Do I get a prize for the shortest appeal?

[overanxious]

Ticktock that is brilliant news! I can't believe the list hadn't moved at all since March - my daughter was 8th on the waiting list a couple of years ago and had got in by mid-April.

Make sure you order your p.e. kit in plenty of time - the shop have to embroider it all with her name!

[TraffordMum]

Had the fantastic news in the post today that my daughter has been offered a place after no offers to waiting list at all since 1st March.

So pleased I no longer need to appeal and hopefully others will get good news today also.

Overanxious - Really wish you the best for your appeal outcome - at least the "competition" on appeals has been reduced by at least 2 ( I was in position 2 on list)

Wow, ticktock! Look what happens when you decide to come out of lurkdom! Many congratulations. I hope your daughter is very happy at the school.

[ticktock]

x

[TraffordMum]

Well, hopefully she'll pass and get in nice and easily as a sibling.

[waveney mum]

Congratulations to tick tock. We think we were No3 on the list so hopefully will have moved up.

Tick tock. It would be really helpful to us if you could tell us about your application & appeal- how far do you live from the school? Did you move house at all? Was your appeal purely on oversubscription?

I very pleased you didn't have to go through the appeal.

[ticktock]

x

[determineddaddy]

Our hearing at the same school was about 20 minutes. Having prepared very carefully we were wrong footed by how little opportunity there was to really get to grips with the issues at the hearing.

Our main appeal case was misapplication of admissions policy by the school but no questions were put to the school rep by the panel and we were not invited to ask the school rep anything. We were discouraged from presenting our case about misapplication because we had already made our case in writing. The questions the panel asked us were about what other schools we had applied to and about why we wanted this school, which seemed to us fairly general rather than very specific to our appeal.

My sense is that the appeals panel are tired/overwhelmed with a totally unrealistic timetable to get through.

It seems the real interrogation of the issues takes place elsewhere without parents present.

I came away feeling I had wasted my time taking a day off work.

If the appeals process is partly to allow frustrated parents to let off steam I can tell you that I am still steaming several weeks later, and we still have another month until we hear the result!

The one positive thing I can find to say is how much I appreciate this site. Thank you to all of you who have posted.

[TIDDLYMUM]

Hi DD

I must say I am intrigued by a mis application of the admissions policy- have you not spoken to Trafford council? Surely if they have not followed the published policy then this could be resolve this without having to go to an appeal? Is it not maladministration?

[CarpeDiem]

Our hearing too was about 20 minutes. The panel were very pleasant and again the school reps did not really say much. The information within the appeal pack letter presenting the schools case seemed outdated as it referred to four 7 class yeargroups one of which left last year and one is due to leave this year. Anyone would logically think that this would make space for another 7 form entry this year however I understand they have demolished some old prefab classrooms so this is not the case. This was not stated in their letter. Only statement was they did not have space for another 7 form entry with no explanation. Part of our oversubscription argument was that they would now have space for more children with these yeargroups leaving as we were not aware of any classrooms being removed.

Luckily we are in the fortunate position that our local comprehensive is very good.

Thank you to this website for all the amazing information. I wish we had found it before our DC took their exams as we really did not know what we had let ourselves in for and how competitive entrance to the Trafford grammars was. If we had been aware we would have paid for some tutoring to ensure a high score as even though our DC is a 5a/6c across the board you would not think this from their scores across the entrance exams.

[overanxious]

however I understand they have demolished some old prefab classrooms so this is not the case. This was not stated in their letter. Only statement was they did not have space for another 7 form entry with no explanation. Part of our oversubscription argument was that they would now have space for more children with these yeargroups leaving as we were not aware of any classrooms being removed.

I did think, but didn't have the guts to say, "so your building programme has actually resulted in you having less room?"

I agree with determinedaddy that I felt "wrongfooted" by the lack of questioning. From other area's appeals I thought that our written submission would be the starting point of the discussion rather than, as seems to have been inferred, everything that we wanted to say.

I already have one daughter at the school, and have a very high opinion of it, so I have been really disappointed by their inability to set up appeals that at least appear fair and impartial.