Summary: Mrs X complained about the Council’s refusal of her application for delayed entry to reception for her summer born child, Y. The Council was at fault as it failed to consider whether it was in Y’s best interests to start reception or year one in September 2025. The Council has agreed to apologise, re-take its decision, review other recent decisions, and review its policy.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council as school admission authority failed to properly consider her request for her child to be admitted to reception at compulsory school age in September 2025. She says the Council has not considered what was in her child’s best interests. This has caused her distress and frustration.

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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 must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. We may investigate matters coming to our attention during an investigation, if we consider that a member of the public who has not complained may have suffered an injustice as a result. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26D and 34E, as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I have considered the information provided by Mrs X and have discussed the complaint with her on the telephone. I have considered the information provided by the Council in response to our initial enquiries and the relevant law and guidance.
6. I gave Mrs X and the Council the opportunity to comment on a draft of this decision. I considered any comments I received in reaching a final decision.

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What I found

Relevant law and guidance

7. ‘Summer born children’ are children born between 1 April and 31 August. These children are not required to start school until the September following their fifth birthday. Ordinarily, they would then start school in year one with their ‘chronological year group’.
8. Parents can request their summer born children are admitted to a reception class in the September following their fifth birthday rather than year one. This means they are educated outside their normal age group.
9. Parents decide when their children start school. The admission authority decides whether they start in reception or year one. They must make this decision based on the circumstances of the case and in the child’s best interest. They must also take account of the views of the school’s Head teacher.
10. For admissions out of the normal age group, the Schools Admissions Code 2020 says admission authorities must make decisions on the basis of the circumstances of each case and in the best interests of the child concerned. This will include taking account of: the parent’s views; information about the child’s academic, social, and emotional development; where relevant their medical history and the views of a medical professional: whether they have previously been educated out of their normal age group; and whether they may naturally have fallen into a lower age group if it were not for being born prematurely. They must also take into account the view of the head teacher of the school concerned.
11. In 2023, the Government updated its non-statutory guidance ‘Guidance on handling admission requests for summer born children’. This states:
• The admission authority of each school must make a decision based on the circumstances of the case and in the child’s best interests. It should be rare for an authority to refuse a parent’s request.
• An admission authority may not decide that a child should start school before compulsory school age - that is the parent’s decision.
• The Government believes it is rarely in a child’s interests to miss a year of their education, for example by beginning primary school in year 1 rather than reception, or secondary school in year 8 rather than year 7.
12. In reaching a decision it set out that the admission authority must:

• make decisions in the best interests of the child; and
• take account of the child’s individual needs and abilities and consider whether these can best be met in reception or year one; and
• take account of the potential impact on the child of being admitted to their normal year group and missing a year of their education as a consequence.

13. It says there do not need to be exceptional circumstances, and a child does not need to have a medical need or special educational need or disability (SEND) for it to be in their best interests to be admitted outside of their normal year group.
14. The guidance says it is reasonable to expect parents to provide information to support their request, but they are not expected to obtain professional evidence they do not already have.
15. The admission authority must give reasons for its decision. The guidance says, ‘if an authority refuses the request, they will need to explain why they believe it is in the child’s best interests to be outside their normal age group, even though this means they will miss a year of their education’.

The Council’s policy

16. The Council’s policy says that pupils should be educated in the year group appropriate to their chronological age, for the following reasons:
• The Council is concerned with the development of the whole child. This includes physical and emotional maturity, the development of social and interactional skills and the pupil’s ability to respond to a curriculum which is age-appropriate, as well as suited to his/her abilities.
• The Council promotes and provides inclusive teaching. Teachers are expected to match the pupils’ learning objectives and the learning activities planned to the abilities, aptitudes and individual needs of pupils.
• The curriculum incorporates flexibility within and between each key stage. Where a pupil’s abilities are significantly out of step with other pupils of his/her age, individual provision should be planned. In almost all cases, individual provision will be made within the pupil’s own year group.
• Pupils have an entitlement to the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum and the Programmes of Study of the National Curriculum, designed for their age group. The Council and all schools within the Council’s area have a legal duty to make sure this is available. 
17. It says each request for a child to be taught out of year group will be looked at individually, with all available information considered. Any decision taken will be based on the child’s best interests. The Council says in reaching a decision its panel will consider:
• If the child has social skills not appropriate to their chronological age group.
• If the child’s academic abilities are so distinctly above what is expected of their age group to an extent that it is not reasonable to expect curriculum differentiation in the right chronological age group to be successful.
• If the child shows delay or slow progress in intellectual development/educational skills across the subject area to an extent it is not reasonable to expect curriculum differentiation within their year group to be successful
• The importance of not delaying or losing any required interventions that cannot be accessed until the child is attending school
• If there is agreement from parents and professionals that this would substantially increase the probability of successful inclusion
• Whether the child will have a peer group in their new class
• The potential impact of not being admitted to their normal age group and missing a year of their education on any transition to a new school where the admission authority does not agree to place out of year
• If there is clear evidence the child’s needs will be met more effectively out of their chronological year group than within it.
• Consideration should be given, notwithstanding the requirement to make the decision in the best interest of the child concerned to compliance with the law concerning infant class size.

