5,000 fail to get into a London state school
NEARLY 5,000 children in London were told today that they have no place at a state secondary school for September.
And more than 26,000 pupils – one in three – missed out on their first choice school as London families were hardest hit by the intense competition.
The success rate fell in 12 boroughs this year, leaving thousands of parents facing the prospect of sending their children to less popular comprehensives, or trying to scrape together enough money to go private.
The figures came as parents of 78,180 children across the capital were receiving letters containing offers of places or news of rejection.
Competition for places at leading grammars and popular comprehensives is said to be particularly high this year as the recession prompts many families who would otherwise have sent their children to private schools to consider state education.
Margaret Morrissey, from Parents Outloud said families were “distraught” when they received bad news.
Results from London Councils showed that 34 per cent of pupils missed out on their first choice secondary schools this year, slightly fewer than last year. Some 4,850 were left with no place at a state secondary school for September. Most will have applied only to top grammars and failed to win a place. Parents will now have to send them to private schools or have them taught at home.
Tim Ross, Education Correspondent
London Evening Standard
Date: 03.03.09
See Full Article in the London Evening Standard.
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I’ve just received the devastating news that my daughter has not received a place at either our first-choice school, which has excellent Ofsted reports and results (the one we’ve lived in the catchment area for for years, and which her primary feeds into) or her second choice. Instead, she’s being sent to a place 7 miles away (inner city driving, not country) which I’ve never heard of, and has just had a miserably poor Ofsted report. I’m furious, and will of course appeal. Couple of questions: If I wanted to retain the services of a lawyer for the appeal, could you recommend anyone (we live in Reading, but I could travel)? Is there anything else, save for appeal, that we could do? To be clear, she will NOT be attending this other school; if September rolls around and the mes hasn’t been sorted, she simply won’t go. I’ve worked in that type of school (one step away from Special Measures, basically), and sending her there would be, as far as I’m concerned, child abuse
Hi Richard,
We were just contacted by the Today Programme asking if ParentsOutloud had had any parents contact whose child had not received their place of choice. Looking to see if any of these parents would be willing to go onto the Today programme to discuss this. If yourself or any other parents reading this are interested please call Nina Manwaring from the Today Programme BBC Radio 4 on 0208 624 9644
Best Regards,
ParentsOutloud
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