Choosing a school

Although there is no class size legislation to contend with in these year groups, it's worth remembering that according to the Published Admission Number (the number of children that the school should admit for each year group), each school will be 'full'. Therefore, in order to win the appeal, you will have to demonstrate that the reasons for admitting your child, are sufficient to outweigh the 'prejudice' to the school of taking an extra pupil (i.e. would taking an extra pupil have a negative impact on the education of other children at the school?)

Key Stage 2/Secondary school appeals: Preparation

When you first register your appeal, you'll be sent a form to give your reasons for appealing. Think carefully about your reasons - successful appeals tend to be the ones where there are specific reasons why it is important that your child has a place at that particular school.

In this respect, it might be worthwhile considering two questions;

1. Why does my child need a place at THAT school?
2. What might happen if my child doesn't get a place at that school?

Try to be as detailed as possible. Simply saying "it's a good school" will not be too persuasive - why is it a 'good' school for your son/daughter?

Other popular reasons include:

• Friends attend the school - Lots of children go to schools without their friends. Is it important they know somebody at the school?
• The school is close to the child's residence - Coventry is quite a small city and alternative schools may be just as close and may have places available
• "It's ideal for me in terms of work/child care" - Although the panel may recognise the difficulty this may present for parents, it would not generally be seen as a reason to award a place by itself.

These are just a couple of examples of what you might use in your appeal. But it is all about you and your child - there may be lots of reasons why you feel you need a place at that particular school.

Once you're prepared, you're ready to head to the appeal.