Schools and local authorities told to comply with School Admissions Law

Jim Knight wrote to all local authorities in January warning that not all parents and children have got a fair chance to get into the school of their choice this September. He urged them to get their admissions policies in order for September 2009 - which have to be finalised by 15 April.

Jim Knight said that, although he was confident that the vast majority of schools’ admissions policies comply with the code (which rules out subjective arrangements, which penalise low-income families, or vulnerable children, with disabilities, special educational needs or in care) some councils and schools may be flouting the new tougher mandatory School Admissions Code.

Knight was speaking on the day that a new mandatory Admission Appeals Code for parents came into force – to bring greater legal force, clarity, consistency and independence to the appeals system.

In the last year, the independent Office of the School Adjudicator, which regulates the admission system, has investigated objections against 79 schools. Complaints investigated have included:

unfair or unnecessary supplementary information forms asking for personal details about parents such as asking for copies of birth or marriage certificates
the use of subjective tests and criteria such as asking parents to give their reasons for applying to a certain school and then making a subjective judgement about whether those reasons are better or worse than those given by other parents.

Talking about the Schools Admissions Code, Mr Knight said:

“No ifs or buts – there is absolutely no excuse not to comply with the law to stamp out unfair and covert admission practices which penalise low-income families and increase social segregation. It is unacceptable that children may be missing out on school places because unlawful arrangements are in place almost 12 months on from the Code becoming statutory.”

The Government continues to monitor the Code’s impact on children and families over time but will give additional support to local authorities, schools and parents to ensure that it is enforced. It will also publish a new guide for parents in the spring to help them understand the system and how they complain if they find admissions that they think may be unlawful.

Knight also announced that the new Admission Appeals Code had become mandatory. The Code balances the right of the parents to have a fair hearing and the right of schools to be protected against admitting more pupils than originally planned, if that will have a detrimental affect on children’s education.

From 17 January, by law, all admission authorities, governing bodies, admission forums, schools adjudicators and appeals panels now have to adhere to the Code, whereas before they only had to have ‘regard’ to it.

The Code sets out that:

anyone who has a connection with the school or who could in any way be perceived as being partial must not sit on an appeal panel or act as a clerk
appeal panel members and clerks must now receive suitable training before they hear appeals
specific timescales within which an appeal must be held
all parents must have appropriate guidance and information from admission authorities, to help prepare their case for appeal
all appeal panels must have regard to the impact of additional admissions on the quality of education and the use of resources in school and
local authorities and diocesan bodies should consider centralising the recruiting and training of panel members and Clerks, and take responsibility for administering the appeals process – leading to greater independence and consistency in administration, clerking and decision-making.

Talking about the new Code, Mr Knight said: “I want every child to have a fair and equal chance to get into a school of their own choice. And it is absolutely right that parents have a statutory power to appeal against admission decisions, before a completely impartial appeals panel…it’s vital that parents who appeal have full confidence in the system and that local authorities and schools do not leave themselves open to challenge.”

Schools and local authorities told to comply with School Admissions Law

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