Secondary Appeal - Appealing against a school

[flamingobeach]

Hi. Just after advice regarding how to approach this. Everything I've read so far stresses the importance of focusing on why your child should go to the school you're appealing for, rather than why they shouldn't go to the one they've been allocated. My circumstances are rather unusual and I wonder if this is something a panel will have come across before. I am a GP and have deliberately chosen the in-catchment school for our child outside the surgery boundaries. We have been allocated a school which literally shares exactly the same boundary. Part of my appeal focuses on potential conflict of interest. Is this something that I could use in my appeal? We have moved away from the surgery boundary specifically in the hope of avoiding this situation. I have a supportive letter from the practice partners. Obviously we have other factors to discuss at appeal, but wondered if work/conflict often comes up? Wondered if someone with a similar experience could share their insight. Thanks.

Yes. It was a conscious decision we made as a couple to live and educate our children away from the practice boundaries.

How do the parents organise e.g. flowers for the teacher, christmas gift from a class? How are the parents raise funds if they don't communicate?

Not questioning. Just curious. My son is in Y6

What about SEN kids. I can't imagine that a kid with ADHD is gathering all communication and what to do, what to bring when is a trip when is a homework etc. Not to mention EHCP kids.
I have to find out how it works here where I live. We are going to be Y7 next year

"I can't imagine that a kid with ADHD is gathering all communication and what to do, what to bring when is a trip when is a homework etc."

@JustWingItLifeEyelinerEverything most secondaries have an app for all that stuff. Your child will be able to check their homework diary online, and you'll be able to check it too. If there is a trip, you will probably get a message either via a parent comms app or an email.

"How do the parents organise e.g. flowers for the teacher, christmas gift from a class? How are the parents raise funds if they don't communicate?"

Our secondary does have whatsapp groups, but most don't. Before we had them, things like gifts were just arranged by the children themselves, or among parent friendship group. When they have 10 different teachers, buying presents is less of a thing.
The PTA previously used email, the school newsletter, facebook, but now does have Whatsapp too.

They don't.
Class gifts isn't really a thing at secondary. For a start there's a different teacher for every subject, possibly more than one, and if a school sets from year 7 the children in the same form won't even necessarily have the same teachers for every subject.
Parental involvement is far less at secondary* *which can be quite a shock at first, especially if you've come from a primary with a strong community. Expect to meet their teachers once a year for 4 minutes or so unless there's problems.

O dear, I better then start thinking about joining PTA to be closer to secondary school...

@JustWingItLifeEyelinerEverything Non of that applies at secondary - you leave all that behind

@JustWingItLifeEyelinerEverything my DD has ADHD
Secondaries give kids the tools to sort stuff. Homework Apps and parent comms aps
They have their timetable and are expected to learn to manage themselves

Re contact with teachers.. my DC have two teachers for quite a few subjects. They rotate some subjects eg cooking / art. They may move sets mid year. They could easily have 20+ teachers in a year so stuff like teacher cards & gifts just is not a thing

And be prepared for lots of lost-property as they move from room to room for each subject, leaving a trail of stuff in their wake.

Our year 7 whatsapp groups are full of indignant posts about lost stuff. Put name labels on everything!

Any school out of the area would therefore suit your need.

But tough on the child is all their mates go local

Well yes, obviously any school out of the practice area would solve that particular problem. But I'm appealing for my child to go to their catchment secondary school along with everyone else in their class (they're currently the only one not going). The work issue is just one aspect of our argument. Of course I realise the whole basis of our appeal shouldn't just focus on this.

Ours doesn't have a PTA. Just a parent forum which is once a term where you can go and air grievances pretty much.

You aren't supposed to talk about your own child but it's basically people complaining that their child got a detention for 'wanting to know what time it is' (looking at their phone).

Oh, no, I never thought about PTA as a place to raise complains because this is something you do with the relevant person at school or school governors.

PTA in our primary raises funds for school and organises additional activities for school.

So the main reason is just that you want your child to go to the same school as their classmates and they’ve been allocated a different school?

It's a reason. There's several reasons that I strongly believe that their catchment school is more suitable and that the one allocated is less suitable. I didn't know I only had to have one reason to put before a panel?

You can bring it up by all means as it's relevant. The panel will then weigh this up as your case against the schools case and decide which is stronger.

The thing is you aren't appealing against a school you are appealing for the school if that makes sense. The right of appeal is to the refusal of a place. However the reason for wanting this school is relevant and important to explain - I would give detail about why you like this school and what it can offer your child .

I'd steer clear of mentioning that if I were you as it makes it sound like that's the reason you want the school and that's not a reason.

Stick to the other factor and anything else that that school can offer your dd EG Spanish, football team etc.

@flamingobeach so if you didn't get catchment school are you high on wait list? Sounds like you should be if all her classmates got in?
The risk is that appeal panel just take the view that there are plenty other schools to apply to

Is there just one catchment school? Are there shared or overlapping catchments? If your child did not get offered a place was it because you live further away from the secondary than her classmates and / or don’t benefit from sibling priority, or another reason such as it isn’t your nearest secondary or it has other oversubscription criteria such as Church attendance?