Part III School admissions
Chapter I Admission arrangements
Admission appeals
94 Appeal arrangements: general.
(1)
A local education authority shall make arrangements for enabling the parent of a child to appeal against—
(a)
any decision made by or on behalf of the authority as to the school at which education is to be provided for the child in the exercise of the authority’s functions, other than a decision leading to or embodied in a direction under section 96 (directions for admission), and
(b)
in the case of a community or voluntary controlled school maintained by the authority, any decision made by or on behalf of the governing body refusing the child admission to the school.
F1(1A)
A local education authority shall make arrangements for enabling the parent of a child who has been admitted to a community or voluntary controlled school maintained by the authority to appeal against any decision made by or on behalf of the governing body refusing permission for the child to enter the school’s sixth form.
(2)
The governing body of a foundation or voluntary aided school shall make arrangements for enabling the parent of a child to appeal against any decision made by or on behalf of the governing body refusing the child admission to the school.
F2(2A)
The governing body of a foundation or voluntary aided school shall make arrangements for enabling the parent of a child who has been admitted to the school to appeal against any decision made by or on behalf of the governing body refusing permission for the child to enter the school’s sixth form.
(3)
Joint arrangements may be made under subsection (2) F3or (2A) by the governing bodies of two or more foundation or voluntary aided schools maintained by the same local education authority.
(4)
A local education authority and the governing body or bodies of one or more foundation or voluntary aided schools maintained by the authority may make joint arrangements consisting of—
(a)
such of the arrangements made by the authority in pursuance of subsection (1) F4or (1A) as the authority may determine; and
(b)
arrangements made by the governing body or bodies in pursuance of subsection (2) F4or (2A).
F5(5)
An appeal pursuant to any arrangements made under this section shall be to an appeal panel constituted in accordance with regulations.
(5A)
Regulations may make provision about the making of appeals pursuant to such arrangements, including provision—
(a)
as to the procedure on such appeals,
(b)
for the payment by the local education authority of allowances to members of an appeal panel, and
(c)
as to the grounds on which an appeal panel may, in the case of an appeal to which subsection (5B) applies, determine that a place is to be offered to the child concerned.
(5B)
This subsection applies to any appeal against a decision made on the ground that prejudice of the kind referred to in section 86(3)(a) would arise as mentioned in subsection (4) of that section.
(5C)
Regulations made by virtue of subsection (5A)(b) may provide for any of the provisions of sections 173 to 174 of the Local Government Act 1972 (allowances to members of local authorities and other bodies) to apply with prescribed modifications in relation to members of an appeal panel.
(6)
The decision of an appeal panel on an appeal F6pursuant to arrangements under this section shall be binding on—
(a)
the local education authority or the governing body by whom or on whose behalf the decision under appeal was made, and
(b)
in the case of a decision made by or on behalf of a local education authority, the governing body of a community or voluntary controlled school at which the appeal panel determines that a place should be offered to the child in question.
F7(7)
References in this section, in relation to a child who has been admitted to a school, to his entering the school’s sixth form are to his being transferred to a class at the school in which secondary education suitable to the requirements of pupils who are over compulsory school age is provided from a class in which such education is not provided.