Education chiefs have been forced into a embarrassing climb-down over their admissions policy for a popular York secondary school.

Keith Hayton, the head teacher of Fulford School, offered places to children from outside the catchment area earlier this year, ignoring those children already queuing on Local Education Authority waiting lists for a place.

Outraged parents appealed to the council and the authority then said Mr Hayton's offer would be rescinded.

But the Evening Press can today reveal that four of the pupils offered places by Mr Hayton have now been allowed to go the school.

Michael Peters, the director of educational services, said letters had been sent to rescind the offer as promised.

But the parents of the children then took legal advice on the matter and after the council had consulted its own experts, it was decided the children should be allowed to take up the places at Fulford after all.

"We are conducting an investigation into what has happened and it would be wrong to speculate until that has been completed," said Mr Peters.

"I can understand how parents, whose children were on the LEA waiting list for Fulford, will feel about this.

"But in the light of the legal advice we received, we sent out letters last week allowing those children to attend the school."

Adele Coupe, whose son William was top of the LEA's waiting list for Fulford School, said she could not believe the council had broken its word. "Former education officer Peter Rotheram told me that those children would not be allowed to attend the school under any circumstances," she said.

"William is very happy at Archbishop Holgate's School, but I have the worry and expense of sending him there by bus every day when he could have literally walked up the road to Fulford School.

"He is an asthmatic and I made two appeals to get him a place at Fulford and then I find the head teacher has offered places to children from villages, which are not even in the catchment area.

"But I was assured they would not be allowed to stay - what has been happening at Fulford School is disgraceful."

William was one of a number of pupils from Fishergate Primary School, who were refused places at Fulford earlier this year.

Howard Dickenson, who chairs the Fishergate board of governors, is now going to call a special meeting to discuss the situation later this week.

"My heart goes out to those parents of those children who were leap-frogged," said Mr Dickenson.

"We all understood the rules and were told no exceptions could be made or the whole system would fall apart.

"Now we see exceptions can be made and the rules have been abandoned for another set of children."

Mr Hayton confirmed that the four children had started at Fulford School yesterday and said Mr Peters had taken the exceptional decision to allow them attend the school so they would not suffer because of a misunderstanding between the school and the LEA.

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