some point in Y7/8? Is she really keen to go to school now or not bothered? Have some more years of freedom if you can! (Or buy 2 years at an independent school?)

Why don't you put your child in a manchester primary for the last few weeks of term and see if it bumps your child up a waiting list. SATs are over and your daughter would have six weeks of fun. Having her in a manchester primary school would increase her chances of getting a place at a school acceptable to you. Are you on a continued interest lists for other schools?

Surely Manchester have to find her a secondary school of some description even if you hate the school.

We have been offered a school which is single sex and 4 miles away So the LA do have places for your dc but not at a school of your choice ? How many schools did you name on your application ?

I thought the local authority had a legal obligation to find a child a school place. Perhaps I am wrong. But I'd be very surprised indeed if your child had no place in any school.

IIRC, one of the London boroughs also does this.

OP's DD has been offered a place, just not at first preference. Lots of parents find themselves in this situation.

Challenging the specificity of naming every school in the borough will be worth doing, as it may make a difference to future cohorts.

It's not clear, from what OP has written is whether her DC would have received an offer at this school even had she been in category 4. To be 87th on the waiting list suggests that they do not live particularly close to the school and/or not every child in category 4 received an offer anyhow.

Yes our child would have got an offer if she was in category 4. She is well within the catchment area the only reason is that she is not currently in a Manchester state school. We know someone who is 25th on the waiting list and nearly double the distance away. We are 1.3 miles away whereas they are over 2 miles away.

Has anyone gone through the ombudsperson or judicial review?

Sorry if I am not messaging correctly I am new to this. A friend suggested that mumsnet might prove really helpful.

When I say catchment area I mean that if she had been in category 4, where they look at distance from home to school, she would have been close enough to have got in.

I will look at whether getting her in any school for the next few weeks would make a difference. It is an interesting idea and she would then perhaps move to the top of the waiting list. I know someone who has moved just last week closer and now has a place.

The options for another secondary school are very far away from us with no direct buses. As someone suggested we would probably continue home education as this has been amazing for her but I feel that as she enters her teens meeting more of her peers is important. She is very independent and self-motivated, a little bookish (we need to visit the library twice a week to keep her stocked up) and I worry about her being isolated as a lot of home edders stop at secondary.

"We have been offered a school which is single sex and 4 miles away."

Ah, so you have been offered a place? You just don't like it? Join the club. You are not special.

4 miles is nothing for secondary, loads of students have double that distance to their nearest one. I'd accept the place and stay on the waiting list for the one you want.

What is the Home Ed scene like in Manchester? have you tried socialising through He groups? I'm sure there is a yahoo mailing list for Manchester. Would she be interested in Guides / Scouts? Is she musical?

of course, I hope you get into the school if that's what you want for her, and I do think the Lea are discriminating, which shouldn't be allowed? Have you tried involving the MP? Some of the Home Ed groups on facebook have some people who are very clued up on the legal side and might give good advice.