The Office of Basic Education Commission (Obec) says all students living within a specified radius of popular state-run schools will be given special admission under the schools' area-based quotas to attend.
The commitment was made by Obec secretary-general Boonrak Yodpetch after the Central Administrative Court ordered the all-boys Suankularb Wittayalai School in Bangkok to accept 10 students to study at Matthayom 1 level (Grade 7) under the school's area quota this academic year.
The ruling was made in response to lawsuits filed by the parents of students who earlier this year applied under area-based quotas, but were rejected by the prestigious school.
All state-run secondary schools, including Suankularb Wittayalai, are required to admit students living within the specified radius of a school for at least two years, according to Obec's rules.
"If the students are qualified for admission under the service area criteria, they must be able to study at those schools," Mr Boonrak said. "However, schools also have a right to check whether they really live nearby to prevent students living in other areas from taking advantage of the rules."
He said that apart from the Suankularb Wittayalai School case, Obec has also been asked by parents of students at Bangkok's Samsen Wittayalai School to investigate whether all students applying under area-based quotas this year are truly qualified, as they suspect there might be some irregularities.
In 2017, the former director of Samsen Wittayalai School, Viroj Samruan, was accused by a parent of demanding 400,000 baht in "tea money" so a Mathayom 1 student could be admitted. The parent circulated a clip of the supposed bribe being passed.
The Bangkok Provincial Education Commission last year fired him after he was found guilty of receiving bribes.
Obec is currently looking into several irregularities that involved several primary and high schools, said Mr Boonrak, although he stopped short of naming the schools and locations.
