Children applying for Reception, Year 1 or Year 2 where the class size is already at 30 will be refused admission to that school. Infant class size is regulated by law and affects all Year R, 1 and 2 classes in England. This legislation does not allow either the school or the authority to place more than 30 children in a class to one qualified teacher. Children refused a place at a school for this reason may only request a review.

A review can only be successful on one of two grounds:

1) the decision was not one which a reasonable admission authority would make in the circumstances of the case; or
2) the child would have been offered a place if the admission arrangements had been properly implemented.

All children who are refused a place in a Cambridgeshire school where the year groups are full but not at the infant class size limit have the right of appeal against the decision to an independent appeal panel. The appeals panel can listen to any reason the parent has for requesting that particular school.

The decision of the review/appeal panel is binding upon the school, parent and admission authority.

Please note that accepting the offer of an alternative school does not affect a child’s place on the reserve list or their right of review or appeal.

This authority does not endorse people who charge to provide admission advice as they do not have access to any extra information.

For further information on Infant Class Size Reviews please read our leaflet by clicking on the link below:

Information for parents on Infant Class Size Reviews

For further information on Admission Appeals please read our leaflet by clicking on the link below:

Information for parents on Admission Appeals

Please note:  These files open as PDF documents.  To download Acrobat Reader for free, please click on the Adobe website link on the right-hand side of this page.

For the school year 2006/2007, the Local Authority dealt with 25 reviews regarding infant class places.  There were no successful reviews.

For the school year 2006/2007, the Local Authority dealt with 118 appeals for primary school places and 190 for secondary school places.  Of these, 56 primary and 83 secondary appeals were successful. 

If you have any questions relating to reviews or appeals, or if you would like hard copies of these leaflets, please contact the Admissions Team on 01223 712755/718472 or email us at admissions@cambridgeshire.gov.uk