11 Plus Exams Forum

Please find a link to KCC's 3 documents covering the objections, submitted to the adjudicator.

http://www.kent.gov.uk/education_and_le ... cator.aspx

Hope it works! Happy reading.

It works and I will read.

Forgot to say that it's a zip file. Hope that's OK. Let me know if there are any problems reading it.

[Not any more: I've changed the link to point at the KCC site. --WP]

Thank you for that! A little bedtime reading...

A quick read suggests that KCC really were being evasive at the public meeting last night. Their (apparently reluctantly released) documents reveal a long list of quite detailed objections (whether they stand scrutiny is a separate issue).

Their presentation on the night and their response to questioners pressing for details of their objections was very dismissive - they would not engage in a meaningful discussion. Perhaps they concluded it would just not be fruitful. But as a local taxpayer I find that attitude very arrogant. Still, the cynic in me says they can afford to be as, hey, this is Kent - they will never get voted out!

Have read one of these objection papers - presume they are all pretty much the same. Well, if KCC were going to use the time of public servants to back one side of this argument (whichever side it was) I think they could have done a more thorough job than this. It's one of these "surface" papers that might satisfy a politician, but it really doesn't provide any compelling statistical back-up for any of its sentiments. IMHO it leaves the School Adjudicator with quite a bit of work, requiring data provided by KCC staff, to find out which side of the argument would result in the "fairer" result, or a pretty snap judgement from him on the limited info available, and his own views on the "local schools for local children" argument.

I give KCC 1 out of 10 for this paper, but at least it would not have taken up much of their time. One officer, 3 hours max maybe, plus committee time.

Does anyone else, like cynical me, reckon that maybe someone high up at KCC lives in West Kent and has a child due to take the 11+?

To be fair to KCC they are in a position where they are finding it difficult to address the current problems.

First, they tried to allocate all children who qualified for a GS a place. Parents were disatisfied as some had long distances to travel.

Next, KCC tried to allocated all children who passed a GS within a reasonable distance, if they were unable to allocate within a reasonable distance they allocated a local school nearer. (I don't know what they considered a reasonable distance). Parents were then unhappy that qualified children were not allocated a GS.

KCC are in a difficult position trying to allocate schools and manage expectations.

One way KCC can help the situation is to make travelling easier.

Currently if you live north of Sevenoaks, which from what I understand is where most of the parents complaining live, you are almost equi distance from the TW GS as well as Dartford and Wilmington GSs.

However, KCC will not pay for children to travel to the NW Kent GSs by the coaches which are laid on by the schools.

There was a parent on here last year whose DD got a place at Wilmington, it was not their first choice, which they accepted, but then KCC insisted on paying for her to have a taxi to the train station and then a train then a bus, rather than paying for the coach which went right outside the girls house.

Maybe worth saying this in response to Adjudicator as Scott Bagshaw is head of Admissions and Transport. Has to be cheaper than setting up a grammar campus in Sevenoaks which seems to be the next political thought.