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Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Feedback - HJC66

Post by Etienne »

A big 'thank you' to Partygirl, Nayna P, Keane34, and HJC66 for providing feedback.

HJC66 - this is what should have been sent to you before the hearing:
2.20 The admission authority must supply the clerk to the appeal panel with the documents listed below at least ten school days before the hearing (unless this is not practicable because the appellants have waived their right to a period of ten school days notice of their appeal as in paragraph 2.10):
a) a written statement summarising how places at the school were allocated (without disclosing personal details of applicants which would enable identification of individuals) and how the admission arrangements for the school apply to the appellants’ application, accompanied by any relevant background information and documents on which they placed substantial reliance (such as the appellants’ application form or references from religious ministers). Where distance criteria have been used to allocate places, admission authorities must demonstrate how this was applied to the appellants’ application compared to those offered a place;
b) a written statement summarising the reasons for the decision (and attaching a copy of the decision letter), explaining how admission of an additional child would cause prejudice to the provision of efficient education or use of resources, making it clear whether or not the admission authority is defending its decision on the basis of infant class size legislation. The admission authority must include a summary of the school’s net capacity and could also include a map/plan of the school if this would be helpful. Admission authorities’ statements referring to accommodation, class sizes, capacity etc, must be supported by factual information, as panel members cannot undergo ‘tours’ of schools to make their own assessments, as it could call into question their independence and lead to allegations of lobbying;
c) the relevant extract of the area’s coordinated admissions scheme where this is relevant to the appeal (e.g. a parent or child appealing for a place at a school they ranked lower on their common application form than the one offered under the scheme) and, in the case of a voluntary aided or foundation school or an Academy, a statement from the local authority explaining how the scheme was applied;
d) details of how the locally agreed Fair Access Protocol operates, where relevant (see paragraph 3.3); and
e) copies of any information or documents that will be supplied to the panel at the hearing, including any documents that have been submitted by appellants.
2.21 It is the Clerk’s role to send out appeal papers to appellants, the presenting officer and panel members at least seven working days before the hearing (not including the date of the hearing or of sending out the papers).
If you're saying that the representative of the admission authority was alone with the panel at some point, this sounds like a serious breach of the rules!
Etienne
Looking for help
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Post by Looking for help »

'2.21 It is the Clerk’s role to send out appeal papers to appellants, the presenting officer and panel members at least seven working days before the hearing (not including the date of the hearing or of sending out the papers). '

What papers are the clerk supposed to send to the appellants ?- the only document we received prior to our appeal was the statement from the school saying that our child did not pass and therefore was not eligible for a place at the school. This was sent to us by the admissions secretary of the school

Thank you

Rgds,
LFH
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

The papers are the ones specified in para. 2.20.

A statement from the school saying "your child did not pass and therefore was not eligible for a place" would not be sufficient.
Etienne
Looking for help
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Joined: Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:12 am
Location: Berkshire

Post by Looking for help »

Thank you Etienne for your prompt reply.
I promise when I have finished this that I will post our experience here.I don't want to do so until we have found out what the ombudsman thinks, and gone as far as we can.
Thanks again
LFH
Etienne
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Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

Thanks, LFH. Entirely understand.
Etienne
Etienne
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Post by Etienne »

Just to add -

Although I've quoted above exactly what the Code says, if the appeal was about non-qualification only, then all the "oversubscription" points (such as net capacity) would not apply.

Even so, I would have expected more than a few lines. My own LA's case for non-qualification appeals used to (and probably still does) cover some 2 sides of A4!

Indeed, the Code refers to "a written statement summarising the reasons for the decision (and attaching a copy of the decision letter)" - which suggests that more than the decision letter is expected.

It would be good practice to refer to the relevant legislation:
In the case of admission to grammar schools, Section 86 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 (3)(c) states that it is the duty of an authority to comply with [parental] preference unless
arrangements for admission to the preferred school (i) are wholly based on selection by reference to ability or aptitude and (ii) are so based with a view to admitting only pupils with high ability or aptitude, and compliance with the preference would be incompatible with selection under the arrangements.
Ideally there would also be details of
  • the testing arrangements
    the test provider
    checks made to ensure reliability
    provision for disability
    the qualifying score
    the score achieved
Etienne
Looking for help
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Joined: Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:12 am
Location: Berkshire

Post by Looking for help »

Hi Etienne,
In our letter from the school we wree given the score required and the score our son achieved, but other than that not very much at all.
We were also told in the appeal itself that 92 children had accepted places at the school (PAN 120) and have subsequently discovered that 28 places were given at appeal (coincidentally!) We were also told that 30 children had the same score as our child and above up to the passmark!!
There was no mention regarding oversubscriiption but surely that must then be heard as they managed tio fill all the places?

Thanks
LFH
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Post by Etienne »

My instinctive feeling is that you shouldn't be in a situation where you're not sure how these issues are being dealt with.