What happened

18. In January 2024 Mrs X applied to the Council for her summer born child Y to start in reception in September 2025, after they had reached compulsory school age.
19. On the application Mrs X said that Y was young in their year and would struggle with the demands of sitting and concentrating for long periods. She explained that if Y went straight into year one they would miss crucial learning blocks. Y’s pre-school supported the application and stated that Y was very young for their age group and at pre-school was mainly educated with the year group below. It said Y’s age and stage of development was on track with the cohort going to reception in September 2025. It said Y would benefit from delayed entry to reception.
20. Mrs X had consulted the head teacher from their preferred school. The head teacher agreed to the application. On the application they stated the parents had consulted them about the reasons for the referral.
21. The Council’s panel met in February 2024. It wrote to Mrs X following the panel. The letter stated the panel did not agree to Mrs X’s request. It said it was in Y’s best interests to start reception in September 2024 thereby remaining with Y’s early years foundation stage cohort. It said it would reconsider an application for Y to repeat reception year should this be deemed necessary for September 2025.
22. It said ‘please be aware as part of the decision making process the panel noted the following bullet points were not met:
• If child has social skills that are not appropriate to their chronological year group.
• If the child’s academic abilities are so distinctly above what is expected for their age group to an extent that it is not reasonable to expect curriculum differentiation within their chronological year group to be successful.
• If the child shows delay and /or slow progress in intellectual development/educational skills across the subject area to an extent that it is not reasonable to expect curriculum differentiation within their chronological year group to be successful.
• The importance of not delaying or losing any interventions required by the child that cannot be accessed unless the child is attending school for the ‘first time at school’ admissions.
• As a summer-born child whether the child was also born prematurely and would otherwise have been placed in the subsequent chronological year group.
• If there is agreement from parents and professionals including the view of the head teachers involved that agreeing to be educated out of year group would substantially increase the probability of successful inclusion, in the short, medium and long term.
• Where relevant, a child’s medical history and the views of a medical professional
• If there is, in any other way, clear evidence that the child’s needs will be met more effectively out of their chronological year group than within it’.
23. The letter said that if Mrs X decided to delay Y starting school until compulsory school age Y would automatically start school in year one.
24. Mrs X complained to the Council. She said it had not given any reasons why it would be in Y’s best interests to miss a year of schooling. It had not considered whether it was in Y’s best interests to start reception in September 2025 or miss a year of schooling and start in year one. It had gone against the parents, head teacher’s and pre-school views.
25. The Council responded to Mrs X’s complaint in May 2024. It said it had followed the correct process. The panel consisted of educational professionals and the focus was always on the best interests of the child.

Findings

26. Parents of summer born children can ask for their child to start school at age five in reception. If a parent makes that decision, the Council must decide whether, after reaching compulsory school age, it would be in the child’s best interests to start in reception or year one. When reaching this decision, it must take account of all relevant considerations. It must consider the potential impact on the child of being admitted into year one without first completing reception and the guidance highlights it would rarely be in a child’s interests to miss a year of education.
27. When the Council wrote to Mrs X, it explained it had decided delayed admission for Y was refused and that it was in Y’s best interest to start in reception 2024 with Y’s current cohort. The Council can decide it is in Y’s best interests to start with their normal school age in year one, missing reception. But in deciding Y should start reception at the normal time the Council has applied the wrong test. The Government’s 2023 guidance explicitly says the admission authority may not decide that a child should start school before compulsory school age. This is fault.
28. The Council’s policy sets out the criteria it will consider in deciding whether a child should be admitted outside of their year group. It has decided they do not apply to Y’s case. But in reaching its view, the Council has not applied the correct test. It has not considered the potential impact of Y being admitted to year one without completing reception. It has not explained its reasoning and has not set out whether it thinks it is Y’s best interests to miss reception. While it may believe it is in Y’s best interests to start reception with their normal year group, this was not the decision it had to make. This has caused Mrs X frustration and uncertainty over whether the Council properly considered Y’s case.
29. The Council’s complaint response was generic and failed to answer the points raised or further explain the Council’s reasoning to Mrs X. This was fault and added to Mrs X’s frustration.
30. The Council’s statement that, if Mrs X delayed Y’s entry Y would ‘automatically’ enter into year one was incorrect and suggests it is adopting a blanket approach and is likely to wrongly apply the rules in other similar cases in future.
31. The Council’s policy also says it will take into consideration compliance with the law on infant class size. The Council is expected to make a decision in the best interests of the child and circumstances of the case. Any impact on infant class size is a separate matter and should not be a consideration in deciding what year group is in the summer born child’s best interests.
32. We are investigating a second complaint from a different complainant broadly about the same issues. Given my concerns about the Council’s policy and decision making, it is likely others have been affected by the same fault. We have the power to make recommendations to remedy the injustice experienced by complainants and members of the public affected by fault we identify. (Local Government Act 1974 s 31(2B)). I have set out below the action the Council should take to remedy the injustice to those people who are also caused an injustice by the Council’s fault.

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Agreed action

33. Within one month of the final decision on this case the Council has agreed to:
1. apologise to Mrs X for the distress and frustration caused. We publish guidance on remedies which sets out our expectations for how organisations should apologise effectively to remedy injustice. The organisation should consider this guidance in making the apology I have recommended.
2. reconsider Mrs X’s request for Y to be admitted out of their normal age group to reception as part of Y’s current application for admission to the chosen school. The Council should consider whether it would be in Y’s best interests to start in reception or year one in September 2025, in line with the Code and guidance. If the Council does not agree to Mrs X’s request, it should clearly explain why it considers it is in Y’s interests to miss reception.
34. Within two months of the final decision the Council has agreed to:
1. review its policy to ensure it accords with the Admissions Code and non-statutory guidance.
2. review the other applications it has received for summer born children to start reception in September 2025 and reconsider whether the decisions have been reached in line with the Admissions code and guidance.
35. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

36. I have completed my investigation. The Council was at fault causing injustice which it has agreed to remedy.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman