Hi my son got 120.75 in the 11+ so we are doing a Selection Review. Unfortunately the Interim Head has said she will not support the Selection Review because they did not expect him to pass. She said he is academically able but his effort/behaviour are not good. He has recently been diagnosed with ADHD, ASD, Dypraxia & SLD. He also has Sensory Processing Disorder. None of this was known prior to the test so he did not have any extra time & was not in a separate room for the test. There was also a distraction during the test, which Bucks CC were made aware of by the school. We believe our son is academically able for Grammar school with SEN support. The school have provided me with some, but not all of his assessments. Which are the most important to include in the Selection Review? In his year 5 report he got 5S for writing, 5S for Maths and 5S+ for Reading. What are these scores and are they strong enough? I also have some CATS results from year 3 & 4. The only Year 5 results I have been given are the ones I have detailed above. It feels like the school are being deliberately difficult. I am not going to include the Headteachers Assessment because she has only been at the school for two terms so I don't feel she knows my son well enough to make an accurate judgement. What are the chances of him getting through the Selection Review without the Head's Assessment? I plan to include the extenuating circumstance, a letter of support from his consultant detailing his conditions, a letter of support from an Occupational Therapist detailing his Sensory Processing issues and a letter of support from his Year 5 teacher. My son will also be doing a WISC test so I hope to be able to include this too. Is there anything else I can do to strengthen his case? I have a meeting with the Head & SEN next week. I will be asking whether the Head still stands by he decision not to support my son's Selection Review. Any advice would be much appreciated.

What are the predictions for KS2 tests? Have you thought of delaying for an appeal?

I must say that, as a former GS SENCo, the Interim HT's comments seem strange - children's effort and behaviour are not reasons why they aren't suitable for a Grammar!

Let's see what Etienne's thoughts are ...

I'd be surprised if the Head hadn't spoken to the class teacher prior to making her decision. I suspect the opinion isn't just his/hers. Throwing it out there (and no offence intended), maybe checking which schools (Grammar and non Grammar) have the best SEN provision might be better approach than "Grammar at all costs".

Whatever you choose, good luck.

Welcome to Appeals!

Well done! So close!

I agree with Guest55 that this is not a reason for refusing to support a review or appeal.

I was hoping you would tell us!
Does 5S = expected level for Y5, and 5S+ = above the expected level? Perhaps someone knows better?
Schools have their own systems for reporting on attainment, and I would have thought that parents ought to be provided with a clear explanation.
The review panel would be interested in attainment levels from Y2-Y5, and predictions for the end of Y6.
Did your son get level 3s in Y2? (You would have received a printout of the results at the time.) What did school reports in Y3 and Y4 say about attainment in reading, writing and maths?

My suggestions for a successful review are in the Q&As:
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appea ... aneous#e32

It depends how good they are!

It will probably make things more difficult - but it depends whether the rest of the academic evidence is going to be strong enough.

Ultimately you do have a legal right to know what information the school has recorded:
B20(c):
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appea ... cation#b20

With a score of 120.75 I can't see that extenuating circumstances will be a problem in your case. The issue will be academic evidence.

It would be interesting to see what it says.

Again, the results will be interesting.

You are probably aware that an unsuccessful review could seriously prejudice any subsequent appeal.
You would normally have stood a good chance at review with a score of 120, but the lack of support from the head could be a problem. We'll be in a better position to judge when you have all the evidence.
If you want to send us any information privately, you can:
viewtopic.php?f=35&t=9907&p=108023#p108023

_________________
Etienne

CATS year 3:
English 120
Maths 99
Non verbal 112

All level 3's by the end of year 3.

CATS year 4:
English 119
Maths 116
Non verbal 117

Are these results ok? Not entirely sure what range is good/above average.

The school have not provided any Year 5 results and they have not provided any predictions for the end of year 6. The Interim Head and his current year 6 teacher (only had her for 6 weeks) are both saying he is not able for grammar school. I was told the same about my eldest son (now 15). He just passed the 11+, goes to Grammar, has been predicted all 7-9 grades for GCSE's & is in the High Achievers group. They are both very different boys but academically I do feel they are both able.

Thank you for your replies so far they are very helpful. I'll have a read.

I think the panel would be looking for higher CAT scores
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appea ... cation#b57
and preferably level 3s at the end of year two. (Level 3 sounds average for Y3.)
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appea ... cation#b23

I can sympathise. We hear of too many examples of children who are judged not to be academically able - but who go on to be very successful.
Unfortunately the panel won't take into account how the sibling has performed.

_________________
Etienne

I have since found the explanation of assessment data for his Year 5 report. The 5S indicates that he was working Securely at age related expectations for Maths & Writing and the 5S+ indicates that he was working at the Mastery level of the curriculum with his Reading (he got the highest score in the class for the Reading assessment).

Hi - I think the review panel would be looking for S+.

What was on the Year 5 report?

Without KS2 predictions and with the evidence you have shared I would think a review would be unsuccessful. My thought would be to delay for an appeal and hope academic evidence increases. Do you have a good back-up plan?

Hi thank you for the advice so far. I just had my son's WISC test back, results are as follows:

IQ 115 84%
VCI 113 81%
VSI 102 55%
PSI 119 90%

Please could you advise whether these will strengthen our case?

SAS scores for Year 5 were:
130 Reading
117 Maths