A parent in Amsterdam is offering €20,000 to buy a place at the city’s prestigious Barlaeus secondary school, news website Nu.nl reports.

The city has introduced a new system to allocate children places at the city’s schools from next year, which officials say is fairer than the old lottery system.

However, hundreds of children have still not been offered a place at one of the top schools on their list. Under the old system, 95% of children could attend their favourite school but now only 75% can do so, the website says.

On a forum supporting free choice, one parent is offering to swap a place at the 4e Gymnasium in the west of the city for a place at the Barlaeus, with a €20,000 sweetener thrown in.

Sources have told Nu.nl this is not an isolated case.

On Tuesday the Parool highlighted the case of a girl from a village north of Amsterdam who has been allocated a place at a school a 17-km bike ride away.