Arrangements for appeals during the Covid-19 crisis

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

Arrangements for appeals during the Covid-19 crisis

Post by Etienne »

The Bucks Appeals Guide for Parents (2020) was updated on 11th May.

It is clear that a huge amount of effort and hard work has gone into devising a new appeals process that is as fair as possible, has safeguards built into it, and complies fully with the government's latest legislation and guidance.

Buckinghamshire have decided:
"Video conferencing and telephone appeals were carefully considered and trialled but these options are not reasonably practicable because not all appeal participants could successfully access reliable and secure electronic means to enable the Appeal Panel to consider the appeals fairly and transparently. Local circumstances that significantly affect the appeals include the volume and complexity of the multiple appeals to be considered in a short space of time by volunteer, unpaid panel members and persistent problems with broadband connections.
The Appeal Panel will, therefore, make its decisions on appeals under the temporary arrangements on the basis of written documents only, submitted preferably by email."


The deadlines have been revised to take account of the new situation.
In addition, the following section has been added to the Guide for Parents:
Appeal panels - what you need to know

Your appeal during the Covid-19 crisis


Usually admission appeals are considered by the Appeal Panel at appeal hearings to which the parent and admission authority are invited to present their respective cases, although if the parent and/or the admission authority do not attend, the appeal can be decided on the basis of written documents submitted by the parties. The government has said that face-to-face appeal hearings should not take place during the Covid-19 outbreak until the government guidelines on social distancing indicate it is safe to do so. Emergency regulations came into force on 24 April 2020 enabling temporary arrangements to be made for admission appeals during the Covid-19 crisis. The regulations will cease to apply in most respects on 31 January 2021. It is therefore unlikely that normal face-to face hearings will take place until February 2021.

The regulations are intended to give admission authorities as much flexibility as possible to manage appeals in a way that best suits local circumstances whilst ensuring that families appealing are supported and not disadvantaged by the measures in place to protect public health. The regulations dis-apply the requirement that appeal panels should be held in person and instead allow hearings to take place either by telephone, video conference or through a paper-based appeal where all parties can make representations in writing.

The temporary regulations also work to ensure that the appeals process can continue during school closures by removing references to school days. Certain deadlines have been revised and appeals must be considered as soon as reasonably practicable.

The vast majority of the requirements set out in the School Admissions Appeals Code 2012 (SAAC), remain appropriate and must still be complied with.

Video conferencing and telephone appeals were carefully considered and trialled but these options are not reasonably practicable because not all appeal participants could successfully access reliable and secure electronic means to enable the Appeal Panel to consider the appeals fairly and transparently. Local circumstances that significantly affect the appeals include the volume and complexity of the multiple appeals to be considered in a short space of time by volunteer, unpaid panel members and persistent problems with broadband connections.

The Appeal Panel will, therefore, make its decisions on appeals under the temporary arrangements on the basis of written documents only, submitted preferably by email.

Under SAAC, parents are already required to set out their grounds for appeal in writing (paragraph 2.5) and Appeal Panels require parents to submit written supporting evidence where possible. For example, if there is a medical reason for a child’s appeal for a particular school, the Appeal Panel would expect to see medical records. If the parent is appealing for a grammar school place and the child is unqualified, the Appeal Panel, “must only uphold an appeal if it is satisfied that there is evidence to demonstrate that the child is of the required academic standards, for example, school reports giving Year 5/Year 6 SAT results or a letter of support from their current or previous school clearly indicating why the child is considered to be of grammar school ability” (SAAC paragraph 3.13).

In addition, the admission authority must supply “all relevant documents needed” to conduct the appeal including, “details of how the admission arrangements and the co-ordinated admissions scheme apply to the appellant’s application, the reasons for the decision to refuse admission and an explanation as to how admission of an additional child would cause prejudice to the provision of efficient education or efficient use of resources” (paragraph 2.9).

The Appeals Team will write to parents to give them at least 14 calendar days’ notice of the deadline date by which any additional information or evidence (not already submitted with their appeal form) should be received by the Appeals Team in order to allow sufficient time to copy and circulate the parent’s and admission authority’s paperwork to all relevant parties before the appeal is considered by the Appeal Panel.

When the Appeals Team write to parents to provide the 14 days’ notice of the deadline date by which extra evidence should be submitted, the Appeal Team will also provide parents with their individual reference number and explain how their appeal will be considered.

Any information or evidence not submitted by the deadline might not be considered by the Appeal Panel before it makes its decision. The Appeal Panel will decide whether any material not submitted by the deadline date will be considered taking into account its significance and the effect of a possible need to adjourn/postpone/delay the appeal.

Usually, the proceedings allow for oral questioning by the parent and Appeal Panel of the admission authority’s case and oral questioning by the Appeal Panel and admission authority of the parent’s case. The questioning allows for the Appeal Panel and both parties to clarify points made by each party and to solicit further relevant information.

