Is it worth paying for an example Appeal letter?

[Mapple]

A simple question really, we are going to appeal the allocation of secondary school for our DS. Lots of helpful advice on Mumsnet — thanks everyone!

Is it worth paying (£99!) for a sample letter and 6 page 'pack' from schooladmissionsappeal.co.uk?

As well as Mumsnet, we have found some great advice on childlawadvice.org.uk (costs £2 to access their advice per section), and a sketchy appeal template here but we would love to see successful real-world examples of how to set out a appeals argument.

— in our case we will be arguing that our DS will benefit from our preferred school due to academic provision that is not present at the allocated school, and a big difference in the behaviour standards and calm learning environment between the schools, which will have an impact on his vulnerabilities (shyness, low self esteem, anxiety and frequent low mental state) particularly following a very recent and traumatic family bereavement

Thanks for your time.

Absolutely not - post on here and you will get very good advice.

The process is designed to be navigated by parents. It isn’t a court of law, and I would be very skeptical of anyone charging (silly) money for example documents.

Do you have specifics about the academic provision, i.e. they offer GCSE Spanish, and he is already learning, they have a coding club and he has been teaching himself at home.

Arguments along the lines of ‘he’s clever and therefore deserves a high performing school’ won’t fly - in the eyes of the panel, all schools are capable of providing a suitable education.

Equally the arguments around his shyness and mental health - are you able to link this to specific things that the school offers (that the offered school does not), and do you have any evidence of these (preferably medical)? The school is likely to argue that it is very common for children to be shy and anxious, and that unfortunately bereavements are not terribly uncommon, and therefore any school would be prepared to support.

Apologies if this is all stuff you know (U recognise you only summarised in your post), but the format of the letter won’t matter at all if the arguments aren’t appropriate/approached in the right way.

Only you can judge whether it’s worth spending the money, but I doubt that a very generic, one size fits all template will add value here. The key to any appeal is highlighting the things your child needs which they’ll get at the preferred school but not at the allocated school, and convincing the panel that any detriment to the school in having to accommodate an additional pupil is outweighed by the detriment to your child if they don’t get a place,

AndEduCated is spot on. The appeal process is designed to be navigated by parents. It’s not a court of law. The panel members will do their best to put parents at their ease. The appeal letter is useful for outlining the main arguments of the appeal, but it’ll be at the hearing that the panel asks questions and tries to fill in any gaps.

Agree with the above. No template is going to add anything that you can't get here, and is more likely to do harm than good in reality as only you know your case and what the key points are. A template is more likely to lead to you leaving things out, I would have thought.

The panel and school will also ask questions, and give you a chance to explain more where relevant.

Many thanks for the advice!

I wasn't expecting any template to work 'out of the box' but it would be useful to know how to frame specific arguments within the specific needs of an appeal, in other words.

I am aware that we need to approach things in this way:

"...the needs of their child are so significant that they override the needs of the school to maintain classes of a particular size. In other words, the problems faced by their child if they do not go to the school outweigh the problems faced by the school if the school has to take an extra child. Arguments should be based on reasons why their child’s needs outweigh the needs of the school to maintain classes of a particular size."

I think I am literally looking for a written example of how a particular appeal point has been made within this very particular framework.

For instance, the only way I can think of to back up the argument below is by comparing school A with school B, but perhaps that comes across as too finger-pointy?!

In our case, we have a child with genuine mental health vulnerabilities beyond the usual 'anxious about a new school' — we will have letters from the school and the schools in-house pastoral support team to evidence this history of vulnerability, dating back to Y1. We have documented instances which have caused issues in the very recent past (low-level in-class bullying and unwanted physical contact as well as more general (often separation) anxiety which has been fairly severe)

Our argument will be that the preferred school has a MUCH more thoroughly implemented behavioural and pastoral environment which our child will need in order to thrive and feel safe and secure within the school routine and environment.

This we can evidence both through the respective school policies, but also by referencing documented bullying and class disruption issues at the currently allocated schools, as well as comparative poll data — but again, Im not sure that using the allocated schools shortcomings as an arguing point is acceptable?

Mind you these are only 'shortcomings' for us and our situation (many parents welcome the more liberal attitude and relaxed environment at our allocated school)...

