A MUM-of-three said she is ‘frustrated and upset’ after her daughter was refused a place at nearby five primary schools.

Toni Elkin, 28, has been trying to get a place at St Stephen's Primary for her daughter Kia for the past two years so the five-year-old can be at the same school as her nine-year-old sister.

The mum, of Sinclair Avenue, had her daughter baptised but was told it was too late and that there were no places at four other nearby schools.

She said: “Kia really wants to go to school. She’s only five years old, I’m at the end of my tether now. 

“I have been in touch with everybody, but I feel like they are fobbing me off. Kia’s seen all her little friends going into St Stephen’s and is upset by it.”

Toni refused a place for Kia at Callands Primary as it would mean a 30 minute walk between her two daughters' schools.

A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Liverpool, which set St Stephen's admissions policy, said: “It is a popular and very successful school. 

“Admissions to the school are determined by the governing body in line with their published admissions policy. Legislation prevents the school from offering more than 30 places in any one infant class.

“In the year that Ms Elkin applied for a place for her daughter the school was heavily oversubscribed.

“The school admissions policy clearly stipulates that, for children seeking a school place as a baptised Catholic, baptism should take place before the closing date for applications.”

A spokesman for Warrington Borough Council said 98 per cent of parents were offered a place at one of their preferred schools in September.

He encouraged mums and dads to read the admissions policies as well as list several choices on their application form.