Schools admissions appeals

If your child is not offered a place at one of the schools you listed on your application form, you have the right to appeal for a place at your preferred school. You can only appeal once for a place in the same school in the same academic year.

To appeal for a school place at a local authority-maintained or voluntary controlled school in Waltham Forest, please use the school admissions appeal form (Word file). You should send the form back to us within 14 days. 

If you would like your case to also be considered under the medical/social ‘criteria’ and discussed by the relevant medical/ social panel you need to request this in writing separately from the appeal. Any medical/social cases which are part of the appeal will not automatically go to the medical/social panel unless expressly requested by the parents.

Please see list of Waltham Forest local authority maintained or voluntary controlled schools:

Secondary schools

• Frederick Bremer School
• Heathcote School & Science College
• Kelmscott School
• Leytonstone School
• Walthamstow School for Girls
• Willowfield School

Primary Schools

• Ainslie Wood Primary School
• Barn Croft Primary School
• Chase Lane Primary School
• Chingford Church of England Primary School
• Coppermill Primary School
• Dawlish Primary School
• Downsell Primary School
• Edinburgh Primary School
• George Tomlinson Primary School
• Greenleaf Primary School
• Gwyn Jones Primary School
• Handsworth Primary School
• Henry Maynard Primary School
• Mission Grove Primary School
• Newport School
• Oakhill Primary School
• Parkside Primary School
• Stoneydown Park Primary School
• The Jenny Hammond Primary School
• The Winns Primary School
• Thorpe Hall Primary School
• Whitehall Primary School

To appeal for a place at an Academy, Voluntary Aided, Trust or Foundation School (see list in the Academies, Voluntary Aided (Faith), Trust and Foundation schools section below), please visit the school’s website or contact the school for their appeal procedures

If you are appealing for a school outside Waltham Forest, you should contact the local authority concerned for the school’s appeals procedure.

You should also consider accepting any offer of a school place you receive to ensure that your child has a place in case your appeal is not successful. Accepting another offer will have no bearing on your appeal and the appeals process does not limit other options available to you.

For more information, please read the appeals guide to parents (PDF).

Admission appeal hearings will be held remotely by video conference or hybrid (where some of the people involved attend in person and some join remotely). If you are not able to access the hearing remotely, you can attend in person at Waltham Forest Town Hall for a hybrid appeal. 

We only consider one appeal for each school in the same school year. In exceptional circumstances, you may be able to appeal for the same school more than once. There would need to have been a significant change in your circumstances since your first appeal.

Please submit your appeals as outlined by the dates below.

Timetable for School Transfer Appeals 2025

• for applications made in the normal admissions round, appeals will be heard within 40 school days of the deadline for lodging appeals.
• for late applications, appeals will be heard within 40 school days from the deadline for lodging appeals where possible, or within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged.
• Appellants will be given at least 10 school days written notice of an appeal hearing.
• Decision letters will be sent within 5 school days of the hearing, wherever possible.

To appeal for a place at an Academy, Voluntary Aided, Trust, or Foundation School, please visit the school’s website or contact the school for their appeal procedures.  Please note that the appeal timetable for these schools may differ from the timetables above.  Contact details for these schools are available in the Starting Primary school 2025 and Starting Secondary school 2025 brochures. 

Please see a list of these schools below.

Secondary schools

• Buxton School
• Chingford Foundation School
• Connaught School for Girls
• Eden Girl's School Waltham Forest
• George Mitchell School
• Highams Park School
• Holy Family Catholic School and 6th Form
• Lammas School and 6th Form
• Norlington School and 6th Form
• South Chingford Foundation School
• Walthamstow Academy

Primary schools

• Barclay Primary School
• Buxton School
• Chapel End Junior Academy
• Davies Lane Primary School
• Emmanuel Community School
• George Mitchell School
• Hillyfield Primary Academy
• Lime Academy Larkswood
• Longshaw Primary Academy
• Mayville Primary School
• Our Lady and St George's Catholic Primary School
• Riverley Primary School
• Roger Ascham Primary School
• Salisbury Manor Primary School
• Selwyn Primary School
• St Joseph's Catholic Infant School
• St Joseph's Catholic Junior School
• St Mary's Catholic Primary School
• St Mary's CofE Primary School
• St Patrick's Catholic Primary School
• St Saviour's Church of England Primary School
• Sybourn Primary School
• Thomas Gamuel Primary School
• Walthamstow Primary Academy
• Whittingham Primary Academy
• Willow Brook Primary School Academy
• Woodford Green Primary School
• Woodside Primary Academy
• Yardley Primary School

Please note we cannot accept hand delivered appeal forms at the Town Hall. Please do not bring your form in person as we do not see visitors at this location.