PARENTS of St Albans primary school children will be asked for their views on a proposed new secondary transfer system in the biggest-ever consultation exercise of its kind, writes Kate Werran

More than 70,000 parents throughout Hertfordshire will be sent a consultation document on secondary school admission rules by the end of this week.

And an unprecedented set of meetings across the county will be held, where parents can have their questions answered.

The move is a direct response to the admissions crisis in the area last year, which saw many children without a secondary school of their choice.

The proposed rules will still give priority, when a secondary school has more applications than places available, to children with brothers and sisters already at the school.

Another rule gives places to children who would have to travel furthest to get to the next nearest school with places - known as the longest extra journey rule.

Up to ten per cent of places would also go to those who lived nearest the school.

These admission rules will only apply to local authority schools and the system will not be changed in time for the September 1998 intake.

Hertfordshire's head of student services Bart Taylor said: "It became quite clear last summer that we had real difficulties in west Hertfordshire and that parents were very unhappy with the way things were decided.

"We will also be talking about a more co-ordinated admissions system in the county in general terms."

Creating a more co-ordinated transfer system is another aspect of the council's questionnaire which was also agreed by the education committee on Wednesday last week.

If the council can't agree with the opted-out schools over creating such a system via a single application form, education minister David Blunkett will be brought into the negotiations.

This would see parents only needing to fill in one application form.

Members further agreed the director of education should ask all grant maintained schools in the county to consider the advantages to be gained by amending their admission rules in the light of the parental survey.

Chairman of the education committee Councillor Bob Mays said the council was determined to introduce clearer, fairer and better rules for the future.

Interested parents can find out more about the new rules at meetings to be held at Roundwood Park School, Harpenden on Monday, at 7.30pm, and at Sandringham School, in The Ridgeway, St Albans at the same time on Thursday, February 5.

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