Admissions

All new Year 7 students spend an Induction Day at school during the first week in July, meeting their new teachers and classmates and familiarising themselves with the school. At the end of the school day, parents have the opportunity to meet with the Heads of School, Head of Year and tutors.

In addition to this, the first day of the school year in September is for Year 7 students only, to help them find their way around the site and settle into the school before the main body of students returns the following day.

If you wish to apply to the school for a place for a child in a year group other than Year 7, or for a Year 7 child other than through the normal Year 7 admissions process, then please do feel free to contact the school directly on 01202 486536 or via the BCP Council website here.

The information below has been supplied by BCP Council regarding appeals:

School Admission Appeals

If your application for a school is refused you have the right of appeal against this decision to an independent Appeal Panel. This is known as a school admission appeal.  This is governed by legislation produced by the Department for Education (DfE).

You can only appeal against a refusal of a place, so please don’t contact the school or Local Authority about an appeal until you receive a formal refusal letter or email.

Your appeal must be made in writing and must explain the reasons why you are lodging an appeal. If you submit a form without giving your grounds, it will be returned to you as you will not have lodged your appeal correctly.  It is very important therefore that you state clearly your reasons for lodging your appeal.

We recommend that you use an appeal form, which is available in order to ensure we have all the relevant information in order to arrange your appeal. See the relevant section below for details on how to obtain an appeal form. We recommend however before filling in the form, that you read all the information on this page and any relevant downloads to help you fully understand your legal rights and the appeals process.

You can appeal for a place for your child at more than one school, provided you have been refused a place at each school. You will need to complete an appeal form for each school.

Why didn’t my child get a place at the school I wanted?

All parents have a right to express a preference for the school they would like their child to attend. The admission authority must offer a place at the school unless there is a legal reason for refusing a place. We appreciate it is disappointing if you are not offered a place at the school you prefer, however it is important to recognise that although you have the right to express a preference for the school you would like your child to attend, you do not have a right of choice.

The most common reason for not offering a place is that the school(s) received more applications than places available and other children had a higher priority for a place and the school than your child when the school’s admission policy was applied.  For in-year applications, it is usually that the school is at its published admission number.

In both instances, the school will not want to admit more pupils as this will adversely affect resources and the education of other children at the school.

For main entry admissions (i.e. entry in September to Reception Year, Year 3, Year 7 etc.) - details about the numbers of preference stated for each school are shown on the School Admissions page. Statistics for Secondary School allocation for September 2023 intake will be shown from 2 March 2024, Primary age statistics will be available from 16 April 2024. Data for previous years is also shown.

Before you appeal – other options and considerations

We recommend that you accept the place you’ve been offered. This will not affect your right to submit an appeal or affect your child’s position on a waiting list. It will, however, guarantee that your child has a school place if no places become available at your preferred school.

If you have not already done so, we recommend visiting the offered school/other schools in the area with places available – don’t just take the word of others in forming your opinion.

As well as/instead of appealing, you may wish to consider ensuring your child is on the waiting list for your preferred school and any other schools that you may wish to add your child to the list for.  Waiting lists are based on the school’s admissions criteria, not ‘first come, first served’ basis.  This means a child’s place on a list can go up or down if other children join or leave the list.  Waiting list positions are not considered by Appeals Panels.

It is sometimes possible to change your child’s allocated school, provided that the alternative school still has vacancies. Please speak with the Children’s Information Service on 01202 456223 to discuss how to do this. They can also help you with regards to waiting lists for other schools in the area too.

When can I appeal / what can I appeal?

Normally, you will need to submit your appeal by a certain date.

The Appeal Timetable for The Grange School is here

Please click the link below for the the BCP Council School Admission Appeals website so an appeal can be made via the Parent Portal.

BCP Admissions Appeals Website

The Appeal Form is here

General Information regarding Appeals is here

For September entry appeals, no appeals can be heard until after the specified closing date. They are normally heard from May through to July on weekdays during term-time only. If you lodge your appeal after the deadline, it might be that it is not possible to hear your appeal until after the start of the new school year in September.

