The schools appeal process: what you need to know should your child not be offered your preference

Appeal timelines should have been published for your choice of school, so it may be helpful to consider these prior to your need for them.

You must be allowed 20 school days to consider the decision and gather evidence before the deadline by which to lodge your appeal. You must also be given reasonable time to file any evidence on which you wish to rely.

In deciding the appeal, the panel will apply a two-stage process. 

The panel must first consider whether the admission arrangements complied with the law and whether they were correctly and impartially applied in the case in question.

The panel must then decide whether the admission of additional children would prejudice:

1. The provision of efficient education of others; or
2. The efficient use of resources.

In the event that the answer to these questions are “no” the panel must admit the child. If the answer is “yes” they move to the second stage.

In multiple appeals where a number of children would have been offered a place if stage one had been applied correctly, and to admit that number would seriously prejudice the provision of efficient education or efficient use of resources, the panel must proceed to the second stage in any event.

The panel must balance the prejudice to the school against the benefit or reason for the child to be admitted to the school. It must take into account the reasons for the school preference, such as what that school can offer the child that the allocated or other schools cannot.

If the panel considers that the benefit to the child outweighs the prejudice to the school, it must agree the placement.

Whilst the panel must take into account the school’s published admission number, they must be able to demonstrate prejudice over and above the fact that the published admission number has already been reached.

Parents should ensure that they have thought carefully about their reasons for appeal and gathered evidence to demonstrate why the appeal is being brought. Some factors to consider are as follows:

• Religion or difficult family circumstances;
• A special need or health issue;
• A particular aptitude in the school’s specialism;
• Transport issues; and
• Emotional reasons such as historic bullying.

Reception, year 1 and year 2 class sizes are limited to 30. Therefore, an appeal for this age group is typically more difficult. 

Your appeal could, however, be successful if:

• Giving your child a place would not increase the class size above the limit;
• The admission criteria have not been properly followed;
• The admission criteria do not follow the school admissions code; or
• The panel considers the decision not to offer a place was ‘perverse in light of the published admission arrangements’.

Otherwise, the government has also listed circumstances in which a child can be classed as an exception. They include: twins, children of armed services parents, looked after children, and children who have special educational needs.

School admissions can be very competitive but parents have a right to tell their local authority which school they would prefer their child to go to.

The local authority must consider parents' preferences and follow the School Admissions Code during the admissions process, but don't have to give any reason for their decision when they do reach a verdict.

If you feel that your preferences have been unfairly dismissed, you can appeal the decision with the local authority, the Independent Admissions Appeal Panel or even judicial review.

In our experience, parents often have a clear preference for various reasons but it's important to focus on the thresholds detailed above and what the panel are looking for in order to demonstrate your appeal.

We're often contacted to assist in drafting submissions to the appeal panel in order that families have the best chance at articulating why the place is needed, and are happy to support you with an appeal.