The first thing you will need to consider when writing an appeal for a secondary school place is what the admissions criteria are. If you are applying for a state school position the admissions criteria will be set by the local authority or the school governing body. If you are applying for a position at a private or independent school the admissions criteria will be set by the school itself. If you are unsure what type of school you are applying to you can visit bit.ly/cTJwer If you believe your child has met all the criteria and has been unfairly turned down from the place then you can start your appeal. You are allowed to make one appeal to each school that does not give your child a place. Things you will need to think about when writing your appeal are reasons why you are not satisfied with the decision backed up by your reasons why your child should have been offered a place, use any reasons why you believe the governers or education application services have not followed a correct application process and finally if there has been any changes to the original application circumstances then you can use them to increase the chances of winning your case. If you have evidence of any of your reasons you should include them, for example change in income, divorce etc. Once you have collected all the information you wish to put forward in your appeal you need to find out to where and who you need to send your appeal off to. This will usually be the local admissions authority or the school's governing board. Directions on where and who to make your appeal to should be displayed on the form you received telling you that your child has not acquired a place at the school. If you still need help on writing your appeal, you should check online for any sites and guides that might help you, I recommend having a look at www.schoolappeals.org.uk/index2.php, there is a book you can buy to aide you in writing your appeal. You can also seek guidance from people online, however you may find that they charge a lot of money for their services.
