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A parent campaign group has said it will be taking a West Sussex council to the Local Government Ombudsman over a "lack of action" on a shortage of secondary school places.

The Future of Adur School Team (FAST) said taking West Sussex County Council to the ombudsman was the only way to force the council to act.

Around 200 pupils in West Sussex have been given a place at a school that was not one of their three preferences and some were allocated schools up to 17 miles away.

West Sussex County Council said it understood how disappointing it can be for pupils not to be offered a place at one of their preferred schools.

Secondary school offers were made on Friday morning.

According to West Sussex County Council 86.8% of pupils will be offered their first preference school, a slight increase from 86.4% last year.

However, there is a shortage of places for areas like Southwater and Cowfold in the Horsham district.

Kevin Whitehead, from Southwater, whose son was placed 13 miles away from where he lives, was concerned about getting his son to school on time.

“It’s a big struggle for me,” the single dad explained.

Louise Friend, Southwater, also said her son was given a place almost 13 miles away, which she said was “disappointing and frustrating”.

Alastair Reid, founder of FAST, said the decision to go to the ombudsman was out of "desperation" and due to a "lack of action" from the council.

"The only thing we can do as parents is put pressure on the decision makers," Mr Reid said.

The council said: "The admissions team continues to look at opportunities to help give parents and carers more information on the process through attendance at secondary school open events and briefings for parents in areas where there are currently pressures."

The authority said it would repeat this for the process this year.

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