The allocation of primary school places for 2014 in Harrow is in absolute chaos.

We exercised our legal right that gives parents the opportunity to express a preference as to the school they would like their child to attend, and having looked at performance data, distance from home (provided by Harrow Borough Council) and Ofsted reports we made our informed choices.

As practising Catholics, we also fulfilled all criteria to be eligible for our first choice faith school, but this opportunity was made worse by the sudden increase of churchgoers just before application time.

Unfortunately for us, our preferences and therefore parental rights were completely ignored and our four-year-old son has been allocated the 21st school in terms of distance from home and one with poor results and low standards.

We are devastated and angry with Harrow Council and disillusioned with the process.

We moved to Harrow in 2010 knowing there were several good schools close to home.

However, we now know that the criteria for selection are so stacked against us, with no older siblings, that we have stood absolutely no chance of securing a place in any good school in Harrow close to home.

We have ended up in a terrible situation.

The admissions department at Harrow Council is now urging us to accept the place offered or we run the risk of no place for our son at all in September.

This is a strange starting point for an appeal process and we fear once again, that to exercise our legal rights as parents is going to be a painful and futile process.

Harrow Council has told us that it is our responsibility to inform it where our son is now going.

This is astonishing given to lack of forward planning resulting in a shortage of school places by the council. We understand there is an expansion plan of primary places for 2015, but that is too late for children this year.

There are no measures in place for 2014 to address the problem and yet, Harrow Council must have known this disaster was about to happen a long time ago.

Having written to our MP to vent anger about the lack of real and active participation in our so-called democracy, we now hope for a new allocation for our son.

The wonderful online access to information leads nowhere but to frustration and disappointment.

The system of parental preference for school place choices should have been abandoned for 2014 as there was no way in which Harrow Council could cope with the expected volume of requests.

At least this would have been an honest and open way to treat the people it serves, however embarrassing for them politically.

Harrow Council speaks in terms of efficient education and efficient use of resources rather than what is right for the children and the parents.

This is more the language of autocracy than democracy. It should never have got to this stage.

I would not encourage any new family to move to Harrow unless they can live within 0.3 miles of their chosen school.

Larger families take the sibling places and so unless you have siblings at the school already you have no chance.

Ian Goldthorpe and Elaine Dennison

Flambard Road, Harrow