25 May 2007
The public favours lotteries over religious affiliation as a way of allocating places to oversubscribed schools, an Ipsos Mori poll has found.
The poll, commissioned by the Sutton Trust, was carried out last March, before the controversy over Brighton's use of 'random allocation' to determine school places.
Asked what they thought was the fairest system for allocating places to an oversubscribed faith school, 36% chose lotteries, compared with 20% for faith.
Sir Peter Lampl, chair of the Sutton Trust, said: 'What this research suggests is that ballots — alongside other criteria and guarantees — have a role to play in deciding which pupils secure places at oversubscribed schools.'
Given the option, however, more than half of the 2,000 adults polled thought the fairest system was to give priority to children living closest to the school.
A large number, particularly those from poorer backgrounds, could not make up their minds. Lampl commented: 'These parents are less likely to be able to successfully negotiate the admissions process.'
PFmay2007