Therefore, under the temporary appeal arrangements, the Appeal Panel and parent will be given the opportunity to ask written questions about the admission authority’s case and the admission authority and Appeal Panel will be given the opportunity to ask written questions about the parent’s case. The written responses from the parent and admissions authority will be circulated to all relevant parties before the Appeal Panel makes its decision.

We shall write to parents explaining the Question and Answer process above and providing dates by which parents and admission authorities should submit their written questions and answers on each other’s cases.

    • It is very important that parents are able to fully explain their case.

      You can ask a friend or relative to help you provide your written reasons for appeal.

      If you have any difficulty in explaining your reasons for appeal in writing and need additional support, you should contact the Appeals Team as soon as possible.


Decision letters will be sent to parents within 7 calendar days of the appeal decision being made, or within 7 calendar days of the last appeal decision in the case of multiple appeals for a school.

The Questions and Answers process, which must take place before decisions are made at both Stage One and Stage Two, will take a long time especially where there are multiple appeals for a school. This is because the same Appeal Panel must consider all appeals that are submitted for a school and must not to make any decisions until it has considered all the appeals for a school. The Appeals Team has received between 30 and 100 appeals for many of the secondary schools this year.

However, we aim to ensure that all appeals for September 2020 entry are completed by September.

    • • Outstanding in-year/immediate entry appeals will begin at the end of May.
      • Year 7 appeals will follow in June and July.
      • Primary and Late Transfer appeals will be heard from July.


Appeals are not normally considered by Appeal Panels in the school holidays but appeals may need to take place in August this year due to the numbers of appeals received and the late start in the process due to the Covid-19 crisis.

If you change your contact details, don’t forget to let us know or you may not receive our letters/emails/telephone messages.

In all appeals, the Appeal Panel will decide if the admission authority refused your application for a school place lawfully.

If it decides that the admission authority’s decision to refuse the school place was made incorrectly and you should have been given a place, you will be successful at the appeal.

But, if the Appeal Panel decides that the admission authority’s refusal was lawful, (which it usually does) it will continue with the rest of the appeal. The procedure followed in the rest of your appeal will depend on the type of school place you are appealing for.


Appeal paperwork

The Appeals Team will send you copies of all the appeal paperwork. This includes your appeal form, any evidence you have submitted and the admission authority’s case explaining why it refused the school place. The appeal paperwork is also sent to the Appeal Panel and the admission authority so that everyone has time to read it before the Appeal Panel considers your appeal.

When you receive the appeal paperwork, please check it includes everything you sent to the Appeal Team (except for any school work and certificates which will not be included). If anything is missing, contact the Appeals Team immediately.

You will also be sent all written questions and responses relevant to your appeal following the Questions and Answers process as explained above before the Appeal Panel makes its decision.

When there are multiple appeals for a year group in a school, the Appeal Panel must make its decisions after all the appeals have been considered. This may take days or even weeks.


Disability

If your child has a disability, you may want to discuss your appeal with their Head teacher and the Special Educational Needs Coordinator at the current school. The Appeal Panel may be required to consider whether your child is disabled and whether there has been any discrimination within the meaning of the Equality Act 2010.

If you are a disabled person who requires reasonable adjustments so that you can take part in the appeal, please contact the Appeals Team as soon as possible.

Translator

If you require a translator to help you provide your written reasons for appeal to the Appeal Panel, please email the Appeals Team as soon as possible and say which language you need. Alternatively, you can arrange your own translator or ask a friend to support you with providing your written reasons for appeal.

Waiting lists

Appeal Panels must not take into account where the admission authority has placed a child on the waiting list, or that appeals have not been made for other children on the waiting list. They must not make any decision relating to a waiting list. If you have any queries about waiting lists, please contact the Admissions Team (not the Appeals Team).

Admission Appeals during Covid-19 outbreak

1. Parent submits appeal (with evidence) to Appeals Team

2. Appeals Team writes to Parent with:

    • • Details of appeal process & timing
      • Date for submission of additional information
      • Reference number


3. Parents send additional information to Appeals Team

Admission Authority (AA) sends AA case to Appeals Team

4. Appeals Team sends case papers (Parents’ appeal & evidence and AA case) to Parents, AA, IAP & Clerk

Stage 1

    • • IAP & Clerk (by telephone/video Teams meeting) discuss & formulate Questions (Qs) on AA Case
      • Qs sent to Parents who are asked to send any additional, relevant Qs on AA case by deadline date
      • IAP’s & Parent’s Qs sent to AA with request for Answers (As) by deadline date
      • As from AA sent to IAP & Parents
      • IAP & Clerk (by telephone/video Teams meeting) deliberate & make Stage 1 decisions


