Given the large amount of threads about admissions, how would you change the current system to make it fair for all?

[itsmeitsmeolord]

Or do you think that would be an impossible task?

The catchment area for dd's secondary ed consists of two schools which are both classed as failing.
We are doing 11+, doing a couple of tests for state schools out of catchment and as a last resort will have to consider private ed.

It is highly unlikely that dd would get an offer for anywhere other than one of the two failing schools.
As a parent I want my child to go to a school that seems to care about its' pupils, I'm not looking for massively high results but would like to see that able pupils reach their full potential and less able students are not written off.

How do you think we could fix the system so that all children have a chnace of a decent education that will encourage them whatever their abilities and allow children to be educated fairly locally thus being a part of their local community?

That's exactly what we should be lobbying for - better schools everywhere. Smaller schools, pleasant environment, smaller class sizes, motivated staff allowed to be innovative, inspirational and enthusiastic in their teaching to encourage the same in pupils - put up teachers pay - build a full size trebuchet for History (good for Maths too) and lots of bangs and purple smoke from the Science department - is this all sounding a bit Hogwarts? Well, why not? I can't help thinking that there has to be an alternative to the ordeal that secondary education often is for students - not to mention teachers and parents! Sorry if I've gone off-topic but it seems to me that if more was done about really improving schools (including the delivery of education - a complete rethink?) we wouldn't all need to be scrabbling for places at the 'best' ones.

If every child is to go to the nearest school then we need to have every school fully wheelchair adapted (every Victorian building in the country pulled down on Monday morning and re-erected by September), with every conceivable type of SENCO support and counselling available in every school.

Oh, and a law that noone must sack an employee with a child due to apply for secondary school as parents are not allowed to move.