My challenge was reported as: 'The objection is that the school arrangements do not comply with the Code in respect of the oversubscription criteria that give priority to siblings or to children of staff in any school in the multi academy trust'.
Brompton Academy is the most oversubscribed non-selective school in Medway and second most popular school taking Kent into account, turning away 193 first choices this year, with very few children being awarded places on appeal, so there is a tight geographical ring of offers around the school. As a result, fairness in school admissions is critical. The school is in an Academy Trust with Chatham Grammar School for Girls, which is usually undersubscribed for its 142 places and as a result admits a large number of out of county girls annually.
The proposal for school arrangements was that the Admission Criteria should include the two sections:
a) Current family association (i.e. elder brother or sister) attending any |
My objections were that this would allow siblings of girls and children of staff at Chatham Girls Grammar who may live miles away to have priority over local girls, both of which breached the Schools Admission Code.
Whilst the Schools Adjudicator agreed with me on both parts, he did not need to rule as Brompton Academy withdrew both, returning to the previous lawful criteria allowing preference to siblings and children of staff at Brompton Academy only.
As an addition, the Adjudicator recorded that 'The Code says in paragraph 1.39 that priority may be given to children of staff where “the member of staff has been employed at the school for two or more years', (not the Academy Trust), and the time limit in this was not mentioned by Brompton Academy. This will also need to be changed. I await decisions on the other three schools: Fort Pitt Grammar; Holcombe Grammar; and The Rochester Grammar.