If you wish to make an appeal for immediate entry, you will need to lodge your appeal as soon as possible. We will aim to hear your appeal within 30 school days from the date your appeal is lodged. Again, this will be on a weekday during term-time.

Please note that it is not an appeal against where you’ve been offered, nor is it an appeal against the place planning policy or disagreement with the school’s admissions arrangements (as long as they are legally correct and have been applied correctly) – your legal right of appeal is against a particular admission authority’s refusal of a place for your child.  School’s admission policies are determined at least 18 months in advance – the appeals process is not the forum to raise issues with a valid legal admission policy.

It is worth noting that in the local area, many popular schools receive multiple appeals for entry in September. Unless it is proven that the school has spare teachers, budget and/or classrooms to take all the children appealing, any successful appeals will mean adding just some of the children appealing to existing classes and be limited to the children with the most need to attend the school concerned. The school are unable to keep spaces back to allocate at appeals.

You are unable to appeal against your position on the waiting list – this bears no relevance to appeal hearings – if you lodge an appeal and it is not successful, your place on the waiting list is unaffected.

What happens after I submit my appeal?

After you submit your appeal:

•  BCP Appeals will send you confirmation that they have received your appeal;
• in due course, BCP will email you with a letter giving you at least 14 calendar days’ notice of the date/date range during which your appeal will be heard;
• BCP will send you a copy of the school’s written submission and a copy of the submission you presented to date that the Panel will consider;
• there will be an opportunity for all parents/carers to question the school’s case, the school to question each parent/carer’s case and the Independent Panel to question all cases;
• once the Panel has all the information, they will have a virtual meeting between themselves with their Clerk to consider and determine the appeals lodged for this school – this will be in line with the legislation set out in the Appeals Code. The changes to this under the current pandemic, is that if one Panel Member were to fall ill, the remaining two Panel Members can reach a decision still;
• after the appeal hearing, BCP will send you a letter giving the Panel’s decision and detailing their reason for it.

Can I know why previous appeals were upheld for my preferred school?

Previous decisions on school admission appeals do not set precedents so no-one can predict whether your appeal will be successful or not.  In addition, school admission appeals are confidential so you cannot ask to see copies of previous appeals or know why other appeals were successful.  Your appeal will be considered on your own individual circumstances.

Can I withdraw my appeal?

If you have changed your mind and no longer wish to go ahead with your appeal, you will need to contact the BCP Council School Appeals Service.

Is there anything I can do if the appeal is dismissed?

When an appeal is dismissed, you cannot appeal against the decision of the Appeal Panel.  We would therefore suggest that you have an alternative plan, in case your appeal is not allowed.  You can speak to the Local Authority at any time to discuss alternative school places and waiting lists – this will not affect your appeal in any way.

If you have a complaint about the way in which your appeal has been handled and you feel you have suffered injustice as a result of maladministration, you can complain to the Local Government Ombudsman or Education and Skills Funding Agency.  Maladministration refers to a procedural error, incompetence, neglect or prejudice rather than the actual merits of the decision taken.

Can I appeal more than once?

Schools do not normally consider a second or subsequent appeal in the same academic year unless you can prove that there has been a significant and material change in your circumstances.  Such a change could include:

• Where a sibling link has been created at the preferred school that was not there at the time of the original appeal
• Where a change of address has occurred, which means the home address is significantly closer to the preferred school or is now in the catchment area of the preferred school
• Where new evidence is introduced and is supported by a letter from the medical professional or social worker which could not have been introduced at the original hearing

All requests linked to a change in circumstances should be sent to the school, as it is the admission authority’s decision on whether they accept a second application.

What if my child has Special Educational Needs?

There is a different appeal process if your child has an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and your application is not successful. The School Appeals Service is unable to hear your appeal under current legislation. Please speak with the SEN team on 01202 456267 if you live in Bournemouth or Christchurch, or the Family Information Service on 01202 261999 if you live in Poole with regards to the appeal process.

If you child is currently being assessed for Special Educational Needs or an EHCP, you can lodge an appeal up until the point the EHCP is issued to your child.