A CAMPAIGN to free more grammar school places for Sevenoaks children is gathering pace after the town's MP and another primary school pledged their support.

Sevenoaks Primary School's head teacher Alan Duffy said action needed to be taken on the issue following a meeting held by Amherst School's head teacher Derry Wiltshire.

Mr Wiltshire called for parents to write to a Government watchdog about the problem of Sevenoaks children not being offered a place at grammar schools in Tunbridge Wells.

Instead some are sent to schools as far afield as Dover and Folkestone.

Amherst's letter-writing campaign aims to put pressure on Tonbridge Grammar School, The Skinners School and The Judd School to change their selection criteria.

These schools operate a system of "super selection", where only youngsters with the highest scores are selected, regardless of where they live.

It means that other grammar schools, including Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys and Weald of Kent Grammar School, have had to expand their classes to accommodate West Kent youngsters who have passed the 11-plus.

Mr Duffy agreed this was a problem and said he hoped his parents would write similar letters as the problem reoccurred every year.

He said: "Last year was the worst year for the Sevenoaks partnership.

"In the end it worked itself out, but parents had to go through a lot.

"We are going to have a governors' meeting where we are looking at giving parents a similar opportunity to voice their concerns.

"One of the things we will be raising is pointing out to the parents who they should contact."

He added: "Any parent who would be considering the 11-plus are going to be concerned about it – it is not just the current Year 5."

David Hale, chair of governors at Amherst School, also supports the campaign.

He said: "The appeal process drags on for weeks and months and it makes the children feel like failures.

"The parents have to spend a lot of time on it as well, and we would just like to reduce the stress levels really."

MP Michael Fallon has also got onboard, and said Kent County Council is to formally challenge the admission arrangements of the three "super-selective" schools.

He said: "Kent County Council will propose alternatives which restrict initial selection to a tightly-drawn radius around each school (which will include a very small part of East Sussex), and then to Kent children.

"I will be supporting Kent's submission with my own, and I hope you and other parents will write to the adjudicator in similar terms."

Kate Read, a spokesman for The Office of the Schools Adjudicator, confirmed objections had been received.

She said: "An adjudicator – Brian Slater – has been allocated to these complaints.

"He will need to ask questions of the schools and gather evidence together around the objections raised and may also need to hold a public meeting."

To make an objection to admission arrangements contact the Office of the Schools Adjudicator before July 31.

Visit www.schoolsadjudicator. gov.uk/index.cfm