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After a failed first appeal for our son's primary school place, we sought the advice of John Chard. John's calm and thorough approach combined with his extremely extensive knowledge of admissions and appeals enabled us to overturn the original decision. We genuinely could not have achieved this without his help and we are incredibly grateful to him and the brilliant service he provides.
Hugo Douglas on Wednesday, 9th November 2011

John has been a great source of help during appeal process of our daughter. His helped us with our statement. When we received LEA's statement John quickly assess the case and made an excellent response to that. Which was presented at hearing, panel was surprised about LEA 's statement. It was concluded in the decision that prejudice to school would not have occurred if our daughter was given admission. It was not possible without John's help and expertise. God bless him. We won the place for our daughter. Mas and family Greater M'cr.
Mas on Sunday, 6th November 2011

When we approached John, we were already reasonably clear about our grounds for appeal and thought we might just get another perspective on how strong it was. John really opened our eyes to the nitty gritty of the way the process works. While he didn't change the nature of our appeal (and we didn't get him to come with us), his research and advice enabled us to manage the appeal hearing with confidence and on a par with the others in the room who all had plenty of experience in the process. If you're wondering whether you need advice: if you haven't done this before, then I believe you do. And if you're wondering whether John is the right person to help: we found him to be expert, calming and a pleasure to work with. And, yes I do think I'd have written this even if we hadn't been succesful - which happily we were.
Richard G on Sunday, 7th August 2011

Thanks to John for his help and advice with our appeal. he came with us on the day, the appeal process was a very emotional experience, thanks for his support on the day during this process our daughter will now be going to our local school as we have won our appeal.
sarah leftley on Friday, 22nd July 2011

When my daughter was denied her first choice junior school after attending 3 years at its linked primary school (She was one of two children in 90 who didnt get in)and my son having been accepted in the infant school, we became very concerned. Two different schools in two different areas, this was never going to work. I knew that help was out there, I knew that I needed more than just personal worries and I came across John website, the testimonials were the motivating factor and this is what gave me the confidence to contact John.. he was as everyone described, contactable which made communiction possible. He was amazing at stage 1 and knew the system better than anyone. Trust in him, we found out today that we won our appeal. Thanks John!
Nasim Arkell on Wednesday, 13th July 2011

Thanks John for the advice and conselling during the preparation of our Appeal submission. We have heard today that we were succesful, and we are delighted. The valuable insights into the way a succesful appeal is put together absolutley hit the nail on the head. Steve & Jenny Rollinson - 6 July 2011
Stephen Rollinson on Wednesday, 6th July 2011

We contacted John four weeks before our appeal hearing feeling very anxious about the whole process. John was absolutely fantastic and dealt with case quickly and efficiently. John put us at ease answered our never ending list of questions and concerns and equipped us to go into the hearing feeling confident. Our hearing lasted nearly two hours and John was with us all the time. He is amazing and we left feeling we had all given it our best. Our appeal was upheld and our son is on his way to his chosen school. We are delighted with the result and will never forget the support and input from John who has played a major part in the future of our sons education. John is a truly kind gentleman who genuinely cares about the outcome for your child. I would highly recommend using him to prepare your case and to represent you at the hearing.
Stephen & Ali Nightingale on Saturday, 18th June 2011

My wife and I approached john after all our school choices for our son had been denied by the authorities. John's informative and confidant manner helped to give us some hope and we then asked him to help us with our appeals. The preparation of statements, the requests for information from the authorities was all overseen by John who gave us valuable insight into how to prepare our arguments in a constructive and logical manner. Our son was granted a position at one of schools of choice and we are in no doubt that John's input priceless! Thank you John.
Ajmer Phull on Friday, 17th June 2011

I found John Chard during a Google search on school appeals, I was slightly apprehensive about paying so much money to a complete stranger online but I was desperate. There’s so much uncertainty and I found it difficult to understand the Admission Authority’s statements as to why my daughter was not offered a place at her preferred school, much less the school’s admissions criteria. Turns out they made a mistake with their published admissions number but I would not have known this without the advice given to me by John Chard. The man is a genius, very articulate and professional. He puts you at ease during a seriously stressful time and his experience and knowledge of the appeals process gives you that peace of mind that everything will be ok. He made mince meat of the Authority’s case and consequently my daughter was offered a place. I certainly would recommend John’s services, he’s very good.
Miss T Salmon on Friday, 10th June 2011

During our daughters appeal John has been a fantastic support all the way through. He assisted with all paperwork and provided valuable advice throughout the process. We are in no doubt that John's help was key in us achieving our desired result. Thank you John.
Hayley Ward on Monday, 6th June 2011

