Secondary admission appeal help please

[Parentingfrontline]

Having a difficult time as we’ve been allocated our 4th choice secondary. DS is smart (greater depth across the board) but sensitive & very anxious about going there - for valid reasons - as are we. While we try to sell him on the allocated school I’m quietly scrambling to appeal for our 1st choice (hugely oversubscribed).

Really hoping for input from people with appeal experience - stressful, uncharted territory for us.

We have 4 main questions.

1. Is academic provision really an appeal-worthy argument?

1. Is our child’s fear and anxiety over behaviour at the allocated school something we can mention, given we can’t be too negative towards the allocated school?

1. Is the fact that the preferred school has streaming (and the allocated school doesn’t) grounds for appeal?

1. Is a headteacher’s letter acceptable evidence when there’s been no third party / agency contact?

Headteacher is supportive and will write in support of our appeal on:

Wellbeing
DS on record for anxiety experienced historically at school, which required pastoral support. We support at home and it’s improved over time & with the (mostly) safe/ supportive environment he gets at primary school. So no 3rd party / agency evidence apart from school records. The school we’re appealing for has excellent pastoral care.
We’ve also had an awful family bereavement in last six months, again requiring strong pastoral provision at secondary.

Academic provision
DS is history obsessed and our first choice has a great history dept plus History Club.

Is it worth showing his work & free time research to support this?
There are other academic opportunities at the sch we’re appealing for, for children who excel - would be a great fit - but I feel mentioning at appeal may not come off well (don’t want to seem presumptuous!) How cautious should I be?

Behaviour expectations
A calm environment with clear behaviour boundaries such as the school we’re appealing for is necessary for him to feel safe and learn. DS has a clear sense of right and wrong and struggles with the chaos of a “relaxed” approach to discipline as taken by the allocated school.
Evidence- I have emails sent to school about DS’s discomfort when faced with disruption / behaviour issues (thankfully few at our primary). Hope this is the kind of thing that carries weight?

I know we can’t be negative about the allocated school but one of the reasons we’re appealing is DS’s fear of what he knows happened there (unfortunately he knows about a stabbing incident, has witnessed inappropriate behaviour from pupils’ of allocated school and is frightened). Unsure whether to mention at all?

Streaming
He’s spent most of his primary career partnering with children in his class with little English or additional learning needs — has great empathy and social awareness but frustrated after 6 years as now desperately wants to learn at his own level without having to help the teachers teach. The school we’re appealing for does rigorous setting. The allocated school no setting at all, with a huge spectrum of abilities (biggest school in the area).

Im guessing streaming vs no streaming won’t carry weight as an argument, as all schools should cater for able learners?

Thanks for helping.

We had similar last year when a member of the SLT told us they had plenty of space to accommodate additional pupils!

Yep, I've had that too! Makes for a short day ;-)

I've had one do it very deliberately, in order to allow a set of appellants in that the LA wouldn't let them go over PAN for (school was LA controlled at the time) - the appeallants were all a specific disadvantaged group and the school wanted them. Once the school says "there would no detriment to having another 3 pupils..." it's day over ....

This was deliberate too, part of a skirmish (I suspect) between the school and LEA.

We’ve also had an awful family bereavement in last six months, again requiring strong pastoral provision at secondary.

I'm not sure if anyone else has picked up on this, but this may be worth bringing up. Sometimes schools run specific programs/have specific support for students who have experienced bereavement or other, similar traumatic experiences e.g. bushcraft groups etc.

If you can point to something specific the school can offer to help with this then I think it's worth bringing up.

Yes, I saw that, but the potential difficulty here is that all schools will have pastoral provision, so the onus will be on the OP to persuade the panel that there is something about the provision at the preferred school which marks it out as being particularly suitable for their child, and not available at the allocated school.

Just on the waiting list point. We're in that situation now (daughter on waiting lists for 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice schools). Any advice or experience as to typical movements in lists between March and the start of the school term in Sept...or the main causes of movement which may help us with some context. I know waiting lists will vary by school / location.

Thanks in advance.

It’s impossible to say - so much depends on your position on the list, the school and its size. Some schools have a lot of churn between now and September, but others don’t.

One of the key points we're making in appeal is that the more stringent behaviour policy of the appeal-for school better supports our son's anxiety vs the liberal, inclusion focused approach of the allocated school. Understand we cannot be negative about the allocated school: I've found a newspaper article supporting our argument, that doesn't put the allocated school in a good light. Will this be helpful to include given I'm just referencing what's in the public domain? Thanks for further thoughts.

Newspaper articles talking generally about a subject will be given a lot less weight than a professional talking specifically about your son. If you can get a professional to say that, in their opinion, he needs a stringent behaviour policy, that would be much better.

