What happen in a zoom first appeal hearing- Admission Authority Presenting their case

[Mara10]

Hi,
I hope some one can help me. My appeal hearing is going to be conducted via zoom and is divided in two sessions. First session is the Admission Authority presenting their case as to why there are no school places available for my child in her year group. A second session will be our specific case.

The Admission Authority case is based on: 1) the school is oversubscribed (although they have already opened more places this year), 2) there are still places available in other 3 alternative schools and 3) they have a significantly high proportion of students that have additional educational needs.

I was wondering if as parent we have the right to ask any question to the Admission authority/school representative or is just the panel that can do the questions?

If Im allowed to ask questions, What type of questions I can ask? it is ok to ask if they have had accidents in the corridors the last 3 years for example? or why even as an oversubscribed school is still the best school in the area?

Or would be better be less confrontational/more passive during the first session?

Thank you.

Yes, you should absolutely get the chance to ask questions. Is it a grouped appeals or just you? Zoom does make this all a bit harder, but you should get the chance to ask.

You are trying, at this stage, to whittle away at the idea that they cannot cope with another pupil, that the detriment to them of taking another child is not as big as they claim. So questions such as have there been any accidents would be fine, if part of their case is that corridors are narrow and overcrowded, for example. Ask if any other years are over PAN and how they are organised, to try and show that it is possible to cope with another pupil even though there aren't enough seats/PCs/bunsen burners or whatever they claim!

Thank you@PatriciaHolm . The first session all the parents appealing will be present, but during the second session (next day) will be only us and the panel and probably someone from the school or the Authority Admission.

The school and the Authority admission had sent us a document with the PAN and they have had years over PAN, although the last academic year they have admitted only 2 above PAN. They had also a bulge year the previous academic year. This is still the best school in the area and the most popular choice.

They are also saying the pressure on the workload of teachers, time of teacher per student and also teachers go to teach in the sixth form (that is located in a different campus). Could I ask how many teachers do that and how many days a week?

Mara10 you can ask what you like, but don't assume the presenting officer will have the information to hand, or that the panel will expect them to. They are not a walking database.

And do think about whether your questions are reasonable. For example, are you really suggesting that unless a school can prove there have been accidents in the corridor, they can't claim to be overcrowded? Remember that schools are funded on a per-pupil basis, so it is in their interests to fill to capacity. If the school has capacity for x students, and they have already admitted more than that, the panel are likely to accept their word that they don't have space for more, unless there have been recent building works or another reason to believe capacity has increased.

I suggest you concentrate more energy on building up your own case for part 2 of the hearing.

Just to add, if your deadline for submitting evidence has not passed, and if you really want to make those things part of your case, then you should submit them as open questions beforehand, so that the presenting officer can prepare in advance.

Remember it is not a court of law - the case will be decided on the balance of probabilities not "beyond reasonable doubt" so absolute proof is not required for statements on either side.

the second session (next day) will be only us and the panel and probably someone from the school or the Authority Admission

It isn't just probably - the second session will definitely include someone representing the admission authority.

Could I ask how many teachers do that and how many days a week?

You can ask anything you want. Since they have made that part of their case, they ought to be able to answer this question.

When representing the Admission Authority it is difficult to know every aspect of school life. The school should have someone present who will know the details regarding space in labs, changing areas and corridors etc. An officer of the LA would struggle with this level
of detail as well as teaching timetables at the 6th form. The LA will have numbers on roll, looked after/priority admissions and SEND numbers which affect numbers on roll etc.

What would you plan to do with the information about how many teachers also teach on the sixth form site? It seems pretty irrelevant to me. It's only in their case as an example of the pressures on their staff. I don't see how the exact numbers make a difference to your case. Their point is that their staff are already working up to and probably beyond their directed hours, and so the problem is not just one of space, but of workload.

Agree with lanthanum. Teachers who travel between sites either need to do it in their break/lunch time (so it is detrimental to their wellbeing) or during time when they would be teaching or planning lessons (so it is detrimental to the efficiency of education). It is a pressure that other schools in the area may not face, so is legitimately included, whether or not exact numbers are used. It is unlikely that the staffing plan for September has been finalised yet, so even if they gave numbers for this year, next year could be different.

I agree with posts above. I didn’t actually finish my original point. The numbers in other years might be above PAN for the reasons I stated. The school is directed to admit some DC.

You can ask any generic questions you like, but keep anything specific to your child until your 121.
our panel were really nice, remember they aren’t on anyones side, and personably not local.
goos luck