Secondary school admissions lottery

David Mills
The Politics Show
South East

Brighton and Hove is in the vanguard of a new approach to secondary school admissions, using a lottery system to allocate places at oversubscribed schools. But is the system working?

Brighton College ...benefits from admissions lottery

Whether or not it is the self-styled progressive who decides, "with regret", to send their children to a public school, the Conservative rebel who supports the return of the grammar school or just an "ordinary" parent who agonises over how to secure a place in a good school for their child, few topics rouse the passions of policymakers and voters like school admissions.

This term is the first for pupils whose school had been decided by lottery, so for the first programme of the new season, we thought we would look at how the system was working, and explore the wider social policy aims that its supporters claim it can deliver.

Parents wary

Some parents were - perhaps understandably - a little wary of going on the record about their misgivings.

Their children might have ended up at a school which was not their first choice, but they were going to make the best of it - or maybe opt out of the state system altogether later.

First choice school up to chance

However, our reporter, Helen Drew, found a parent who was happy to talk about her concerns, and who was thinking of postponing a much-needed house move, in order to afford a place at a local independent school for next year, when her son leaves primary school.

Moreover, she is unlikely to be alone.

Richard Cairns, headmaster of Brighton College, says that applications have increased by over 50%, and the college has reduced its admission age from 13 to 11 to respond to increased demand.

School popularity variable

Richard Cairns: Independent school applications increased by over 50%

It seems that by making the admission process more transparent, the lottery system has highlighted the fact that some schools are a lot more popular than others in Brighton & Hove, for example Dorothy Stringer and Varndean - something it has in common with many towns and cities across the country.

The council claims that, overall, parents are happy and that in 2008, more children got into one of their top three choices than before - over 98%.

But this is disputed by John Chard, the school appeals specialist who will be appearing on the show live on Sunday, with Labour Councillor Pat Hawkes - an architect of the lottery policy.

Politically popular

The system certainly has plenty of supporters among the city's politicians.

Both Labour and the Conservatives, who have run Brighton & Hove since 2007, support the scheme, and this sets them at odds with their respective parties' national positions.

Schools Minister Jim Knight: local authorities responsible

David Cameron and Michael Gove have rejected lotteries, insisting that they will take steps to make every school an excellent school, while making it easier for parents to set their own school up if the local schools don't come up to scratch.

Magic bullet?

Some social democrats in Labour's big tent see lotteries as a "magic bullet" which can, over time, increase social mobility.

This is a conclusion shared by the Shaw Trust, which published a report recently suggesting that a broader social mix in secondary schools helps to boost achievement of poorer pupils.

So far, Schools Minister, Jim Knight, and his boss Ed Balls are sticking to the line that it is a matter for local authorities.

However, the government is currently consulting on admissions policies, and it seems likely that lottery fans within the Labour Party - like education campaigner, Fiona Millar, - will be pressing for government support.

The Politics Show for the South East, with Jon Sopel and Paul Siegert on Sundays at 1200 BST on BBC One.