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Secondary education

Anyone else get NO OFFER?!

67 replies

cocoloco11 · 01/03/2019 17:37

Anyone else didn’t get any offer at all and been told to wait till the second round?!

OP posts:
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Lougle · 02/03/2019 09:03

Yes you have, runwithme.

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runwithme · 02/03/2019 08:54

@prh47bridge

Have I tagged PRH right?

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Dothehappydance · 02/03/2019 08:52

Thanks Lougle if it is right then so many children will have had places denied further down the system.

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Dothehappydance · 02/03/2019 08:48

If this turns out to be the case then the fallout from this is going to be huge as so many children have been effected.

I really want to cry. (And I have a school place)

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Lougle · 02/03/2019 08:40

Yes, the LA get into very difficult waters when they make mistakes that affect large numbers of applicants. If they were to remove places from the children who had been offered the places in error, that would disadvantage them, because the schools they would have correctly been placed in have now been allocated to other children. So, as prh says, the Admissions Code only allows mistakes to be rectified 'quickly'. Under the old Code, case law held 'quickly' to be within 3 days. There hasn't been anything to replace that yet under the new code, so there is no concrete guidance, but 3 days is likely to be reasonable.

Then, in order to sort out the mess, the LA would have to re-rank every child by category and distance, not taking into account which LA they fall into. That would give them the list of children who have been wrongly denied a place.

However, it will also depend on how many parents appeal the decision. The panel can't just admit them all, with no regard for safety or the efficient teaching of the existing pupils. They have to make a sensible decision about how many children can reasonably be admitted, then which children should be admitted.

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ShaggyRug · 02/03/2019 08:30

@flippyfloppy not sure on the app as can’t find it myself. I use safari in my phone so either that way or on desktop should give you the dots.

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DoctorDread · 02/03/2019 08:20

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DoctorDread · 02/03/2019 08:20

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DoctorDread · 02/03/2019 08:19

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ElenadeClermont · 02/03/2019 08:16

Keeping my fingers crossed for all of you.
Are you in the Boro @flippyfloppy?

Dad of two, Dale Kenvyn said he was shocked to discover his daughter Drew was one of 100 youngsters to miss out when Middlesbrough Council broke the news on Friday that the town’s secondary schools were completely full as a result of 'unprecedented demand'.

“We’ve been informed today that they’re not going to give us any school,” said the 30-year-old.
//www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/17470593.familys-anger-after-council-denies-girl-ten-place-at-school/

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flippyfloppy · 02/03/2019 07:40

Thanks @ShaggyRug I'm on my mobile app and can't see three dots 🤔 do I need to be on desktop?

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ShaggyRug · 02/03/2019 07:32

On Prh’s post click the 3 dots and it should give you the option of sending a PM

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flippyfloppy · 02/03/2019 07:30

Thank you @prh47bridge, would love to pm you if that's ok.... daft question but how do I PM you?

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HotpotLawyer · 02/03/2019 01:48

Thanks prh47bridge, I knew you would know what to cite!

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prh47bridge · 01/03/2019 23:47

Answering the call from HotpotLawyer!

we are on the border of 3 LA's so two closest schools are in different LA to where we are and we have been told preference given to pupils within authority.

As others have said, this is illegal. They can have a formal priority area, the boundary of which coincides with the LA. But, if they do not have that and decide admissions based on distance, they absolutely cannot prioritise pupils with the LA. Complain. Loudly. If they say they are acting legally, mention the Greenwich judgement (this was the court case which established that LAs cannot prioritise pupils from within their own area). If they continue to resist, tell them that you will refer the matter to the Local Government Ombudsman. And definitely appeal, although that really shouldn't be necessary. From the information you've posted it sounds like they have made a clear mistake which they should correct without going to appeal.

If you want to PM me the name of the schools and LA involved before you complain I will be happy to take a look and make sure you aren't missing anything.

hypothetically if the over subscription criteria has been applied wrong, this is likely to affect more than just flippy, (and then the downward ripple effect as well) can offers of places be withdrawn to those who otherwise wouldn't have got in?

Offers can only be withdrawn if they do it very quickly. There is no recent case law on this but it is generally accepted that they have to withdraw offers made in error within 3 days. If they don't withdraw the offers and the school really can't cope with the additional pupils who should have been admitted, their most likely way forward is to make the affected parents appeal. The appeal panel will then have to figure out how many the school can cope with and which children are most deserving of places.

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Zinnia · 01/03/2019 23:31

So I gather there are a fair few people near me (N London) who haven't got places because they put down 6 completely unrealistic schools. They will definitely get one eventually as there are undersubscribed schools in the area, but if any of them had put down our local, well-rated comp (which is oversubscribed but not ludicrously so) they'd have been absolutely fine.

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Dothehappydance · 01/03/2019 23:13

Lougle hypothetically if the over subscription criteria has been applied wrong, this is likely to affect more than just flippy, (and then the downward ripple effect as well) can offers of places be withdrawn to those who otherwise wouldn't have got in?

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Zinnia · 01/03/2019 22:52

That Camden case was in 2004, it's literally a historic case.

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Lougle · 01/03/2019 22:44

@BHStowel, if the Camden has gone through the approved process of advertising its proposed change in admissions criteria to prioritise Camden pupils, then published the new criteria in accordance with approved timescales, that is absolutely fine. Islington applicants may feel upset, but they have followed due process.

However, if @flippyfloppy has applied to a school that has no published priority for applicants in the neighbouring LA, and has applied according to the oversubscription criteria, with the expectation that her application would be dealt with fairly according to that criteria, then she has been placed at a disadvantage if it has been downgraded because it is 'out of borough'.

Therefore, she should appeal, on the basis that her application has not been dealt with according to the admissions criteria, which has cost her child a place.

@flippyfloppy you must telephone the LA on Monday to alert them to their mistake and ask them to rectify it. Ask the person you speak to for their name and their email address. Follow this up with an email, outlining your conversation and confirming that you are requesting that they rectify their mistake without you having to take it to appeal, but that you will appeal if they are unwilling to do so.

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hoxtonbabe · 01/03/2019 22:37

My son is in bits he didn’t get any schools we named and the school the LA has offered doesn’t even have sets which he needs/wants as he’s very good in maths and in an accelerated class at primary. Just today I was at the school having a meeting with head about him saying he’s getting frustrated with school partly because he likes things just so, like everyone to be quiet, listening to the teacher.. the school they have picked is so not like that. I’m at a total loss as to what to do. The annoying part is his 3rd choice school he was in the top band but clearly there were many more top band boys that was closer. I want to appeal but I don’t even know where to start

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BHStowel · 01/03/2019 22:15
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flippyfloppy · 01/03/2019 22:12

Thank you @Dothehappydance got nothing to lose xx

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Dothehappydance · 01/03/2019 22:11

I would flag it up Monday.

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flippyfloppy · 01/03/2019 22:02

@Lougle one more question do we have to wait until appeal to raise this or is it worth me emailing admissions of our LA and the schools LA to flag it ahead of the potential recallocation at the end of month? TIA

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flippyfloppy · 01/03/2019 22:00

Thanks for your comments once again everyone. @Lougle I believe if it was applied fairly we would have got a place although I realise this will need to be proved. The man on the admissions telephone line today said that people 4miles away had been given a place but that is because they pay their council tax there!!! I don't think this happened in previous years as it is common for people in our street to go to the school.

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