Quick question about appeal tomorrow!

[LucasNorthCanSpookMeAnytime]

The school we're appealing for offers a GCSE that my DD needs and her allocated school doesn't offer it. Do I only need to demonstrate that the allocated school doesn't offer it or would I also need to show that no other nearby school offers it either? Our preferred school is the only one we're appealing to but I'm wondering if the panel could ask "are there no other schools that offer this subject, even if your allocated one doesn't?" TIA.

I think they are more likely to wonder why your DD needs a specific GCSE as most schools offer a suitable spectrum of GCSEs to cover nearly all courses and careers. A level choices would be far more critical. I would consider making sure you have a watertight reason why you want a specific GCSE when your child is only 11.

The panel is only hearing the appeal for your preferred school. They will have little interest in knowing why you have not applied elsewhere.

In two appeals at two different schools I have heard the panel question why parents have not applied to other schools similar distances away. I think they could well ask why you have not explored the option, for example if it is ICT GCSE which is generally offered at bigger schools but sometimes not at smaller schools due to timetabling & staffing constraints. I would be prepared for this question.

Thanks, both of you.

The panel should only be looking at the offered school and the appeal school so I wouldn't mention other schools unless the panel asks.

The panel is likely to have done it's research on if the GCSE is offered elsewhere. It is likely to be a weak case though as GCSE offerings can change with little notice - we've dropped two this year due to lack of demand.

Is it really not advisable to mention any other schools other than the one you are appealing for and the allocated school? We got our second preference school and in my appeal next week and I was planning on explaining why we hadn't also appealed for our fourth preference school, as this shares a lot of characteristics with the school we are appealing for. I thought the panel might wonder why, if those characteristics are so important to us, why we didn't place the 4th school higher up our list and/ or we aren't also appealing there....

The panel is only taking into consideration issues that relate to the school appealed for, so whether you appealed or did not appeal for another similar school is not material to the case for the appealed for school.
The panel could well ask whether there are other schools in the area so that they get a understanding of the local geography and know what schools are nearer to your home. If the fourth preference is nearer to your home, then the best answer is then to say that this school was one of your preferences but not you first preference, which is what this appeal s about. The panel need to know no more than that.

Thanks for the advice. The fourth preference school is further away than the school we are appealing for and very, very few children from our town attend it. And that is why we aren't appealing for that one. I guess I could just wait for them to ask me about it rather than offer them a justification unprompted...

That's the approach I would recommend. Concentrate on the appeal school and the allocated school. Don't mention other schools unless the panel asks you about them. They aren't relevant.

Well, the admission authority brought up the allocated school lots of times when it suited them whilst questioning me but when I brought it up they replied "oh well we can't comment on the other school..."