Stage 2*

    • • IAP & Clerk (by telephone/video Teams meeting) discuss & formulate Qs on Parent’s case
      • AA is asked to send any additional, relevant Qs on Parent’s case by deadline date
      • IAP’s & AA’s Qs sent to Parent with request for As by deadline date
      • As from Parent sent to IAP & AAs
      • IAP & Clerk (by telephone/video Teams meeting) deliberate & make Stage 2 decision


5. Appeals Team sends decisions to Parents & AA within 7 calendar days of decision/s

*In multiple appeals (where there are a number of appeals for a school) the same Appeal Panel must consider all the appeals for the school before making its decisions, so there will be multiple IAP and Clerk’s Teams meetings at Stage 2.

Decisions

The Appeal Panel's decision is legally binding and final. It can only uphold or dismiss your appeal.

The Appeal Panel cannot:

    • • enter into discussions with you or admission authority
      • attach any conditions to the decision
      • hear complaints or objections on admission policies or practices
      • reassess the capacity of the school
      • tell the admission authority to change your position on a waiting list
      allocate a place at a school other than the school appealed for


A decision letter will be sent to you by first class post no later than 7 calendar days after the appeal hearing, unless there is good reason.

    • Where there are multiple appeals for a school, which may take place over days or even weeks, decisions will be sent no later than 7 calendar days after all the appeal decisions have been made for that school.


We cannot give decisions over the telephone.

If you are successful (as the Appeal Panel upholds your appeal), you will be offered the school place. Make sure you contact the school to agree the date your child should start.

If you are unsuccessful, (as the Appeal Panel dismisses your appeal), your child will not be allocated a place at the school appealed for. You can contact the Admissions Team to ask about waiting lists and spaces in other schools.

You cannot make a second appeal for the same school for the same academic year.


Complaints & finding out more

If your appeal is unsuccessful there is no further right of appeal.

If you feel that your appeal hearing was not properly or fairly conducted you can complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGO), if the school you appealed for is a community or voluntary controlled school, or to the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), if the school is an academy or free school.

Even though you may not be satisfied with the Appeal Panel's decision, the LGO and ESFA can only investigate whether there has been a failure to follow correct procedures.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman
PO Box 4771
Coventry
CV4 0EH
Advice Team: 0300 061 0614
Website: http://www.lgo.org.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Education Skills and Funding Agency
Email: academy.questions@education.gsi.gov.uk

An Appeal Panel’s decision can only be overturned by the Courts where a parent or admission authority is successful in applying for judicial review of that decision. You will need legal advice if you seek judicial review.

You may lodge a complaint in writing with the Appeals Team which will investigate your complaint and respond within 28 working days. It can only investigate complaints about appeal procedure and not about the decision.

Details about how to make a complaint about the way your appeal was conducted can be found at: http://www.gov.uk/schools-admissions/ap ... ls-decison" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Contact:

ACE Education Advice at: ace-ed
Coram Legal Children's Centre, Community Legal Advice Education Law Line – for education legal advice for those eligible for Legal Aid. Tel: 0300 330 5485; Website: child law advice

Read:

School Admission Appeals Code 2012 and School Admissions Code 2014, published by the Department for Education.

Advice for parents on school admission appeals from the Department for Education

Contact School Appeals

The Appeals Team arranges school admission appeals for most schools.

Contact us about your appeal by email: appeals@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

Or post: Education Appeals Team, Buckinghamshire Council, Walton Street Offices, Walton Street, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, HP20 1UA.

Contact the Admissions Team (not the Appeals Team), if you have a question about:

Allocations of school places
Waiting Lists
Transfer Tests for grammar schools
Selection Reviews for unqualified grammar school applicants
Home-to-School Transport
The Parents Guide is available here:
https://www.buckscc.gov.uk/services/edu ... eals-2020/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Etienne
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Re: New arrangements for appeals during the Covid-19 crisis

Post by Etienne »

The Parents Guide to Appeals 2021 is now available. It appears that the process for appeals during the covid-19 pandemic will be the same as last year in Bucks, i.e. no face to face hearings with parents. Written submissions and written questions & answers only.


See also our own guidance:
How to appeal for a Bucks GS place, March 2021.
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum ... 12&t=61771" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Etienne
Etienne
Posts: 8978
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2005 6:26 pm

Re: New arrangements for appeals during the Covid-19 crisis

Post by Etienne »

The Parents Guide to Appeals 2021 is now available on the Buckinghamshire Council website. It appears that the local process for appeals during covid-19 will be the same as last year, i.e. no face to face hearings with parents - written submissions, and written questions & answers only.

We have updated our own guidance:
How to appeal for a Bucks GS place, March 2021.
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum ... 12&t=61771" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Etienne
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