School place complaints double after 'witch hunt'

COMPLAINTS over school places have more than doubled this year in the wake of a "witch hunt" by Children's Secretary Ed Balls.

The Cabinet minister's crackdown on admission policy has caused soaring numbers of schools to fall foul of the new rules. Details will be revealed in a report next week.

The news comes the day after a landmark legal battle saw the High Court quash the school adjudicator watchdog's ruling against Drayton Manor High School in Ealing. The school had been accused of refusing to give places to poor children.

Lawyers for the school blamed Mr Balls for unleashing a tidal wave of complaints.

Earlier this year, the minister accused faith schools of flouting the new admissions code in what was branded a "witch hunt". He demanded that councils report any secondaries suspected of failing to comply to the schools adjudicator.

The aim of the new code, introduced last year, was to make the system fairer to less affluent families. It banned selection interviews and placed a duty on schools to promote fair admissions.