DD with mobility issues has been offered school with no lift!

[Theycallmepheobe]

DD has mobility issues as a result of a stroke when she was little. Her first choice school have been doing lots of transition work with her and in past years all children from the village have got in ok, so we just assumed it would be ok. She’s really upset. The third choice school (where she has a place) had little interest in talking to me about adjustments and have not been that helpful. In total contrast to the first school who have been fantastic. We are 28th on the list for her preferred school - not based in London or in an area where lots of children go to private school. Is there hope? We will appeal as well and her current school have been very supportive, but I’m hopeful she might get in anyway. In retrospect we should have applied via the special needs process but she gets on mainstream primary school without much support (but there are no steps).

I hope someone more knowledgeable will be along. Can you appeal?

Did you provide any information about her mobility needs with your schools application ?

National offer day was only on Thursday and a lot of schools will not have been working on full capacity on Thursday and Friday because of the weather so could it be that they haven’t had a chance to talk to you properly about your dd’s additional needs?

It must have been such a shock for her not to get a place when historically everyone has got one.

Thank you. We are going to appeal, but this could take some time and mean she has to live with uncertainty for a while, while all her friends know where they are going. I’m hoping the waiting list moves quickly!

Yes you absolutely should have applied under at least the exception/medical criteria. Does she have an EHCP?
If not, you'll need to appeal. Why did you put that school on your list?

And yes, you should appeal (nothing to loose) but if you didn't provide the information then that may harm your chances of success (maybe less so at secondary level than at primary as no infant class size to worry about). Do you have a letter from her doctor/consultant outlining her needs and limitations? If not, get one as a matter of urgency. If she can't manage steps, or not more than a couple, or needs a lift or couldnt physically manage a lot of walking then get them to spell it out.

Unfortunately it sounds as if you haven't used the correct application process.
You will have to appeal, but you can't blame the Education authority or council (whoever allocates school places these days) for not taking into account your dd's mobility requirements if they didn't know about them.

Yes I did put this in the application, but was told by the admissions office that they don’t take this into account! I’ve spoken to the admissions depts for her catchment (offered) school and her preferred school (we are just over the border of the catchment area) and both said there was nothing we could do but appeal.

She doesn’t have an EHCP so when I looked at it initially it looked like we couldn’t apply under the sen route. She doesn’t have any adjustments at school and gets on ok. She will just struggle going up and down steps with lots of other children.

We did apply under the exceptional grounds unsuccessfully so we're having to go to appeal. I don't think the waiting lists are starting until 29th March so there won't be movement until then.

OK it's good you provided it - that leaves open the arguement that they should have considered it as a possibility.

Hopefully one of the admissions experts that haunt these boards will be along to advise you soon. In the meantime it would be good to know which admission category your dd was placed in. Do you know? Was it just down to distance that she didn't get in?

We spoke to the offered school before applying. I will talk to them again once waiting list places have been offered. But they didn’t fill me with confidence.

I think I would have completed the adjustments section by stating " no requirement to go up and down steps".
However, you need to get on with the appeal process asap.
You should get in touch with your MP asap. They should be able to put you in touch with someone who can help you with the appeal.

Yes it was all down to distance. Someone one street away got in but we were just a bit further away. They had lots of applications this year, as the school is rapidly improving from being in special measures a few years ago. I will be able to get a supporting medical statement from her Physio and hopefully her consultant.

Her current school have said they will help and her preferred school are also going to phone school admissions to try and find out some more info.

Sorry to hear that grocklebocs.

I don't think you have any grounds for an appeal as the school has followed it's admission criteria. Unless you have a statement/EHCP then you can't apply or appeal under the SEN rule.

I really don't know why there is a bit to add comments on application forms as it gives parent's false hope that their opinion count.

You could start the EHCP request as it has to be completed in under 26 weeks so you'd then go to the top of the waiting list

Do let the school know, as they may be able to make accommodations. My school doesn't have a lift either, but the children with wheelchairs or sticks are only scheduled rooms on the ground floor. If you let them know now, they can take account of it in timetabling.

A reasonable adjustment doesn’t necessarily mean having a lift in the building. It might mean only using the stairs before or after the other students have, always being accompanied, having her classes timetabled for downstairs classrooms etc. or any combination of these. Having said that it’s definitely worth appealing.

You may well be at or near the top of the waiting list when it starts then :) And hopefully that will get you a place. Your notice of appeal needs to in by 29th though so do that.
MyBoysAndI is wrong about grounds for appeal. Certainly at anything above KS1. You just have to show that dd will suffer more by not having a place than the school will suffer by admitting her.
However you have to appeal for the school you want rather than against the school you've got.

You don’t need “grounds to appeal”. You can appeal to any school on your list that you didn’t get.

Hopefully admissions, tiggy or prh or one of the other experts will be along soon to advise you.

Don’t castigate OP for not using the medical/social category - not every LEA has one. Oddly, really, the admissions process doesn’t pay attention to what’s in the “other information” box, if there’s no med-doc category.

OP - assemble evidence of your daughter's mobility issues, ideally with a letter from her consultant (if she has one) saying that she needs a school with a lift, namely your preferred school. Also look for other evidence that they’re better placed/more willing to make adjustments; if you haven’t already, have an email conversation with them about how they would make the necessary adjustments. You could ask them to confirm your understanding of what they told you on your visit.

Generally, appeals are about the preferred school, not about the unsuitability of the one offered, but if things are as clear-cut as you suggest here I’d be surprised if you lost your appeal.

You can appeal for any school, for any reason, once per admission cycle. You have strong grounds, but you really need some medical evidence that says your chosen school is the only suitable school to seal it.

Has your first choice School got a lift?