Help Grammer School offer withdrawn

[AngMumsNe]

Absolutely distraught!! We received a Grammer school offer on the 1st March for DD (this was her first choice) and have today received an email from the LA saying they made an error and the offer has been withdrawn. A letter will follow with more information. Where does this leave us and what should we expect in terms of alternative offers from LA?

The admissions experts will be along in a minute to tell you they can't withdraw 2 weeks after offer and you should fight this.
If you make any phone calls in the meantime, follow them up with email summaries of the conversation.

Have they replaced it with an offer of your next preference school?

Waiting for a formal letter but believe it will be replaced with offer for 2nd choice.

So it was withdrawn 2 weeks after offer?

It used to be that LEAs could withdraw offers up to 3 days in case of error, but since the new Admissions Code changed this has not been tested in court so many authorities are ignoring it. There is no reason to expect it to be different though, and many appeals panels will take this view.

Go back to the LA, and request they reinstate the place on the grounds that they were far too late to withdraw it. Quote LGO case 99C01876, which is the one that originally set the 3 days max for withdrawing an offer.

They may still refuse, if so, appeal, again using that case as part of your grounds.

There was a long thread a couple of years back about a grammar school offer being withdrawn. It didn't turn out well. The offer was made because of a series of clerical errors. The key thing was that the pupil concerned hadn't either reached the pass mark, or there were others with higher marks, but after a huge efforts by the poster in question, in the end the three day withdrawal period was discounted.

I remember that. I think the mother was a lawyer

Hopefully you wil get in on the waiting list if your dd only just missed it op

I would say it depends on the reason it was withdrawn and what they're offering as to whether I'd fight it or not

Thank you all for your comments. The situation as at this morning is that the error was made by the neighbouring CC where the grammar school is and my home CC are blaming them and Beighbiuring CC are not commenting further as they have explained it all in a letter which is due to turn up on my doorstep today.

The appeals process appears terrifying and with a low success rate.

Not sure what to do until we know more. Acceptance date was yesterday which is a worry as is the disadvantage now faced by alternative preferences in mid March.

The key thing was that the pupil concerned hadn't either reached the pass mark, or there were others with higher marks, but after a huge efforts by the poster in question, in the end the three day withdrawal period was discounted

In that particular case the grammar school didn't have a pass mark. Places were awarded to those with the highest scores on test. The poster lost at appeal, which was surprising, and chose not to take it any further despite having counsel's advice that it was an open and shut case which she would win. I understand why she didn't go for judicial review, though, as it would have been expensive if she had lost despite counsel's advice. The huge amount of abuse she was subjected to on here did not help.

Agree with PatriciaHolm. It is too late to withdraw the offer. There is absolutely no reason to believe that the changes to the Admissions Code mean the precedent set by the LGO does not apply. Contact the LA for the grammar school and demand that the place is reinstated, quoting the LGO case mentioned by PatriciaHolm at them. If that fails you should appeal quoting that case.

In parallel with that, I suggest you put pressure on your LA to put you in the position in which you would have been had you not been offered a place at the grammar school. If you can establish which school you should have been offered you have a very good appeal case for that school if the LA refuses to sort it out for you.

Yes, sorry, I didn't fully remember the details, nor did I want to be a Jonah, which is how it came across. I do remember the huge efforts the poster had to put in, even to get to the bottom of why the offer had been made in error. I hope you don't have the same.

Did you formally accept the offer?
I believe that could make a difference.
I could be completely wrong though.

Yes - offer was accepted. We have contacted authority quoting the LGO case asking them to reinstate offer but am expecting to have to go through appeal process as well. We did exceed the minimum score. Will update on progress - thanks for help and advice all

“The huge amount of abuse she was subjected to on here did not help.”

Was it somewhere with an inner and outer catchment and your ds was classified as inner by mistake rather than outer? If so I guess it also depends on whether this error just affects your ds or affects many students. I think those are the key questions to ask. Such a stressful day. Also don't worry about people who say 'well he might have struggled' - the 11 plus is such a poor measure of future achievement. You know your son.

Hello everyone.

This is slightly different than the ongoing thread..

Situation:

We have recently moved to Bexley and are waiting for my son to get a place in a primary school for year 6 (Applied for almost 2 months ago). The waiting list is long and I worry if he might get a place anytime soon.

He has cleared his 11plus and we have applied for grammar schools as well.

My question:

I have heard that if a child is unable to take his SATs in year 6, they are deemed unfit for secondary and their place offered in a grammar school can be withdrawn. Is this correct. I have tried asking the council over phone and email but haven't had a response yet.

I fear that my son might not get a primary school till May and miss out on SATs and eventually his place for grammar school..

Thanks
A very worried mum

@Confooseddotcom I can't believe that is true. However I suggest you start your own thread with a title such as Admissions - can a grammar place be withdrawn if no SATs sat, or something similar. That will attract the right people.