Clampdown on school place cheats

London parents must apply for secondary school places by 24 October

A London borough is clamping down on parents who lie about their address in order to get their children into the state school of their choice.

Fifty parents in Richmond, south-west London, lied on school applications in 2007 - a tenfold increase since 2006.

The education authority can now verify addresses with other departments at the council to confirm they are correct.

If a child has won a place with a bogus application, the council has the power to remove that child from the school.

Local authorities control admissions for the majority of England's 21,000 state schools.

The deadline for parents in London to apply for secondary school places is on 24 October, for the school year beginning next September.

Catchment area

Popular schools are often oversubscribed which can lead parents to move into a school's catchment area to improve their chance of winning a place for their child.

However, it is illegal for parents to try to improve their chances by lying about their address in their application.

The Local Government Association found that 50 parents in Richmond lied on their application last year, compared to five in 2006.

Richmond councillor Malcolm Eady said it was determined to reduce the number of bogus applications.

"We are now able to go through the records of other council departments so we can now check better than we could a few years ago," he said.

"If we find that a child has got in on a bogus application, we do have the power to actually remove that child from the school."

The Advisory Centre for Education charity said it was the responsibility of parents to be realistic about which school best suits their child when choosing up to six preferred schools.

Spokeswoman Sam Murray said: "If you look at the criteria and your child doesn't match them at all, if you put that school down are you wasting one of your preferences?"

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