Parents who 'bend rules' are thieves

Parents who "bend the rules" to try to get their children into popular schools have been branded thieves.

The Government's schools adjudicator Ian Craig said cheating was on the increase, with an estimated 3,500 parents a year lying on school application forms.

He said tougher sanctions should be considered to tackle the problem but he stopped short of saying that fraudulent applicants should be prosecuted.

He also said fines were unlikely to be a deterrent to those who could afford to rent a second property near their preferred school.

This is one of the methods often claimed to be in use in Bristol by families keen to get their children into the new Redland Green School, rather than pay private school fees.

Other ploys unveiled by Dr Craig as he launched his annual report yesterday included using a grandparent's address or falsely claiming that parents had split up.

Families thought they had nothing to lose by making the claims, but the practice was stealing because it was depriving another child of a place.

Until now, the practice has mainly involved families seeking secondary school places but the shortage of primary school places in some parts of Bristol could tempt more parents to lie to gain places for their four-year-olds.

Bristol City Council said its admissions officers checked various databases of information to spot possible fraudulent applications. In 2008/9, 15 cases were investigated in detail.

Anyone claiming a false address can face having the place withdrawn.