I doubt that arguments about the school’s behaviour policy will fly at appeal. It sounds more like a reason for why you as a parent prefer the school than an argument for why your child needs to attend this school and will be disadvantaged if they don’t. Do you have evidence from (say) a paediatrician to confirm that your child needs to be in a very disciplined environment and so this is the best school for them?

My understanding is no. Remember that a panel member could have children at the allocated school. All your arguments must be why the allocated school is sufficiently better for your son to compensate for the disadvantage of them taking an extra pupil - not ‘why you chose that school in the first place’.

For example, a newspapers article saying ‘allocated school gets low Ofsted grade’ is public domain but cannot be used as an argument for why you should get your preferred school.

If you had specific evidence eg ds spent x years in school A, which used discipline procedure A like allocated school and his medical records say he became a selective mute, whereas when he transferred to school B which, like desired school, uses discipline procedure B and his selective mutism improved, see dated evidence, then that might be different. However, just an opinion from you that he would do better under discipline approach B would not be enough.

Apologies- cross posted with the experts.

The panel can't agree with you that school X is better/has better discipline systems than school y. The official position is that all schools can cater for all children. The newspaper article is not a good source for any argument.

What you would need is a specific piece of evidence (such as a paediatrician letter) which says that your son specifically needs such and such environment.

How do you find out this information about going over PAN for particular schools? I have called the school personally and they advised me to contact the council, I did and they sent me the admissions booklet which gives no information on this. 🙄

You ask the school or the LEA. If they try to fob you off, remind them that under the appeals code they must provide you with any information you reasonably require for your appeal. If they don’t provide it, the panel may well draw an adverse inference from that (and in any case will probably ask at the appeal, so the school can’t hide the information).

Is your child neuro diverse OP?

So much helpful advice here! We are busy acting on it.

Another key question I was hoping for help with - are DS's own feelings on secondary schools (which are rational, clear and valid, based on visits and what DS has seen in the local area) helpful to mention, either in the written appeal or in the hearing? DS has positive feelings about the appeal-for school and also real fears about the allocated school (we are trying to manage and support this). If so I'm guessing it might be better to concentrate on the positives however the fears are really affecting him.

No, don’t waste time talking about feelings. The appeal is about what your child needs, not what they or you feel. The panel knows you would all prefer the appeal school - that’s why you placed it as a higher preference and that’s why you’ve appealed - so you need to focus on need.

The worst thing to do is say something along the lines of “my child will be devastated if they have to attend the allocated school”. That could backfire on you in many ways. Panel members may have children at that school and, besides, it’s your job as a parent to help your child accept that that’s where they’ll be going unless you win the appeal or get another place via a waiting list.

Hello

We've just had our appeal :/

I think the deputy head teacher wanted us, but it's obvs not his choice.

I made the appeal on three grounds. Would like others opinion on whether you think they're convincing arguments to admit my ds

They are:

1. He has been allocated school where 7 boys from his primary school who have bullied him are going. He was seeing a mentor before applications as I saw his academic performance dive and he really didn't want to go into school.

2. My son is creative and loves science. He'd really get lots out of and contribute to the STEAM element of the curriculum. It's only one of two schools locally that emphasize STEAM and not STEM the other being a girls' school.

3. My DS's heritage is mixed race. One part of that is from a BME group that is very under represented in teaching. The school has three members of staff who are from the same background in senior leadership team. Research shows that exact BME representation can affect performance, self esteem and lead to better outcomes for both teachers and students. Also, the school have to pay due regard to those with protected characteristics before and during appeals under the Public Sector Equality Act.

Would really appreciate some thoughts x

It’s impossible to say, as so much depends on the strength of the school’s case for not admitting. They’re not the weakest arguments I’ve encountered but nor are they the strongest. Let’s hope it’s a good sign that you were getting positive vibes from the deputy head.

I'm not sure how helpful a post-appeal analysis will be but, I agree with Panelchair - it will come down to the strength of the school's argument as nothing you have there is super strong, though they are valid points. The bullying point will usually be countered by the argument that all schools have policies to deal with bullying, and the bullies can be put in seperate forms to your son.

Of course I wish the DH had more sway, but alas he does not :/

Thanks both. The bullying thing-.absolutely agree that all schools have this. There was a racial element to some of the bullying. It's difficult for a child to escape an image that has been prescribed by others-it genuinely affected his self esteem. Even if put in separate forms, there's seven of them. They will eventually come face to face. The allocated school isn't terrible, but we genuinely thought the appealed school was more diverse, had a better subject fit and was more nurturing.

I do hear what you say though, I'm not sure how the panel will view those things.

UPDATE: WE WON THE APPEAL 😁

Oh well done, I'm very pleased for you, and your son!