A Watford mum says she is facing the prospect of home schooling her daughter in September after she failed to gain a place at an infants school she could be taken to by her childminder.

Jo Brisbane launched an appeal with Hertfordshire County Council after her four-year-old daughter Eve did not get a place at Parkgate Infant and Nursery School – despite attending its nursery for a year.

But Jo, a police officer from north Watford, was told by Hertfordshire County Council last week that their appeal had failed and the only two schools in Watford she could attend given child care arrangements, Knutsford Primary School and Parkgate Infant and Nursery School, were full.

The 34-year-old said: “Needless to say we are gutted at the decision and for Eve.

“With the prospect of having to home school Eve my husband is having to look at reducing his hours at work or even leaving his job.

“In the appeal we were told that a number of children had been allocated places over Eve as they had lived some 70 metres closer even though they never attended the nursery.

“As has been the case throughout this entire process we were sympathetically told the rules are rules - even if they don't seem right.”

Jo said the council had offered Eve a place at Cherry Tree Primary School – but the school was too far for Eve’s childminder.

She said finding child care for her daughter was difficult because she worked shifts, but Eve’s current childminder was flexible and affordable.

Jo said: “I can never give a definite times that I’m working this childminder understands that – and she doesn’t charge for a full day when I’m able to take Eve after a couple of hours.

“Now my husband is thinking of leaving his job to home school Eve because the child care would cost so much it doesn’t make financial sense not to.

“We were told that child care arrangements cannot be taken into consideration in the schools allocation process. We understand there has to be rules, but these ones don’t make sense for our family or the school and teachers who have had Eve for a year already.”

But Hertfordshire County Council said the rules had to be applied equally to all children.

In a statement, the authority said: “We’re sorry to hear that Eve cannot take up the place offered at one of her ranked schools and can understand the family’s frustration. However, we have to apply our rules fairly to all children.

“Like Eve, the vast majority of children in Hertfordshire were allocated one of their ranked schools. We want all children to have access to a good education so they can reach their full potential, with the right number of school places in the right location.”