Accepting a school when you're planning to appeal

[Coraldress]

Apologies for starting another thread, ds has been given his second choice school.

I'm not happy about it, but it was the only other realistic possibility. I do hope to get in to his first choice by waiting list or even appeal.

Already people are telling me not to accept the place because it might weaken the appeal if he has an accepted school place.

People on here seem quite knowledgable, I'm guessing that this is terrible advice as we could be offered an even worse school.

Nooo you need to accept the place. If you don't you could end up with another school you want even less, or worse no school at all.

Your guess is right. Accept the place and put your request to stay on the waiting list into writing. Good luck!

Yep. It’s absolutely bloody awful advice!!
Good luck with the appeal.

It's the direct opposite. You must accept the place for two reasons:

1. The LA will have no responsibility for placing your DC at a school of you reject their offered place. They only have to offer one place.

1. The appeal panel will feel like you are trying to force their hand. They will feel that you are manipulating them into giving your DC a place because you will say "He doesn't have any where else to go." Panels don't like that. I used to sit on panels. It isn't a good move.

The LA have the responsibility to offer you one place. That's it. You can take it or leave it but if you leave it they have no obligation to make you a second offer.
Take it and get on waiting lists and appeal if you want to.

Listen to the right people here on MN, there are some very experienced people who advise on here.
I’ve only recently returned to MN having had a 4 year break and it’s so lovely to see familiar names giving out good advice especially with regard to school place applications, they really know what they are talking about .

Yes, it’s terrible advice for the reasons Lougle outlines. No appeal panel likes to feel it’s having a gun held to its head.

Accept the place, if only to be sure that your child has somewhere to go in September.

Please do no listen to well meaning friends. I work in education and can assure you that you must accept the place, of you don't you could find yourself with no school in September.

It will not strengthen your appeal if you decline the place.

Arrrghhh I have done just this already. It wasn't any of my 3 choices or my catchment place & is failing miserably. I know I would not send him come Sept so thought I was actually doing the right thing to reject the offer for anyone elsw ob their waitibg list who did want that place?

What do I do now? I doubt I can retract that decision. I stayed I plan to try for an appeal for out preferred schools & remain/apply for waiting lists & look into am alternative options possibly outside of our current town if need be.

Is that wrong?

Accepting the place will not disadvantage you on the waiting list or at appeal.

Accept the place!

Lemon - it was right in the bigger picture sense of allowing the LA to manage their offers, but wrong in that the LA now dont' need to do anything further for you if they dont' want to (though in practice most will try to offer you a space somewhere, though it may be a worse school / further away than the offer you have already received)

What is your realistic plan for September, though? How are you going to find another school?

Any reviews on Merstham Park secondary school it’s a new school

Thank you for your replies & sorry OP not hijacking.

Well my plan is to have (hopefully) a school better suited than the one allocated one way or another. I am currently looking at all other schools outside of our town & just on the further outskirts of our town that I discounted for other reasons, such as remote location/newer school so not much of a history to go on. Lack of sporting space for 1 in particular so they travel to a sports centre. But I could overlook those over a failing school overall if they have capacity obviously. So first thing Monday I will try to get in as many viable schools waiting lists as possible.

Also will consider private weekly tuition (we have recently joined a tuition centre anyway so that should help slightly in the interim) & home ed for the start of Sept if need be as genuinely the option is just dire.

Merstham is a new free school, I believe. First cohort started last year.

So it depends on how you feel about your DC being the "early adopters" of a new school - it can be brilliant (there's money available, they get a lot of support in the first couple of years, there's a sense of adventure, probably small classes and a certainly small school feel) or not so much (not all free schools go on to achieve what they set out to do, some close after only a few years)

Lemontart25 - As offers only came out today there is a good chance the LA will allow you to retract your rejection if you contact them on Monday. I would strongly recommend doing so. I know you don't want your child to go to the offered school but it gives you a backup plan if everything else fails. And, as others have said on this thread, it makes no difference to your waiting list position or any appeals for your preferred schools.

prh47bridge Thank you, I shall try that first thing Monday. I hope they understand the knee jerk reaction & genuine thought that a poor parent wanting that school would be saved the same fate if I relinquished our place.

I am going to apply for all home ed information also & likely will still choose that option over our allocated school. However as explained at least it will give me choice for a little longer & not be deemed a threat to the appeal panel.

Thanks all & good luck OP with your outcome too.