12+ appeal (Bucks)

[stokepogesmum]

Hi Etienne or Sally - Anne

Please help! My daughter was successful in the 12 plus and got the qualifying score, however did not get into our no1 choice. I want to appeal, the only grounds I really have is that her school at present is not strong on music and does not have any ensembles let alone orchestras. My daughter is an all rounder and needs her music to be complete and at present she is not. She is a Grade 4 violinist and does not have any opportunities at school.

What can I do?


We'll move this post for you - you really need your own thread on Appeals.

Moderator

[Guest55]

Did she get a GS place?

You need to set out why the school you wanted is the best for her. You have to persuade the IAP (Independent Appeal Panel) that her need for the school is stronger than the prejudice to the school of having to cope with an additional studnet.

[Etienne]

Welcome to the forum!

The music argument seems quite a good point. Remember to provide evidence of grade 4, etc.

More generally, I'm afraid only you can come up with sufficient reasons for why you want or need a place.
We do list the sort of reasons that are often given:
http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appeal ... -school#c2" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[stokepogesmum]

Yes she got into BGS. My daughter and I both want her to go to BHS.....

We are in catchment, but live in stoke poges.

We have visited BHS twice and every time my daughter says she wants to go that school.

I appreciate we have got a grammer school place, but what is more important is the right school for the child.

[Guest55]

Yes - that's exactly what you have to convince the panel.

What is it about BHS that makes it 'the right school' for your daughter ....?

Try to look at what the school offers and pick some points to expand on.

[Booklady]

Be careful what you decide. BHS is not that great for music! In fact Jules7 may come on and tell you why they went out of BHS for GCSE music (both our DD's go there) - her DD is doing Music GCSE out of school because of the issues with teaching - and she's not the only one. And I heard they are no longer going to offer A2 music - they are expected kids to decamp to SWBGS in Marlow if they want music.

If music is what you seek - be careful to ensure the grass is really greener ........!

[scary mum]

BGS is starting to offer A2 music (I think) but yes a lot decamp to SWBGS for music. Music is improving at BGS but is not a strength.

[stokepogesmum]

Thanks everybody.

We went to see BGS and they told us that they do not have any orchestras or ensembles, whereas BHS has both. BHS also has facilities which we have seen to support these. When we went to BGS, we were not shown around any facilities and were told all they have is two classrooms.

There are three schools in our catchment, BHS, BGS and Chalfonts where my daughter goes to. Out of the three schools we found BHS was the better one out of the three for music!

Overall, we found that BHS catered better for my daughter in terms of academic, music, dance(which she also loves) and netball!

I wish my daughter could go to SWBG, but unfortunately we are not in catchment and logistically I feel we could not drop my daughter off

[stokepogesmum]

Hi

We have decided to appeal as we have nothing to lose at present. Just wanted to ask as my DD has passed the 12 plus, do we need any evidence with regards to her educational ability? Or is it just the case that I can provide evidence of her musical ability?

[Etienne]

We have decided to appeal as we have nothing to lose at present. Just wanted to ask as my DD has passed the 12 plus, do we need any evidence with regards to her educational ability? Or is it just the case that I can provide evidence of her musical ability?

Only if 12+ places were awarded in score order (and even then it would be optional).

From the Q&As:

• • B1. Introduction
    
    a. This section deals with appeals where you are addressing the issue of non-qualification in the 11+ entry test(s) for grammar school. (In all probability, though, you will also need to address the issue of oversubscription. See section C2 .)
    
    b. This section might also be relevant if the 11+ score was one of the admission criteria, and the score achieved was not high enough to gain a place. If you have relevant evidence of very high academic ability – and possibly of extenuating circumstances too – then, in addition to any arguments dealing with the oversubscription part of the appeal, you may wish to argue that your child was expected to perform even more highly in the 11+ than he/she did. An example of this could be if your child underperformed in two 11+ papers (VR and maths), and you have alternative evidence of very high VR scores and of very high ability in maths. I think you would need to explain to the panel why you are introducing the evidence.