Appeal for a school place
If your child has been refused a place at one of your preferred schools, you may appeal the decision of the admissions authority.
Your reasons for appealing will then be considered by an independent panel at an appeal hearing. You will have the chance to attend the appeal hearing and present your case.
Please see the guidance below for more detailed information and how to appeal.
Appeals for the September intake are those for children starting primary school (reception) or secondary school (Year 7) in September.
If you are not happy with the school place you have been offered, you can appeal for any schools that you wish.
September intake appeals are held during late spring and summer.
Before completing the appeal form you should read the guidance notes for advice on what to put in your appeal.
Supplementary faith forms
If you are appealing to a school on faith grounds you must also fill in the Supplementary Faith form (available on the schools' websites) and submit this with your appeal application form.
You can also return completed forms direct to the school for which you are appealing. These schools may have their own closing date for appeal forms, please contact the school directly for this deadline.
If you applied to move your child to a different school but were not able to be offered a place you can appeal this decision.
In-year appeals will be heard at the next available appeal panel hearing.
Before completing the appeal form you should read the guidance notes for advice on what to put in your appeal.
For the following schools please contact the school directly or see the school website for more information as they have their own appeal form:
Primary
- The Maharishi Free School- please see the school website for more information
Secondary
If your child has an education, health and care (EHC) plan, contact your caseworker or the Inclusion Service area team.
Do not complete the online appeal form.
Admission appeals are against the decision of the admission authority not to allocate a place at a particular school or academy.
The admission authority for all Lancashire community and voluntary controlled schools is Lancashire County Council (the Local Authority).
The admission authority for each voluntary aided or foundation school and academy is the governing body of that establishment.
When you appeal online, a copy of your form will be sent to the relevant admission authority.
For advice about which schools have places available, contact the area education office (admissions department).
If a school refuses your child a place because admitting them would breach the limit of 30 pupils per teacher then your appeal will be an infant class size appeal. This is different from all other school admission appeals.
Before you make your decision to appeal, read more about infant class size appeals.
If your preferred school or academy is situated in a neighbouring authority to Lancashire please contact the school or local authority directly for appeal and reserve list information.
Other nearby authorities:
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
Bradford Metropolitan District Council
You can put your child's name on a waiting list for other schools. This list is kept in priority order using the original admission criteria.
You do not need to appeal to be placed on the list.
Help submitting appeal forms if you have a disability or language barrier
If you cannot submit an admissions appeal yourself due to a disability or any language barrier and you feel this may compromise your submission then help is available from our Customer Service Centre who will be able to help you fill out the online form.
The contact number for the Customer Service Centre is 0300 123 6707
The Customer Service Centre staff cannot advise you of your submission and can only fill the form out on your behalf.
If you need further help or have any special requirements, please contact the Appeals Team on 01772 536 776 or appeals@lancashire.gov.uk.
Appeal hearings
All appeal hearings will be conducted in English only whether this is face to face, by video/telephone conference call or by written submission.
It is the responsibility of the appellant to nominate a designated helper to assist in this and to inform the appeals team via email appeals@lancashire.gov.uk of the named helper and their contact details to enable them to participate on your behalf during the appeal process and at the hearing. If you do not have anyone that can assist then you must contact the appeals team by emailing appeals@lancashire.gov.uk stating the language required and a member of the appeals team will book an independent interpreter to translate during your appeal hearing.
Once we receive your appeal you'll be invited to participate in an appeal hearing.
We'll email you to confirm the date, time and venue for your appeal hearing.
We will also provide the names of the panel members and clerk. Please read all paperwork attached to your email before the hearing date.
If you are unable to attend the hearing please email appeals@lancashire.gov.uk and we may be able to offer an alternative arrangement for your appeal hearing.
A provisional list of appeal dates is published each year for September intake appeals for reception and year 7 at the beginning of each year during January or February.
Please note that we try to group all appeals for the same school together.
The appeal hearing
Hearings are informal and last around 20 to 30 minutes.
The appeal will be heard by a panel acting independently of the Local Authority. The panel will consist of three members. They will have no connection with the school you're appealing for, or the school your child has been allocated a place at. These are the people who will make the decision about your appeal.
Before the appeal hearing please read the guidance on attending the hearing and presenting your case.
If the school you are appealing for manages their own appeal hearings, you need to contact the school directly.
Please check your email or letter for contact information or visit the school website.
These schools arrange their own appeal hearing:
- Bay Leadership Academy
- The Valley Leadership Academy
- The Olive School Preston
- Eden Boys School Preston
- Marsden Heights Community College
The School Standards and Framework Act 1998 allows you the right to appeal to an Independent Admissions Appeal Panel which has the power to direct an admission authority to make places available at a school.
View the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 on legislation.gov.uk
If a place has already been refused at appeal, the admissions authority will only consider a second appeal for a place at the same school in the same academic year if they consider that there has been a relevant, significant and material change in the family's circumstances (since the original appeal hearing).
If this is the case a second appeal hearing may be appropriate. Individual admissions authorities will decide in relation to re-appeal requests.
If you have any other questions or need help please contact the Appeals Team on 01772 536 776 or appeals@lancashire.gov.uk.