Essex Waiting List Criteria

[cntrymum]

I had put only one grammar school and one comprehensive school in my son's CAF. As my son could not qualify for the grammar school, he has been offered the comprehensive school as his second choice. When I spoke to the CSSE, they informed me that my son could have got other grammar schools if I had put these schools in the original CAF at a higher preference position than the comprehensive school. I sent a new preference list to my Essex LEA through e-mail. Today I received the rejection letter from the Essex LEA.

When I spoke to a lady at the admissions, I was told that they have put the name of my son at the bottom of the waiting list as we changed the preference and it has been treated as a second application. They also mentioned that School Admissions Code does not apply in this case as it is a second application. A search in the internet has shown that several counties like Southend, Kent, Essex Redbridge etc allow the addition of new schools in the preference list. They treat these applications as "late application". It seems that they follow both the oversubscription criteria of the school as well as follow the admissions code when they put the name of a pupil at the waiting list.

Can anybody please tell me what is the catch here? If all the LEAs are following the oversubscription criteria of the school and school admission code simultaneously then why the outcome is so different? In this case, getting into a grammar school or not. Can anybody from the ACE please help?

[admission]

This seems to all revolve around this curious statement in the essex admission booklet

Where a new application is received after the offer date for an oversubscribed school which was not on the list of original preferences submitted and there are no exceptional circumstances requiring the new application, the LA will hold the applicants details on a lower priority waiting list and allocate places from this list only when there are no applicants remaining on the priority waiting list.

The first question is when did you actually submit a new preference list. I am assuming from the post that it was after the 1st March. What would normally happen is that a request for a school place at another school would result, assuming it was full, in you going on the waiting list for that school in the admission criteria order. As places become available the place is offered to whoever is at the top of that list at that time. What the above quote says is that you are somehow placed on a low priority waiting list rather than the high priority waiting list which someone who was a completely new applicant after the 1st March would be on. That to me is unfair and therefore should be against the admission code. This appears to be a very similar situation to that in Stockport last year where they were operating a two tier waiting list and the school adjudictor said was illegal.

My advice to you would be to ask for an explanation in writing of the reasons why you are on this low priority waiting list and see what they come up with. If they come up with the answer above, my immediate temptation is to write back and tell them that you have referred it to the schools adjudicator as you believe it is unfair and breaks the admission code.

In the meantime as they will not put you on the right position on the waiting list (which may still be very low down the list) I would apply for an appeal for those grammar schools that you believe that your son would have been offered a place at. That at least gives you the opportunity to argue your case there as well as with the school adjudicator.

However I cannot end without noting that if you had actually completed all six of the available preference places, you would not be in this situation.