A "furious" mother slammed Harrow Council after her daughter was left out of education for almost two months.

Karla Legg, of Stanmore, moved from Buckingham with her five-year-old daughter Kiana at the end of November – but the Reception pupil has still not been allocated a place at a ‘suitable’ school.

An application was initially submitted to Harrow Council before the family’s move, but they were told the application could not be processed until officers received a proof of address - which the mother of two could not send until after a tenancy agreement was signed.

After sending off applications for a total of four schools in Harrow and a further two in Hertfordshire, Kiana was offered a place at a school just over a mile from her home.

Miss Legg said: “There was no way I was accepting that place. The only good thing about the school was the children’s behaviour, but the standard of teaching and even the safety of the school is so inadequate - I’d be so terrified about her progress or even leaving her there.

“I’m furious - this is completely wrong. By the time this is sorted my daughter would not have been to school for about two months.”

Kiana is now receiving private maths and English lessons in Watford to ensure she doesn’t fall behind other children of her age, but is keen to return to the school environment and make new friends.

Miss Legg added: “I now have to spend all this money that I don't have on some sort of tuition for my daughter when she should just be at a good school with every other child.

“My only concern is for her welfare and I do not see why she should suffer in her education because I have moved to better our lives.

"I just want her to be given a school I’ve applied for, without being told she’s 104th on a waiting list, so she gets the best education she can.”

Miss Legg is now hoping to hear back from Hertfordshire County Council about places across the border, and has asked Harrow Council to provide a list of schools in the borough that do not have a waiting list.

Children, schools and young people councillor Simon Brown said: “At the beginning of this month Miss Legg was offered a place for her daughter 1.4 miles from the family home. The school Miss Legg had put as first place is oversubscribed by 100 people and is further away - 1.7 miles. OFSTED has rated 87 per cent of the schools across the borough as good or outstanding.

“We understand the frustration of parents when they don’t get their first option, but like other councils across London there is increased pressure on a limited number of places. To meet this demand Harrow Council is in the middle of an ambitious school expansion programme to meet rising demands.”