The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Mum hits out at high school appeal timing
AFife mum still waiting to hear which high school her son will go to in August has blasted the process for placing request appeals.
Twelve-year-old Rhys Hutton, who has additional needs, is about to make the step from primary to secondary school but has been told there is no place for him at Auchmuty High School, in Glenrothes, with his friends.
As he attends a feeder primary school for Auchmuty, mum Roseanne has appealed but the hearing is not until next week when his P7 classmates will start transition visits without him.
Roseanne said Rhys had been “broken” by his rejection from the secondary school he expected to go to and the continuing uncertainty with less than three weeks to the summer holidays.
She said he had been let down by Fife Council, which determines placing request appeals in June, and caused “unacceptable” stress and anxiety.
And she added: “It’s not just my son – whoever is waiting on an appeal is waiting until the very last minute and not getting to enjoy the transition to high school.”
Although they moved out of the Auchmuty catchment area several years ago, Rhys continued going to Pitteuchar West Primary School which is one of its cluster schools.
Roseanne said she was assured then Rhys would go on to Auchmuty and she only discovered in October that was not a given and she would have to make a placing request.
Rhys suffers from development co-ordination disorder, also known as dyspraxia, and sensory processing disorder, and is awaiting possible diagnosis of autism.
Roseanne said: “Fife Council say they thrive on Getting it Right for Every Child but they are certainly not getting it right for my son.”
Shelagh McLean, head of education and children’s services, said the council wants to accommodate every child in their preferred school but it is not always possible.
She said: “If a child does not live within the catchment area for a particular school there is a placing request system that parents can use to request a place for their child.
“We follow a statutory process that operates to the same timescales for everyone.
“The appeals committees, which respond to appeals where a placing request application has been refused by the education service, meet in June.
“This is when the final local authority decisions, for each school, are made and communicated to parents.
“Please be assured that all schools help and support the transition for new pupils as they begin the next stage of their school journey.”