Hello,

New here and first post.
From Warwickshire so had the results in the post today...
Quite frankly the results are abysmal. A clear 30 points away from last place offered in the previous year.

He is naturally devistated (as are we, for him)

Now all through his school life he has exceeded the national average, the points system used to mark him academically have been in the higher green band of 7-9 and his year 5 & 6 teachers have said he belongs in a Grammar School.

I’m just after some advice - is there any point at all in appealing?
I realise all parents believe their kids are smart and I am not being biased, he had a shocking day on test day. He’s a very capible lad and has been doing Shang-hi maths at school as the curriculum doesn’t challenge him enough.

Any advice very gratefully received.

Many thanks

Welcome to Appeals!

As a rule of thumb, the further away away from the score needed, the harder it becomes - but it rather depends on what sort of evidence you can put together.

Appeals for some grammar schools are particularly difficult as the competition for places is so intense.

Lots of reading to do.
Start here.

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Etienne

Thank you Etienne,

I’ve been reading the appeals page since 11am this morning.
The school we hoped for has only 87 places to offer we know that’s a no hope. Our 2nd has nearly double that but again, is a very popular School.
I’m not concerned about gathering academic evidence, it’s the distatamce away from the lowest offered place last year we are.

I don’t want to raise hopes when the reality is we don’t stand a cat in hells chance!

Appeals to KES are notoriously hard to win - and, as you say, you would likely be much closer to the AQS (once it is set - and it is usually close to previous years), to stand any chance at all. 30 points down on last score is a bit tricky to explain as a really bad day - did he miss out a page or lots of questions? Maybe he didn't score as highly in English as Maths/NVR - you say he is strong in Maths but verbal accounts for 50% so perhaps he got pulled up on that side. Did you record any extenuating circumstances at the time of the test that would help you, once you provided your academic evidence?

I assume your second choice is AGS? Scores are usually a bit lower there in the end so it is worth putting that down - if you do want to have a shot at an appeal for KES, you will have to name it on your CAF in first place, then AGS, then some schools that you definitely will get a place at - you have to be rejected to be allowed to then appeal.

You don't have to tell him that you are considering an appeal - you don't have to tell him that you are appealing (if you then decide to go for it) - but you do have to big up whichever school he is likely to go to. Some children are very bright in classes but fall apart in the test situations - if this is what has happened, at least you have the chance to sort out his nerves etc before GCSEs etc.

I am very sorry to hear your news. It must be especially hard when he has always done well at school. Did something go wrong on the day?

Had he done any exams before? Sometimes it is difficult when those who are used to finding it easy encounter more challenging work. DG

Thank you for your replies.
Nothing on the day to report other than the usual nerves.

Could anyone tell me; is our chance of a successful appeal reduced if the school we are appealing was our 2nd choice and not first?

Thanks again

You do have to be rejected by a school to be able to then lodge an appeal. Do put your schools on your CAF in your true order of preference - the equal preference system means that if you do not meet the criteria for the first one (such as not scoring/ranking highly enough) your second choice will be looked at as if it was the first. Don't try and play games with your choices on the CAF - the Council doesnt!! Have a read of the various appeals threads on here but just to get yourself prepared - you never know what may happen come March allocations day...

Edited for clarity as per TM's comment below.

Do you know that your first statement is true for Warwickshire? In Essex, a copy of the original CAF is part of the standard paperwork pack for appeals, along with a copy of the letter detailing the school allocated.

Yes, a panel may wonder why the appeal that they are looking at is for a school not at the top of the appellant's list, but most would just assume that another appeal was somewhere in the system for that or any other schools that were ranked higher than the allocated school, as it is the parents' legal right to appeal for any of those.

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Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.Groucho Marx

I'm sorry for your disappointment. It is really hard when you've hit all the right grades at school etc. It can be a shock.

But do you still have the option of another grammar? It might not be your first choice, but if you do then this is positive (even though it might not seem it at the moment).