Thank you John for helping with our appeal to get Amy into the secondary school of her choice. You gave us clear advice and guidance, and helped to find ways of proving that the school could take in not only our child but all the others on appeal also! We and a few other families in our area have a great deal to be grateful for. We thoroughly recommend your services to any other family seeking help in a similar situation.
Peter & Nicky Botham, on Tuesday, 31st May 2011

A big thank you to John for his support and advice. I would recommend his services to anyone entering the malestrom of a school appeal. His expertise and experience mean that navigating the whole process is much less stressful and more productive! Thank you John.
Jenny Burbage Drew on Monday, 23rd May 2011

John helped us in 2002 to get a place at a school that rarely gave in a appeals - it was a very long drawn out fight but John was amazing she is now ready to go to University and I am sure that she would not have achieved the levels she has without being able to attend this school - there are no words to descibe the difference his intervention has made to our daughters life. Thank you John
sharon pasha on Saturday, 7th May 2011

Today was a very good day for us. We received the excellent news that our appeal for our eldest daughter to attend our local school was successful. We both feel that the support and guidance we've received from John has been instrumental in helping us achieve this success. John was very accessible and responsive throughout and his obvious experience in building a very strong case was critical. We would have no hesitation I recommending John to other parents in a similar situation and wish anyone in a similar situation the very best of luck with your individual appeals.
Joanne & Keith Willey on Monday, 7th March 2011

You may see many websites with glowing testimonials, and doubt them, but having recently used John’s services ourselves and winning our first ever appeal for a secondary school place for our daughter we know the comments are all 100% true. Despite being confident parents we were very concerned that the Appeal Hearing may involve jargon, procedures and information we were really not experienced in. Once John became involved he clearly steered us through the minefield. In addition, John ensured that our appeal statement was water tight, (approximately 5 pages) and so comprehensive that even the appeal panel commented, “ It is not often that you do not have to try to extract information from the parents.” We were only asked 2 minor questions by the panel, which was a great relief. John responded so efficiently by both telephone and e-mail to any queries we raised (even on a one-off weekend call). He armed us with the essential facts & figures so boosted our confidence to represent ourselves. Truly, we are still in disbelief that we actually won the appeal because the entire experience was so quick and faultless. This is solely due to John’s involvement, invaluable input and support. We are delighted that we have secured our daughter’s secondary education up to age 18 at an excellent specialist school, and are really indebted to John. Our daughter is still in disbelief, but so excited. Having already recommended School Appeals to a friend, we can honestly say we feel the fees were an excellent investment for the professional, friendly and expert service received. Well worth every penny for our daughter’s future education, and much cheaper than the private school fees alternative we may have been forced to make, had we not won. So a big THANK YOU.
Mr & Mrs Mitchell on Monday, 21st February 2011

Thank you John for guiding us along the road to a successful appeal. You listened, advised and provided excellent information. You were always available and willing to give lots of time to all our concerns. We went in front of the panel confident that, with your help, we couldn't have done anymore. We are so grateful to you. David and PJ Reid (and Molly!)
PJ Reid on Friday, 18th February 2011

Many thanks to John for winning our primary school appeal. We highly recommend John and would not have won without him. Many thanks for enhancing our son's education. Kind Regards, Zoe and David
Zoe and David on Sunday, 13th February 2011

Thank you so much for helping us with our successful primary school appeal. You were extremely helpful and gave us the confidence with the panel which I am sure helped secure places for both twins at our 1st choice school - something we thought impossible. They started today and they (and we) really love it. Many thanks and best wishes for the future. Mrs J Yates
Mr & Mrs Yates on Thursday, 6th January 2011

We have just received the fabulous news that we have achieved the impossible and won our infant class size appeal! We would not have been able to do this without John's expert help and advice. John attended the hearing with us and his wealth of knowledge and expertise far outweighed that of the LA's representative, thus proving that errors had been made and the published admission criteria had not been properly implemented and in some parts was in breach of the Schools Admissions Code. John was expertly prepared and put our case forward in a way which we could never have done, asking questions of the Admission Authority which we would have known nothing about. I cannot recommend John highly enough... a massive thankyou and a rewarding end to months of anguish!!
Dawn & Nick Corbett on Tuesday, 13th July 2010

I would just like to say how helpful and supportive John has been throughout our appeal. Without him I wouldn`t have known where to start. He has an incredible knowledge when it comes to the admissions procedures and what chance you have winning an appeal. It has been an extremely stressful time and John is well worth every penny! Thank you! Emma :)
Emma Holgate on Friday, 9th July 2010