I now have the data for  appeals for those primary and secondary schools in Kent, whose appeals were heard by an Independent Appeal Panel organised by KCC. In previous years I have had the data for all schools at this time, but figures for the 26 secondary schools who organise their own appeals will not be available until later in the year. I do not publish school by school data here, as it varies so much year on year, depending on the pressure on places, the decision of the admission authority (in most cases the school)  as to how hard to resist the appeal and the make up of the panels. However, I do identify below where there are particular trends. 

2011 Secondary Appeal Numbers
	Appeals Heard	Appeals Upheld	% Upheld
Foundation & Voluntary Aided Grammar Schools	542	186	34
Community Grammar Schools	237	101	42
Totla Grammar Schools	779	287	36
Non Selective Schools	186	129	69

Details follow.........

Kent County Council is experimenting with a new approach for some of its Appeal hearings this year, where schools are heavily oversubscribed. Schools where this process is being used for the first time  include Maidstone Grammar School for Girls, Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys and Simon Langton Grammar School for Girls......

I am receiving a number of enquiries about oversubscription appeals.These are where the school (it may be non-selective or grammar) is full. I am advising some parents to put in a holding appeal (simply writing "I am appealing for a place for my child (name) at (name) school. A more detailed letter will follow" on the form, which means you do not need to submit full details by deadline day). You can then leave submitting a detailed letter until after 4th April when the first round of reallocations takes place in Kent (Medway 21st March). I am happy to delay taking on clients until that time, when you will know whether an appeal will be necessary. Also the pressure on myself is less, and so I am able to turn around an appeal letter more quickly. Please feel free to contact me if you wish clarification on this.

Headline News: 83% of Kent children have been offered their first choice secondary school; it is 87%. Just 413 Kent children have been allocated to a school not on their list, a steep drop from the 620 of last year. In Medway it is just 55. Good news for those who have been successful, but that's no comfort for those left out in the cold.A total of 513 out of Kent applicants have been offered places, mainly the West Kent high score schools, the Tunbridge Wells church schools, and the North West Kent grammar schools.

Numbers of Sussex children being offered places at West Kent Grammar schools have fallen considerably as I forecast back in November, so the pressures have eased. However, I am still hearing of girls in Pembury and boys in North Sevenoaks, grammar school qualified, who have not been offered grammar school places. As the Knole Academy is full, many of these children are being offered places at Skinners Kent Academy. Also as I forecast then, the pass mark for out of Dartford boys applying to Dartford Grammar School has shot up from 394 to at least 408.

Summary; better news than last year for most, but still some very sad outcomes.

There was a glitch with the online decision notification from both Kent and Medway. I gather this was not down to either Authority. With 87% of Kent applicants on line, this was very frustrating  but all has apparently been sorted (unless you know different!).

You may have caught me on BBC SE last evening, commenting on major issues and again on Radio Kent this morning.

I will add to this as I have time, but as you will appreciate, my first priority is to potential clients.

I shall be on Radio Kent between 8 and 9 in the morning of Wednesday March 2nd, and possibly later on, answering questions and talking about transfer patterns and issues.

Decisions arrive by email for those who have applied electronically after 4 p.m. on March 1st. With some 80% of the 20,000 children involved in Kent and Medway having completed online applications, this can still be a lengthy process, with some families waiting several hours for their decision. All applicants will have a letter posted on that day aimed to arrive by post on March 2nd setting out the school allocated and the procedure if you wish to appeal for a school you have not been offered.

Please note, if you now wish to apply for a new school in Kent that you have not previously listed, there is a new system forcing you to go through the bureaucratically cumbersome In Year Admission process, details here, or from KCC.  For Medway it appears much quicker, a complete turn around from two years ago when you couldn't even apply for new schools at this stage.