Here's another quote from the Code:
At the start of the hearing, the panel chair must:
.... b) explain the procedure clearly and simply, giving details of the issues which the panel will be addressing and in what order ....
Etienne
Looking for help
Posts: 3767
Joined: Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:12 am
Location: Berkshire

Post by Looking for help »

Thanks Etienne,
The chair did do this to a certain extent- he said that the school rep would have his say, then we could have our say then there would be summing up - but we were really thrown off balance by the sheer number of places available in the school and the fact that we were clearly nearly there. The complete agreement of the panel with our statements meant that we came out feeling that for the first time since we had started this process that we were likely to succeed - they managed not to ask any questions that we needed to answer - in fact they answered them for us!
We really struggle to understand how they came to the decision they did. I understand that there will have been one or two cases where the child was disadvantaged by illness or family troubles but not 28 :( Also we had prepared a presentation of sorts with a beginning a middle and a conclusion, but part of the way through this the chair managed (in the most polite way) to make us cut to the chase and say what happened on the day then. So we were thrown off course again.
But because we can't get the clerk's notes we feel that we will never know how they made their decisions :!:

Rgds
LFH
HJC66
Posts: 38
Joined: Sun May 10, 2009 10:27 pm
Location: Wirral

Post by HJC66 »

Dear Etienne
Thank you so much for your feedback. I don't believe that we received some of the information you quoted but the document was quite lengthy and full of quotes from various Acts that we have no previous knowledge of. Please bear with me, I will recite in full the Statement of the Director of Children’s Services which we received on 9 April 2009. Please advise if in your opinion anything has been omitted. Thank you so much for your time and consideration.

Arrangements for Admission to Community Grammar Schools
It is the Authority’s policy to comply with parents preference for their children’s education unless to do so would prejudice the provision of efficient education or the efficient use of resources. This is in accordance with Section 86 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.

The admission arrangements for all ability schools are described in the booklet "secondary education in Wirral 2009-10". The criteria which the authority uses to determine priorities for admission to oversubscribed schools are set out in the booklet and in Appendix 1 of this statement.

Prejudice to efficient education and efficient use of resources
Schools organise their classes on the basis that they will admit up to but not beyond their admission number. The admission number is fixed in relation to the calculation of a schools net capacity. If the admission number is exceeded, then class sizes will be larger than planned by the school and this will affect the quality of education which the school is able to provide to it's pupils. Undue pressure will also be placed on many of the facilities and practical areas that pupils need to access. This will cause prejudice to the provision of efficient education and will not be an efficient use of the school's resources.

The admission of pupils beyond a school's number may also cause prejudice to the efficient use of the Authority's resources. There are sufficient places in the secondary sector in Wirral for all children of secondary age. If pupils are admitted to a school in excess of a schools admission number, the Authority would have to deal with a demand for an increase in the number of places while maintaining surplus places in other schools. The provision of additional places in this circumstance would not be an efficient use of the Authority's resource.

Wirral Grammar School for Girls
The authority has provided sufficient resources for Wirral Grammar School for Girls to admit 166 pupils in September 2009. If more than 166 pupils are admitted it will mean children being taught in larger classes than would otherwise have been the case, and a lower quality of provision for all the pupils in those classes. The admission number for Wirral Grammar School for Girls in September 2009 is 166 pupils and the parent of 483 children had named the school as a preference. Places were allocated in accordance with the criteria described in appendix 1. It was not possible to allocate places to all pupils whose parents had indicated Wirral Grammar School for Girls as a preference.

Preferences
A parental preference form was completed on behalf of DD indicating preferences for:
Wirral Grammar School for Girls
********** High School
********** High School
In accordance with the authority’s arrangements DD was ranked for each of these schools.
DD Headteacher requested that her assessment be considered by the Independent Assessment Board. Having considered DD case, the Independence Assessment Board decided that the evidence was not strong enough to determine that she had reached the grammar school standard.
Having considered the parent's preference for Wirral Grammar School for Girls carefully in the light of the Authority’s criteria, the authority concluded that it was not possible to offer a place at that school.
DD was offered a place at ********** High School.

Conclusion

It is the authority's contention that to admit this pupil to Wirral Grammar School would prejudice the provision of efficient education and the efficient use of resources. In accordance with Section 86 Paragraph 3a of the Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998 it is on this ground that the authority has refused to offer a place at this school.
This pupil was assessed in accordance with the authority’s arrangement for the assessment of pupils and did not achieve the required standard for a grammar school place. To agree to the preference for a grammar school placed would be contrary to Section 86 Paragraph 3 (c) of the schools standards and Framework Act 1998 as the arrangements for admission to the preferred school are based on selection by reference to ability. It would be incompatible with the authority’s selection arrangements to offer a place in a grammar school to a pupil who had not reached the grammar school standard in accordance with the authority’s arrangement
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