Unsuccessful grammar school appeal

[Will2]

Good morning all,

I'm looking for further advice from people who have found themselves in this situation, or any advice from ex panel members which may prove beneficial please.

We got the awful news that my we didn't win my son's grammar school appeal on Friday, with my son being devastated.

We felt we put a compelling argument together;however the panel we had must've felt the schools case was heavier considering our of 39 cases only 1 case was upheld!

My main argument was around a rare medical condition he has and how this impacted him on the day of his first test. He scored above the pass mark on his verbal reasoning test but didn't perform to the best of his ability, citing how he was struggling to focus and concentrate which connects to his condition (NHS diagnosis letter of his condition was provided as evidence) - this is the main reason why he didn't achieve the historically high entry score because he achieved a brilliant score in his spatial reasoning test.

We are waiting for feedback; however the panel didn't ask us one single question about his condition during our individual appeal hearing which my wife thought was quite strange. I just thought they must've researched it and understood how this could've affected him.

The other point I felt was strong in our argument, was how our son is musically gifted and what the school we were appealing for could offer him. He has a grade three certification from the trinity college in London (soon to be 4) and this particular school has a recording studio (his allocated school doesn't have this) as well as opportunities to represent the school in this field.

We highlighted other points during our appeal and I'll be honest, I came away from our appeal quite positive, boy was I wrong!

Any advice from this point forward would be much appreciated. I'm waiting on the feedback which I hope will give me closure. Such an awful process to go through. Thanks in advance!

St Albans is a senior school! Fee paying so maybe parents would move? Don’t schools have distance rules?

Superselectives largely don’t use distance except perhaps for a certain number of spaces. However a pupil already in year 7 or over would not be taking 11+. The post of 4:31 by @SuddenlyBecoming is borderline racist and a sweeping generalisation. Some (including a few dc of mumsnetters) do take multiple tests across the country then move but these schools largely reflect the profile of the wider area in which they are situated.

Would a child already at secondary school be taking the 11+ with primary school kids?

No, but they might be sitting a 12+ or similar but just at the same time as those taking the 11+. Some grammar schools do have such arrangements for entry in years other than yr 7.

it was a primary school child - the SET is only for those in year 6

@trying29 So not at St Albans then. They start at y7.

“I’m not entirely sure how they treat each child’s application for places”

I might have the wrong person here, but if you are who I think you are then in previous posts your wife has made about your son, she has said that you are a headteacher who has brought a school from requires improvement to outstanding. In one post she thought that your contribution to education should have been taken into account in your child’s application.

Is this you? And you don’t understand the allocation process?

Uniform clearly stated St Albans. Could have been a state primary, who knows?!

@viques no, OP is not the DH of that poster

My mistake. Apologies to @Will2

“A St Albans school uniform”. Could’ve been any school on the city, not st Albans school!

Lots of people move house for year 7 places specifically. I would say when my DC were young over 70% did it. Whether it is for grammar or another state school, there really is no difference? People from abroad who typically rent rather than buy have more flexibility. And if they have good jobs and money, they have the most flexibility. Most rich people already here own their houses so they have to pay stamp duty again.

I do agree with the previous correspondent, advising to make the most of the allocated school.It might be that if he had got into the grammar school on appeal, he might have struggled. Good luck.