If your child is refused a place at any school, you have the right to appeal to an independent school appeals panel.

How to appeal

Appeals for in-year transfers (moving schools)

If you have applied to move schools and your child has been refused a place at a preferred school, you will receive a letter from us. It will explain why a place was refused and include details of how to appeal.

Appeals for reception and Y7 for September 2024

We will post details of how to appeal admissions here from March 2024.

If you have supporting information you would like to include in your appeal, you should send this to us as a scanned document by email or post.

Please do not send photographs of supporting information, we need to make copies of it.

 

Timetable for school appeals

Appeal hearings for children refused a place at a preferred school for first admission to Year 7 or Reception Class.

Year 7 admissions for September 2024

National offer day is 1 March 2024 you should make an appeal by 29 March 2024.

Reception class admissions for September 2024 

National offer day is 16 April 2024 you should make an appeal by 15 May 2024. 

  • Appeals made on time will be heard within 40 school days of these dates
  • Appeals received after these dates will still be scheduled but may be heard later than appeals made on time.
  • Appeals for moving schools will be heard within 30 school days of receipt.
  • Other appeals will be heard within 30 school days of receipt.

The appeal hearing

You will be contacted ten days before the appeal date to outline the process and the options available. Paperwork will be sent to you around five working days before the hearing.

The panel

The appeals panel will be made up of three members who fall into these categories:

  1. At least one lay member who has no personal experience of management in schools
  2. At least one member who has personal experience in education

There will also be a clerk to the panel who will advise on any legal issues and will note the proceedings. The clerk has no part in the decision making.

A representative from the council (for all community schools appeals) or the school’s governing body/Academy trust (for all church aided and academy schools appeals) will also be there to state their reasons for refusal.

Infant class size appeals

The Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998 require no five, six or seven year old will be in a class of more than 30 pupils.

If your preference for a primary school is refused because the class has reached its statutory limit, you will be given the right of appeal.

This can only be upheld if an appeal panel is satisfied:

  1. the decision was not one which a reasonable admission authority would make in the circumstances of the case; or
  2. the child would have been offered a place if the admission arrangements had been properly implemented.

.GOV.UK has more information on infant class size appeals.

The panel’s decision

The panel members will make their decision in private and you and the school will be told of their decision by letter within five school days. For ‘batch’ appeals in relation to the normal round of admission, it will be five school days after the final appeal for the school is heard.

The decision of the panel is final and binding between the council, the school and yourself.

Successful appeal

If your appeal is successful your child will be awarded a place at the school and you will be asked to contact them to arrange a start date.

Unsuccessful appeal

If your appeal is unsuccessful, no further appeal can be made for the same school in the same year group, unless there has been a material change of your or the school's circumstances.

If you think your case has been dealt with unfairly or unlawfully, you have the right to contact the Local Government Ombudsman or Education Skills and Funding Agency. The details will be included with your decision letter.

We will be able to give you information on other local schools with available places.