Schools Secretary Ed Balls has asked for a report on the problem of parents cheating to get school places. England's Schools Adjudicator will look at the scale of the problem and whether there are enough powers to tackle cheats - and if they are being used. The announcement follows a decision by Harrow Council in London to drop the prosecution of a parent it had accused of lying over her address. Mrs Mrinal Patel said she was relieved and had never done anything wrong. Schools Secretary Ed Balls has now asked the adjudicator, Ian Craig, to look at the issue as part of his annual report, due in November. Mr Balls told BBC News he had asked him to look at: whether the scale of this problem is more significant than thought whether the powers authorities had to withdraw places were being used whether those powers were sufficient... [read full story]
