Ranganathan criticises council over school places

The comedian Romesh Ranganathan has hit out at his local council after his youngest son did not get offered any of his preferred choices in his secondary school placement.

Mr Ranganathan said he had emailed West Sussex County Council six times after his son had been placed in a school "on the other side of town", and not at the same school as his elder two brothers.

He said he had received no response and his local MP, who agreed to investigate, had been told the council "can't do anything about it".

A council spokesperson said: "We don't comment on individual matters, but we acknowledge the disappointment when students cannot be placed at their first choice."

The council spokesperson said: "We will always work with families to ensure a suitable school placement can be found."

The council said 87.1% of pupils had been offered their first preference secondary school and 96.9% of all applicants were offered a place at one of their three preferences.