A SOMERSET parent suffered “injustice” and “distress” after the county council refused to let her daughter start school in reception class.

The parents – named only as Miss P – applied to Somerset County Council to let her daughter start school in reception class rather than year one, in light of her birthday falling during the summer holidays.

Despite the support of both the child’s pre-school and her preferred primary school, the county council rejected this request, citing a “lack of evidence” and central government guidelines.

The council has now apologised after Miss P complained to the local government ombudsman, who ruled the proper procedures had not been followed.

In November 2020, Miss P asked the council to delay her daughter’s admission to primary school in September 2022, instead of starting in the previous year.

Miss P argued that, since her daughter would have only just turned four years old in September 2021, it would be more appropriate to start her in reception in 2022, rather than year one.

This request was supported by both the daughter’s pre-school manager and the head teacher of her chosen primary school, who both argued this would give the child “the best possible chance of overall well-being and academic success, and put her in good stead emotionally, physically, and academically for each subsequent year of education.”

There is no statutory guidelines laid down by the Department for Education (DfE) stating that a child of five cannot be admitted into reception class.

However, the council refused her initial request in February 2021, arguing that separate DfE guidance dictated that “summer-born children” should not start reception when they reach compulsory school age, and that there was “a lack of evidence” as to why this would be in the best interests of Miss P’s daughter.

Miss P formally complained to the council in March 2021, pointing out her daughter had not been able to attend pre-school for more than two mornings a week due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The complaint was escalated through the council’s existing procedures over the course of the spring, with the council telling the ombudsman that Miss P had “failed to show” why it was in her child’s best interests to start in reception rather than year one.

Miss P ultimately took her case to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, which investigates allegations of “maladministration” and “service failure” in the public sector – in other words, instances in which it is claimed councils have not fully carried out their legal duties to taxpayers.

The inspector found the council was at fault in this process, stating its admissions panel had not reached its decision properly, causing Miss P “an injustice”, “distress” and “a lot of stress and anxiety” for both her and her family.

They also criticised the council for providing responses during the investigation which were “incomplete”, “misleading” or “confusing and lacking clarity”.

In light of these findings, the ombudsman ordered the council to formally apologise to Miss P, to reconsider her request and to ensure its officers were properly trained with the correct guidance to prevent this happening to any other children.

A council spokesman said: “We always strive to get things right first time and always aim to act in the best interest of the child.

“In this case, we have fully accepted the ombudsman’s decision. In light of this, we’ve made a number of amendments including clarifying our processes, introduced a decision-making panel, updated our letter templates and now provide fuller national guidance for parents.

“The complainant received our update earlier this month and thanked us for our response.”

Written by Daniel Mumby, Local Democracy Reporter