I don’t think “comparative poll data” will help at all! As you say, you need to show that your child’s need to attend this school (and consequent prejudice (detriment) if they don’t) outweighs the school’s need to abide by its PAN. Poll data gives a generic and possibly unrepresentative picture of the two schools and says nothing about your child.

You need to provide solid evidence of why the preferred school will better cater for your child’s needs. In my view, saying the school has better behaviour policies and pastoral care is too vague; it would be better (and more persuasive) to focus on specific provision which the preferred school can offer and the allocated school cannot. Otherwise, the school is likely to argue that all schools have behaviour policies to deal with bullying and offer pastoral care and can support pupils with anxiety, and the panel may well agree.

OP do you have a connection to the company selling these letters, and are you promoting them?
There is no need to structure the letter in a particular way. You only have to say why you think there is a strong case for them to go to the desired school.

Our argument will be that the preferred school has a MUCH more thoroughly implemented behavioural and pastoral environment which our child will need in order to thrive and feel safe and secure within the school routine and environment.

Surely ALL children need this to thrive?

All schools have behavioral/pastoral policies - just because some are better than others doesn't mean we can all demand our kids to go to the better ones. Jeez.

Absolutely not promoting anyone's site, tbh the site I linked to looks a bit spammy!

@Mapple just a comment.
You say differences in behaviour & calm environment. In our decent area good state school there are classes that are calm & quiet & nerdy. There are classes that are disrupted with due to teacher rapport or small number disruptive kids. My DC have both. Bottom mid sets or

Or certain classes (not forms) are a pain. That's life. But a few vocal parents on social media would have you thinking it's a war zone.
Unless you have proof I don't think you can use that arguement

The thing you really need to pin down is why this school, and why your son (over and above any other child).

The panel aren’t in a position to agree that a school is generally better than another - from their position, all schools are equal in terms of their standard provision. That’s why the advice is to generally pinpoint specifics that the preferred school offers - particular clubs, schemes, or additional provision, that the offered does not.

You also then need to link that back to your son’s specific needs. If the panel agree that the school can take an extra child, why does yours need it more than others who may also be appealing?

Medical letters will generally hold more sway than school letters - anxiety is not uncommon. Anxiety with medical input is less common. A medical professional stating that it is their opinion that the child needs to attend that school is least common of all, and therefore generally holds most sway.

Ultimately it will come down to how your case balances against the school case. The school may present a weak case, making the bar lower, or they may present a very strong case. Advice on other threads has been that an accumulation of weaker arguments can tip the balance as much as one big argument. Are there any extracurriculars etc. that are especially relevant for your son?

Later down the line you can also chip away at the school’s case - have they admitted over PAN previously? Did they cope? If they say they are overcrowded, how many accidents can be directly attributed to that etc.?

Why would you use a company that doesn’t highlight the knowledge, skills and relevant professional experience of those that would be providing advice or that hasn’t updated its blog since 2018?

In our case, we have a child with genuine mental health vulnerabilities beyond the usual 'anxious about a new school' — we will have letters from the school and the schools in-house pastoral support team to evidence this history of vulnerability, dating back to Y1. We have documented instances which have caused issues in the very recent past (low-level in-class bullying and unwanted physical contact as well as more general (often separation) anxiety which has been fairly severe)

I believe that evidence from medical professionals is often given more weight. Do you have anything from a GP/CAMHS?

My understanding is that if everything has been managed so far by the primary school, the panel can make the argument that any secondary school should be able to manage the situation because all schools should be able to cope with students with anxiety.

very good point!

In the end we did the Appeal ourselves using all of the advice gathered here and from the school.

was you successful please? I'm currently in the same position x

@Kaychee1876 start a new thread with your own details, then we can give more specific advice.

Hi
I need help and guidance on filling out an appeal form for a secondary school. DD hasn’t got any medical conditions . I am appealing based on it being the right school for academically with all the resources and extracurricular activities. And no staff turnover. I neeed help don’t know where to start or what to say.

You would be better starting your own thread, this is an old one.

I wouldn’t mention staff turnover! Not before the 31st of May anyway, it’s tempting fate.