Some school places are very highly sought after

Too many schools are failing to follow the rules on admissions, according to a watchdog's report.

This year, 270 cases were referred to the independent adjudicator's offices, compared with 233 last year and just 78 in 2002.

The report highlighted a "lack of clarity" in the oversubscription criteria of many admission authorities.

Faith schools were particularly mentioned, with Philip Hunter, the chief schools adjudicator, criticising some popular church schools.

"Oversubscription criteria are often so elaborate that it is difficult for parents to find their way through them," the report said.

It was critical of the vagueness of criteria which referred to "contributions to the work of the church".

"In practice what most of them mean is that preference will be given to children of parents who can supply a letter of support from the local vicar or parish priest," it said.

"But there is no indication of what is expected to be contained in the letters."

Dr Hunter called on church authorities to give better guidance to schools.

'Inevitable'

The chief schools adjudicator suggested the increase in complaints being referred to his office was to be expected, as people became more aware of procedures and their rights.

"Procedures for determining admission arrangements and reorganising schools are now more transparent than they have ever been," Dr Hunter said.

"People locally are better informed and are in a position to object to proposals by schools or LEAs. It is perhaps inevitable that adjudicators are being called in to settle more disputes."

The Conservatives said the figures showed Labour was not delivering on its promises to increase choice.

Shadow Education Secretary Tim Collins said: "These figures are a stark reminder of the extent of Labour's failure to tackle the underlying problems of parental choice and educational excellence.

"By requiring parents to live in the right catchment area or to pay fees to independent schools, thousands of children are being denied the education they deserve."

Other complaints referred to the school adjudicator included objections to criteria which gave preference to the children of members of staff.

In most of these cases, the complaints were upheld.

A total of 43 complaints were made about the failure of some schools to give priority to children in care. They were all upheld.

Co-ordination

A spokesperson for the Department for Education and Skills said it had noted the chief adjudicator's comments.

The code of practice on school admissions made it clear that arrangements should be fair, transparent and objective - it was important that parents could easily understand them, she said.

The department also noted his comment that not all admissions authorities complied with the requirement to consult people about what they were doing, and it was pleased that some local education authorities were now co-ordinating arrangements.

The department is due shortly to publish its response to a critical education select committee report on secondary school admissions.

There are currently 10 schools adjudicators working to Dr Hunter.

He is looking to recruit three people "with a proven track record of leadership and planning at a senior level in the education sector".

The rate for the part-time job is �50 an hour plus expenses.