Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about an unsuccessful appeal for a school place. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault and so we cannot question the merits of the panel’s decision.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about an unsuccessful school admission appeal for her son.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We cannot question whether an independent school admissions appeals panel’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider if there was fault in the way the decision was reached. If we find fault, which calls into question the panel’s decision, we may ask for a new appeal hearing. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered Mrs X’s complaint to the Ombudsman and information from the school. I also gave Mrs X the opportunity to comment on a draft statement before reaching a final decision on her complaint.

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What I found

4. Mrs X applied for a Reception place for her son (Y) for September 2020. Mrs X listed three schools on her application. Churchgate C of E Primary was her first preference. Churchgate is a Voluntary Aided School and so the governing body is the admission authority. Because there were more applications than places available, the school’s oversubscription criteria were used to decide which children it would offer places to. The school offers 30 places each year and did not offer Y a place. Because the Council could not offer Y a place at any of Mrs X’s preferred schools, it offered Y a place at the nearest school with vacancies. Mrs X appealed the decision not to offer Y a place at Churchgate.
5. Independent school admission appeal panels must follow the law when considering an appeal. The law says the size of an infant class must not be more than 30 pupils per teacher. There are only limited circumstances in which more than 30 children can be admitted. There are special rules governing appeals for reception and years 1 and 2, where admitting another child would mean there would be more than 30 pupils per teacher. Appeals under these rules are known as “infant class size appeals”. The rules say the panel must consider whether:
• admitting another child would breach the class size limit;
• the admission arrangements comply with the law;
• the admission arrangements were properly applied to the case;
• the decision to refuse a place was one which a reasonable authority would have made in the circumstances.
6. What is ‘unreasonable’ is a high test, and for it to be met, the panel would need to be sure the decision to refuse a place was “perverse” or “outrageous”. For that reason, panels rarely find an admission authority’s decision to be unreasonable. Mrs X’s appeal for a place was governed by infant class size legislation.
7. The Ombudsman is not an appeal body and we cannot question decisions taken without fault. Appeal panels must consider the information they are presented with – but it is for the panel to decide what weight it will give to the evidence it hears.
8. The clerk’s notes from the hearing show the school’s representative explained the admissions process and why it had not offered Y a place. During her appeal, Mrs X explained why she wanted Y to attend Churchagte. She also said there was not a safe walking route to the school offered.
9. The clerk’s notes show the panel considered the points set out in paragraph 5. It decided Churchgate’s admission arrangements had been properly determined and applied. It decided it was not an unreasonable decision to refuse admission. The clerk’s notes and the panel’s decision letter refer to Mrs X’s concerns about the safety of the route to the school offered. The panel decided that none of the grounds for allowing an infant class size appeal had been met. This is a decision the panel was entitled to reach.
10. I understand Mrs X is unhappy her appeal was unsuccessful. But each panel needs to reach a decision based on the information before it. There is not enough evidence of fault in how the panel decided Mrs X’s appeal for the Ombudsman to become involved. An investigation is not therefore appropriate.
11. If Mrs X believes the distance from her home to the school offered is more than two miles, and is not safe for an accompanied child, then she could ask the Council if Y is eligible for free transport. The Council would then assess her application using its published policy.

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Final decision

12. The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault and so we cannot question the merits of the panel’s decision.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman