School place allocations

My daughter was attending Shaw Cross nursery school but was denied a place at the school (somewhere her three older siblings had attended) and was placed in Carlton Junior and Infant School, where she would have been one of a miniority of white pupils. That was no issue, but the majority of children speak English as a second language when they enter the school. We decided to decline that place and appeal for Shaw Cross, which was heard in May.

I suffer from a pituitary tumour so struggle with day to day activities, but that was not looked at. We also have five children who attend two different schools locally, but now we have four children placed in three different schools, one of which is in Ossett!

However, that’s not the reason for the email. This week I had to ring school admissions on behalf of a friend as she is in a similar position.

They told me that the school I required was still full. However a place was available at a school where my daughter is placed currently, but it been allocated to a child.

I asked how this could be the case when there were no children on the waiting list? Her reply was “I’m unsure, it shouldn’t be”!

However, when I rang my friend to tell her, she told me that the place had been allocated to her daughter, who currently has a place in Chickenely and has two ongoing appeals.

You cannot be on any more lists than three at a time, or have any more than one place offered at a time as you would be denying other children a place!

So not only has she got two places for her child she has two ongoing appeals!

Surely this shows that the allocation of places is not fair or that things are done by the book.

Even though it’s a friend, I’m totally disgusted by the allocation process and feel let down by Kirklees.

MICHELLE RODD

Cliffe Street

DEWSBURY