I am already arranging consultations for clients, so please contact me as soon as you know the school to which you have been allocated. Remember, the minimum you need to do to appeal is to write on the form provided:  "I am appealing for a place for my child (name) at (name) school. A more detailed letter will follow". This enables you to take your time over putting your appeal together without needing to rush to meet deadlines.

Several firms of Kent solicitors are now offering appeal services at fees which appear to be some £160 per hour or more. Please remember that preparing school appeals are not primarily legal matters. I believe my own experience of over 600 successful school appeals over the past eight years, together with my extensive knowledge of admission and appeals matters across Kent and Medway is a strong recommendation in itself.

last updated 4 May 2011

I am receiving a number of enquiries about oversubscription appeals.These are where the school (it may be non-selective or grammar) is full. I am advising some parents to put in a holding appeal (simply writing "I am appealing for a place for my child (name) at (name) school. A more detailed letter will follow" on the form, which means you do not need to submit full details by deadline day). You can then leave submitting a detailed letter until after 4th April when the first round of reallocations takes place in Kent (Medway 21st March). I am happy to delay taking on clients until that time, when you will know whether an appeal will be necessary. Also the pressure on myself is less, and so I am able to turn around an appeal letter more quickly. Please feel free to contact me if you wish clarification on this.

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If you are interested in using my professional services, please email me with a brief outline of your situation (including test marks if a grammar school appeal), and a contact phone number, and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Currently, due to pressure of work, I am only accepting clients who live in Kent or Medway Local Authority areas and are appealing for schools in those local authorities.

To make an appeal for a Kent school you should download an appeal form here.

• You will find the most recent appeal statistics for both Kent and Medway here.
• There is a new Code of Practice for School Appeals, issued by government, taking effect from March 2009. Some key issues are set out at Code.
• If your child is not allocated their first preference school in March, you may be able to secure a place at a school higher in your list through appeal.
• First piece of advice is – don’t panic. You will not get an earlier appeal or a better hearing by sending in your case early. If you are not ready, make sure you record your appeal by the closing date, using such words as “I am appealing for….... I will send in my detailed case when it is ready”. This enables you to take advice or plan your appeal without additional pressure (it is already stressful enough!). If yours is one of the few Foundation schools that organises early appeals, you can still send in your case when you are notified of the date, without penalty.
• Appeals are always possible for non selective schools when the number of pupils applying for a school is larger than the approved number of admissions.
• Kent admission rules allow parents to apply to any school not on their original list after April 4th using the In Year Admission process. Use this to the full, as at the least you are placed on a waiting list and then have rights of appeal. Some children who did not originally apply for a school and who now apply after April 4th will be offered places ahead of others on the waiting list.
• You will be asked to submit a case and appear personally at the Panel hearing. The best grounds for appeal are where families can show that the admission of another pupil will not damage the education of those already admitted, where another child has been wrongly selected ahead of their own, or that the admission policy has been interpreted wrongly. Some Foundation & VA schools are keen to admit additional pupils, and in such cases the appeal is much easier, if you have a reasonable case, or your child appears to ‘fit’ the school ethos.
• Each oversubscribed school has its own character and approach to appeals for additional pupils.
• Grammar school oversubscription appeals can be very complex, as appellants may have children who have passed the eleven plus, others will not have, and the appeal panel has to balance competing claims.
• I advise on the expected appeal pattern for each school, and the best strategy to achieve success. I offer a range of services for parents, including writing the appeal letter & preparing the case for the appeal . I do not normally attend appeal hearings, as Panels are more interested in talking directly with parents. However, I am happy to represent parents where there is technical evidence to present, or where parents are not confident of making the case I will have prepared for them. Whichever package parents select, I ensure the best case is put forward and have a very good record of success.
• Remember, at the end of the day, if the school is genuinely full there may be no way to secure admission.

Kent County Council is experimenting with a new approach for some of its Appeal hearings this year, where schools are heavily oversubscribed. Schools where this process is being used for the first time  include Maidstone Grammar School for Girls, Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys and Simon Langton Grammar School for Girls.  The Admission Code for School Appeals recommends that where a school is oversubscribed, appeals should be divided into two stages, although Kent County Council has not followed this recommendation in previous years. Where this happens, the first part is called the group stage, where all parents appealing are invited to a meeting at the start of proceedings. At this meeting, all the issues relating to oversubscription are debated between parents and the Admission Authority Presenting Officer in front of the Appeal Panel. No matters relating to individuals are  considered. This enables the Appeal Panel to determine before hearing individual appeals how many children, if any, can be admitted before prejudice applies (see section on appeals).  The second stage is the individual appeal where each parent puts the case for their individual child. In the second stage there is no discussion of oversubscription issues. The Panel then has to decide which children should be offered places, possibly accepting that for some, there will be prejudice, but their individual circumstances outweigh this. I have some experience of the system, as Medway Council has used it for many years with, in my view, mixed success. Many parents are inhibited at the Group meeting and find it difficult to put forward their points. At some meetings the meeting rapidly degenerated into an unpleasant verbal battle (I don't see this happening at the Kent appeals); at others very few parents turned up,few views were expressed and the meeting fizzled out (more likely). My advice is go to the meeting, at the very least you will see the Appeal Panel members in advance. Don't be afraid to speak out if you believe the school is capable of admitting extra children although this can be come quite a technical argument and school cases for not admitting additional children can be quite intimidating.  You won't affect your individual chances by making the case that more children in general can be admitted. In Medway where Appeal Panel members were used to the process, they engaged in quite vigorous and challenging questioning of the Admission Authority. One would expect that KCC panellists will have been trained to carry out similar rigorous questioning. However, where there is no Group Appeal  (all KCC Appeal Panels up to now), questioning on prejudice is required to take place in every appeal and can be quite perfunctory and formulaic, so there does need to be a  change of approach.   One of the strongest arguments year on year comes from looking at the numbers in older year groups. If the school can manage these, then why shouldn't it manage the same number again. -------- This is a new article on a new theme and I am very happy to accept suggestions and ideas to improve it.

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I shall be arranging arranging secondary appeal consultations from mid February. See Can I help you for details.

I recommend that you first read the general information on school appeals here.  You will bea ble to download a Kent Appeal form here.

Kent and Medway grammar school testing takes place in September, but parents need to be aware that if their child is unsuccessful in the test, in a Kent Headteacher assessment or Medway Review, there is no right to appeal until after school allocation, 1st  March 2011. Your right to appeal is then to a particular school. You cannot appeal against a non selective decision in general. Whilst appeals usually begin in April/May, some may not be heard until July 2011.  

Medway parents are  offered a Review of any non selective decision in November, but are still allowed to appeal if they have not gone to Review.  Many Kent children are put forward for headteacher’s assessment in October (without parental knowledge), but parents are not bound by this. These stages take place before the selective decision is confirmed.

There are three main situations with regard to grammar school appeals:

1) The child has not passed the eleven plus and there are spaces available

2) The child has passed the eleven plus and the school is full;

3) The child has not passed the eleven plus and the school is full.

First piece of advice is – don’t panic. You will not get an earlier appeal or a better hearing by sending in your case early. If you are not ready, make sure you record your appeal by the closing date, using such words as “I am appealing for….... I will send in my detailed case when it is ready”. This enables you to take advice or plan your appeal without additional pressure (it is already stressful enough!). In any case, the rule is: "Parents should also be informed that there is no statutory time limit for submitting information about their appeal". However,if yours is one of the few Foundation schools that organises early appeals, such as Rochester Grammar School and Chatham Grammar School for Girls, it is important to get the appeal lodged in good time, as a late appeal may find the school full after others have been heard.

There is a basic division between grammar schools run by the county (community schools) and the foundation and voluntary aided schools that form the majority. Foundation grammar schools each have their own approach to appeals; some using an independent appeal panel set up by the county, others choosing their own panel members. Some wish to admit additional pupils, others resist strongly. These produce a wide range of success rates, both from county to county and for individual schools within counties. I advise you, in the case of Foundation or VA Schools who provide their own Independent Appeal Panel, to contact the headteacher who may be willing to offer the school perspective. Some grammar schools are regularly oversubscribed with successful candidates, particularly in West Kent. If you are deprived of a place on this basis, you still have the right to appeal.

Parents can only appeal to a school they have named on the application form, so choice of schools remains critical. However, in Kent if you choose not to apply for a particular grammar school, you still have the right to apply using the In Year Admission Process after the end of March 2011 and if turned down because your child has not taken the test, or has not passed the test, or the school is full, you can appeal. However, this route carries additional risk if the school is likely to be full.  

I am often asked what scores are likely to be successful in a grammar school appeal. This is an impossible question to answer for Appeal Panels will wish to take other factors into account. These may include: what special circumstances do you have that will convince a panel there has been a miscarriage (there is no point in producing peripheral issues); what alternative evidence do you have to demonstrate that your child is of grammar school ability; is the school a Foundation School - is the school oversubscribed or does it need additional pupils; is the school 'superselective'; is it in East Kent or West Kent; what support is forthcoming from the primary school? Or even, what is the make up of the Panel members (not known until a week or so before the appeal)? You are most unlikely to achieve success at any Kent appeal if no score is above 120. You are most unlikely to achieve success in West Kent without scores close to the cut off point.

Possible relevant factors that parents may put forward include: (1) the selection panel was missing information which can lead to a different decision – e.g. medical condition or family circumstances not reported which affected the child's performance, but can be demonstrated; (2) independent proof that your child is of grammar school ability (3) information provided was incorrect – you have the right to see all relevant documentation. I am happy to advise clients of other possibilities when I have discussed individual cases. You may also succeed if marks are near the cut off and you find a sympathetic appeal panel. If none of the above applies, your chances are low; so plan an alternative route for your child’s secondary education – although each year I am delighted by successful appeals which originally looked unpromising.

Kent Grammar Schools

At all Kent grammar school appeals against a non-selective decision the Kent test scores and any headteacher assessment report will be distributed to the Panel and parents. This also has the effect of eliminating false parental claims about the results. Some parents have not seen the assessment document before, so make sure you ask to see it before writing your appeal, as this is likely to have an influence on your case.

My Services

My work draws on eight years of extensive work across Kent and Medway. Probably the most important lesson I  have learned is not only that admission patterns vary across both Authorities, but that appeal practice, best strategies and likely outcomes are equally variable.  My tracking of appeals over the years means I have a wide experience of different scenarios and panellists, although even I am sometimes surprised by decision making, hence my extensive experience of successful complaints through the Local Government Ombudsman.   

 As you might expect in Kent and Medway, the majority of my work is supporting parents with appeals for grammar schools, using my unrivalled knowledge of the local situation and my expertise and lengthy experience in Appeal work. I have now achieved success for places at every grammar school in the County, although the level of difficulty varies, and I am happy to advise parents of this before they engage me. Make no mistake, a school appeal is time consuming and stressful, but my expert service takes much of the strain off your shoulders and maximises your chances of success.

I am often asked why my service is so different to that of other consultants you will find advertising on the internet! This is one area where I don't profess to know the answer. What I do know is that I charge a fair price for a professional service built on expertise, local knowledge and experience. My many satisfied clients bear testimony to this.

As with all pages on this website, this page is packed with free information to support parents. However, getting on for 700 clients will testify that my professional service does make the difference!

If you wish to contact me regarding a Kent grammar school appeal, please first speak to your child's primary school to obtain their scores in the Kent test. Feel free to email me with a brief outline of your situation (including test marks) and a contact phone number, and I will get back to you as soon as possible. I will  confirm whether or not I feel it is worthwhile going ahead with an appeal, and my fee if you wish to engage my services.

If you decide to go ahead, then at our initial consultation I will advise on the expected appeal pattern for each school, and the best strategy to achieve success, together with exploring all suitable alternatives in the state system. I will ensure I have all relevant information and prepare a personalised appeal letter in  co-operation with yourself, that maximises your chances at appeal. Then a few days before the appeal, when you are in receipt of all relevant information from the school or Local Authority, I will go through with you all relevant factors on the telephone taking as much time as is necessary to ensure you are as well prepared as possible.

I do not normally attend appeal hearings, as Panels are more interested in talking directly with parents. However, I am happy to represent parents where appropriate. I ensure that the best case is put forward and have a very good record of success where I can establish supporting evidence.

There are number of websites and books offering advice on how to succeed at appeal. Most of these offer general advice, not tailored to specific schools or local authorities, and so are of limited value. There is no substitute for local knowledge, which is why I confine my operation to Kent & Medway.

A good website for general information on admissions and appeals is: eleven plus exams. However, you need to treat the contributions with caution. It is  Buckinghamshire based but whilst the school appeal advice varies considerably from the many varieties in Kent, it can be very helpful. There is also a lot of forum discussion about West Kent issues, often different from those in the rest of the county. You will find older contributions from me under the name of Peter, but I have removed recent contributions as I don't wish to be associated with some of the unedited comments on the forum which can be mischievous

Many  grammar schools admit all applicants who have achieved the selective standard, or those living nearest where there is oversubscription; but others select the highest scorers in the assessment tests. It is more difficult to win appeals to the latter, but I have also achieved success for parents at such schools over the past three years. 

I am sorry I am unable to comment on appeal letters as my first priority is to those clients who have already engaged my services. Reminder; I only take on clients resident in Kent and Medway for state schools in those local authorities, as my work is heavily centred on local knowledge of how our schools and appeal systems work. My furthest enquiry this year is from a family living in Malta, wishing to appeal to a school in Northamptonshire! 

• I am happy to provide a consultation in the privacy of your own home, provided I believe I can be of assistance. For appeals, the service I provide includes an explanation of the process, collecting information, advising on options (there are often more than parents have considered), preparation of a unique appeal letter to suit your individual case, together with, and essentially, a final preparation for the appeal hearing by phone. A fixed quotation on cost for this service will be provided on request, starting at £400 depending on complexity and location.
• I will be arranging Secondary school appeal consultations from Mid February, although you may need to wait until the beginning of March if you don't know whether you are going to be accepted at the relevant school. Please send outline details to me via the contact me page. Information I need to assess if I can help you varies according to the school concerned, but for grammar schools this may include:

1. Your child's individual test scores (available from the primary school in Kent)
2. Was there a Kent headteacher assessment (available from the primary school), or a Medway Review (details sent with your decision)?
3. The town or village where you live;
4. Your child's current school;
5. Schools you are considering;
6. Any other relevant factors;
7. A contact telephone number.

For infant class appeals, please supply me with any reason you are aware of that could overcome Infant Class Legislation (see Primary page)

I will get back to you as soon as possible by phone or email to discuss possibilities and provide preliminary advice where appropriate.

• I am also available at other times of the year for consultations on matters relating to admissions and appeals, the fee being appropriate to the work to be carried out, but will be significantly less if it is a stand alone meeting.

• All communications are confidential, unless you authorise me otherwise.

Please note that my telephone consultation service is suspended for secondary school appeals until after the peak appeal period.

Please note also that because of pressure of work, and my own areas of expertise, I am only able to support families for Kent and Medway schools, who live in the Kent and Medway Local Authority areas (excluding Bexley and Bromley I am afraid). Howevre, if you are thinking of relocating to Kent or Medway, please feel free to enquire about my telephone consultation service to see if I can assist. 

I have had a very few cases where the Contact Me page link has apparently not worked, so if you have not had a reply after 48 hours, please send me a brief email directly to confirm your enquiry. 

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