School admissions appeals

Primary schools

Can I appeal if my child is refused a place?
If you are refused a place at one or more of your preferred primary schools, the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 gives you the right to appeal against the decision. There is no right of appeal for applications to nursery schools or nursery classes. The law states that infant class sizes cannot be above 30 pupils, so appeals panels can only allow an additional pupil into reception in exceptional circumstances, ie if they decide that:
• your child would have been offered a place if the admission arrangements had been properly implemented;
• the admission policy for the school was not compliant with the government’s School Admissions Code and this meant that your child was not offered a place; and/or
• the decision to refuse admission was not one which a reasonable admission authority would have made in the circumstances of the case.

You can pick up the appeal form for community schools by visiting us (contact details on rear cover) or direct from the school. We must receive your appeal form by 3 May 2010 at the latest. Failure to appeal by this date may result in your appeal not being heard. For a voluntary aided school appeal you will need to contact the school direct to find out its own appeal arrangements.

If you decide to appeal, it is vital that you still accept an offer of a place at another school, as there is no guarantee the appeal will succeed. Accepting this place will not prejudice the outcome of your appeal.

See our Starting School booklet for more detail, including the admissions criteria for community and voluntary aided schools. For further information or advice call the admissions team on 020 8753 2627/3628/3664.

How do I appeal?
Pick up an appeal form from the school or the children's services department, Cambridge House, Cambridge Grove. For Community Primary School your appeal must be received in the department by 22 May 2009 at the latest. Failure to appeal by this date may result in your appeal not being heard. For voluntary aided schools, you will need to contact the school to find out their own appeal arrangements. 

If you decide to appeal, it is vital to accept the offer of a place at another school, as there is no guarantee the appeal will succeed. This will not prejudice the outcome. 

Secondary schools
Under the terms of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, you have the right to appeal to an independent panel for a place at a school where you have been refused a place for your child. If this school is a voluntary aided school, you must contact that school for details of how to appeal. For community schools, contact the admissions section at the local authority. Any places won on appeal are in addition to the published admissions number for the school. 

• More details about community schools admissions criteria
• More details about voluntary aided schools admissions criteria