11 Plus Exams Forum

Hi
I need an advice. I will move from London to Leicester in a couple of weeks.
The council of Leicestershire informed that all the schools are academies and control their own admission, and they don't have a place form both my kids in year 1 and year 3 at any school except faith schools which I am not happy for my kids to join.
Based on these circumstances, do you think an appeal against schools where my house is in their catchment ara would be successful?
Both my kids will be left without a school in 2 weeks time, what shall i do?

I note that you are coming from London and it is not clear but if you are moving to a rural area then faith schools are very different. In rural areas many (if not most) schools are faith schools, harking back to the era when the Church was the only institution interested in universal education. These schools are very different to the faith schools in London (not least in that one has a chance of getting DC in!) and are effectively local community schools. I would not personally be worried about them.
On the other hand if you will be in an urban area and the faith schools are not, in effect community schools, then I can understand your concern, but am afraid I cannot advise you about appeals. I would also have reservations and would hope that a desire to have ones DC educated in a multi faith environment would be a good argument, but I am not sure the system would see it this way. Good luck either way!

Welcome to Appeals!

Based on these circumstances, do you think an appeal against schools where my house is in their catchment ara would be successful?

There are strict rules for infant class appeals:
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appea ... aneous#e31" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
If there are already 30 children in each Y1 class, it is very unlikely that your appeal would be successful.

With regard to Y3, it helps if you will be in catchment, but whether or not it will be enough depends on the strength of the school's case for opposing any further admissions. It will be a 'balancing act'.
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appea ... -school#c1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
https://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appea ... -school#c2" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

what shall i do?

If the LA has offered you places (even if it is at a school you don't want), it has fulfilled its legal duty. If you refuse their offer, I'm afraid the consequence will be that you become responsible for educating your children.

I’d echo what Mad? says about faith schools. My DD went to a faith primary school. While church attendance was one of the admission criteria, very, very few children are admitted on that basis and a reasonable number of children age of other religions (or none). So if your issue is to do with the make up of the school, it’s worth actually checking each school as you might be surprised about the diversity. I certainly was and DD wouldn’t have gone there otherwise.

However they do still have church assemblies and there is still an emphasis on Christianity, so if that’s the basis of your issues then I’d understand entirely why you’d want to go elsewhere.

Thank you all for your replies.
Apologies, I forgot to mention that the school offered by the council is number 15th in terms of distance from my house, nearly 1.8 miles form home. While my wife is not driving, this means 3 kids have to walk for neatly 2 miles in the morning and the afternoon and my wife have to walk double that distance, while 3-4 schools are 100 yards from my house. There are 14 multifaith schools closer to the school offered!!

It sounds like you are in an urban area, (our nearest primary in Leicestershire was about 4 miles)

Suspect it may be worth visiting the faith schools if they are more local and discuss with them your concerns about your children joining the school, you may well find that they are welcoming and helpful.

As Etienne says, the chance of winning an appeal if there are already 30 children is very limited

If the faith schools are just community schools, then places would have been offered at one of them if it was nearer than the school offered and had places, though. Or fo you mean that it is a faith school that you have been offered, which is the one 1.8 miles away? I do hope your comment that your DC will soon be without a school doesnt mean that you have already refused the places?

The Education Act holds parents responsible for providing a suitable full time education for their DC , suitable-(a)to his age, ability and aptitude, and (b)to any special educational needs he may have,either by regular attendance at school or otherwise". If you decide to discharge this duty by sending them to school, that's fine, and the LEA must find a place if you ask them t, but equally, that means a place, not necessarily at the school you want most.

1.8 miles (c.30 minutes' walk) is officially considered to be a teasonable distance for a schoolchild under the age of 8 - if they were both 8 or older, the reasonable distance would be up to 3 miles.

Just to add that my children went to a CoE primary school in London and - whilst they did attend church for assembly one day a week (which they could be removed from if they chose) - they certainly had children of many faiths (Muslim, Hindu and Jewish to my certain knowledge) and none. We were definitely in small minority of parents who would have classed themselves as Christian.

I understand where you are coming from and sympathise.

I have heard appeals before for parents who didn't want their children to go to a faith school, as well as ones who didn't want a secular school. Unfortunately there's no weight in the admissions process (apart from ranking via individual schools admission policy) given to either faith or lack thereof. You could contact Humanists UK who have an education officer.

One thing to remember is that non-faith schools still have RE and a Religious Assembly, and you may find that they still have input from a local church or evangelical group. In some ways it may be better to use a faith school - at least it would be overt religion.