Specialist Appeals advice
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An education appeal hearing is not quite the same as a public meeting held by a planning committee. 
It is so important to understand that an appeal panel has an enabling role. It would have treated the woman who "got jumbled with what she wanted to say and went off at a tangent" very differently. She would have been helped, encouraged, coaxed into finishing her statement, and there might even have been an adjournment to give her time to regain composure.
Although I have given advice in the Q&As about the written submission and the presentation, I don't attach much importance to them. In my experience, what really matters is the Question and Answer session, and the strength of the supporting evidence.
Appeal panels are well used to dealing with parents from all sorts of backgrounds, and are actually quite good at eliciting the information they need.
I can recall parents who had written absolutely nothing for their submission (lack of literacy/understanding) and couldn't even begin to present a coherent argument, but whose appeals were upheld thanks to strong supporting evidence from the school and patient, skilful probing from the panel. So much for presentational skills!
Where I hope this forum is of value is in explaining the process to parents, and helping them to look at their case from a different perspective.
It is so important to understand that an appeal panel has an enabling role. It would have treated the woman who "got jumbled with what she wanted to say and went off at a tangent" very differently. She would have been helped, encouraged, coaxed into finishing her statement, and there might even have been an adjournment to give her time to regain composure.
Although I have given advice in the Q&As about the written submission and the presentation, I don't attach much importance to them. In my experience, what really matters is the Question and Answer session, and the strength of the supporting evidence.
Appeal panels are well used to dealing with parents from all sorts of backgrounds, and are actually quite good at eliciting the information they need.
I can recall parents who had written absolutely nothing for their submission (lack of literacy/understanding) and couldn't even begin to present a coherent argument, but whose appeals were upheld thanks to strong supporting evidence from the school and patient, skilful probing from the panel. So much for presentational skills!
Where I hope this forum is of value is in explaining the process to parents, and helping them to look at their case from a different perspective.
Etienne
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Sally-Anne
- Posts: 9235
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 8:10 pm
- Location: Buckinghamshire
That last point by Etienne is one that I endorse very strongly, and it also relates to what Etienne has said about panels coaxing the information out of parents.Etienne wrote:Where I hope this forum is of value is in explaining the process to parents, and helping them to look at their case from a different perspective.
Time and again on this Forum I have seen people post the details of their child's case here and, after some questioning by us, a new piece of critical information appears, often as a complete afterthought from the parent.
"The hamster dying was so upsetting for my daughter and we just hope the panel will understand that was why she didn't get the extra 2 marks. By the way, she has 3 previous 141 scores for Verbal Reasoning tests at school, is Gifted and Talented for Maths and English, and recently she was selected for a new initiative in maths at county level for gifted children. Will the panel be interested in this?"
An extreme example to illustrate the point
, but when it happens an apparently weak case can change completely. Teasing out such pivotal evidence from parents is what a panel tries to do, but they can't assess the value of it if they aren't told that it exists.
An Appeals Specialist would, one hopes, perform that task effectively, but as has already been said - here on the Forum we do the same thing for free!
Sally-Anne
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Appeal Mum
- Posts: 2049
- Joined: Fri Mar 09, 2007 10:29 pm
- Location: Wirral
Kentmum33,
I really would steer clear of anyone trying to make money out of a clearly upsetting time.
Panels are very used to seeing inexperienced parents; after all usually people only go through the appeals process once.
From my own personal experience the panel did everything they possibly could to put me at ease. Panels and more importantly the chairperson will take the lead in the direction they want the appeal to go in.
However they will also ask you towards the end if there is anything that they have missed or if you would like to add anything that hasn‘t been mentioned.
I must add to others comments on this forums track record, without a doubt the advice on this forum is priceless, from the emotional support, to the words of encouragement, right the way through to the invaluable words of wisdom from our resident gurus Etienne and Sally-Anne.
Having felt incapable of putting together an appeal myself, let alone win it! I can honestly say that paying someone wouldn't have made a blind bit of difference to the outcome, whatever way it went.
You can pay someone to add some fancy touches, but you can't change the facts or scores.
With the help of the Q&As anyone can put together an appeal, with the help of the gurus you can be given an honest account of their experienced opinions.
You as the person who knows your child best, are without a doubt the best person to represent your child.
I hope you won't need this section when you receive your results, but should you.. Please know you’re in the best possible hands, last years success speak volumes.
Wishing you the results you want..
Take care..
AM
I really would steer clear of anyone trying to make money out of a clearly upsetting time.
Panels are very used to seeing inexperienced parents; after all usually people only go through the appeals process once.
From my own personal experience the panel did everything they possibly could to put me at ease. Panels and more importantly the chairperson will take the lead in the direction they want the appeal to go in.
However they will also ask you towards the end if there is anything that they have missed or if you would like to add anything that hasn‘t been mentioned.
I must add to others comments on this forums track record, without a doubt the advice on this forum is priceless, from the emotional support, to the words of encouragement, right the way through to the invaluable words of wisdom from our resident gurus Etienne and Sally-Anne.
Having felt incapable of putting together an appeal myself, let alone win it! I can honestly say that paying someone wouldn't have made a blind bit of difference to the outcome, whatever way it went.
You can pay someone to add some fancy touches, but you can't change the facts or scores.
With the help of the Q&As anyone can put together an appeal, with the help of the gurus you can be given an honest account of their experienced opinions.
You as the person who knows your child best, are without a doubt the best person to represent your child.
I hope you won't need this section when you receive your results, but should you.. Please know you’re in the best possible hands, last years success speak volumes.
Wishing you the results you want..
Take care..
AM
