Annex F
Community and Voluntary Controlled Primary and Infant Schools
Admissions Policy – Reception entry
2022– 2023
Introduction
1 This policy applies to those schools where the Local Authority (LA), City of York Council, is the admission authority – that is all community and voluntary controlled primary and infant schools within the City of York area. The LA is responsible for determining the school’s admissions arrangements (including this policy) and deciding who can be allocated a place in accordance with it.
2 This policy applies only to applications within the primary admissions round, that is when applying for a place in Reception as the normal year of entry to start primary or infant school for the first time. It does not apply to ‘in-year’ applications for a place at a primary or infant school. In-year admissions are those that are made either during the school year, or for admission into year groups other than the normal year of entry. More information on in-year admissions can be found in the City of York In-Year Admissions Policy.
3 The mechanisms and content of this policy may also be adopted by other admission authorities wishing to reflect the aims of this policy in their own admission arrangements. The LA will offer assistance where requested to other admission authorities with schools in the City of York LA area who wish to adopt similar arrangements for the benefit of residents of the LA area.
4 This policy complies with and operates within the City of York Coordinated Admissions Scheme for Primary and Infant Schools in the City of York Local Authority area.
5 The LA policy for allocating primary and infant school places is designed to be as fair as possible while ensuring that resources are used sensibly. The LA works closely with the head teachers and governing bodies of all schools in school place planning and organisation regarding the numbers of places that can be allocated.
6 Under the primary and infant school admission arrangements the allocation of places is based on where the child/parent lives and the preferences of parent/carers.
7 The admission of children into the Reception year at an infant or primary school is a completely separate process to nursery admissions. Attendance at a particular nursery class or early years provider does not give a child any priority within the admissions policy for admission to a community or voluntary controlled infant or primary school, even if the school and nursery are located on the same premises or the nursery is run by the school itself.
8 Advice and information for parent/carers on school admissions, including key information that applies to all applications as well as some frequently asked questions are available in the Guide for Parents which is available at www.york.gov.uk/guideforparents or upon request from the School Services team. It is recommended that all applicants consider the information in the Guide for Parents before making an application.
9 The admission of children with an Education, Health and Care plan are covered by different admission regulations. Following negotiation, once a school has been named, a place will be allocated for these children before considering other applications.
A Admissions into Reception
1 Children will normally be admitted into the year group relevant to the child’s age and will start full-time in the school year they turn five. All children will be offered the opportunity of a full time place from September in the year of entry.
2 This policy includes an option of ‘delayed entry’. This means that parent/carers may secure a place at a school under the normal admission arrangements but choose to postpone their child’s admission to school, as long as their admission is not delayed beyond the point at which they reach compulsory school age. A child normally reaches compulsory school age at the start of the term following their fifth birthday. The table below sets out the position:
|
Date of birth |
Date of compulsory school age |
Latest date child may start school full-time |
|
1 September 2017 - 31 December 2017 |
31 December 2022 |
The start of the ‘Spring’ term in January 2023 |
|
1 January 2018 - 31 March 2018 |
31 March 2023 |
The start of the ‘Summer’ term in April 2023 |
|
1 April 2018 - 31 August 2018 |
31 August 2023 |
[The start of the ‘Autumn’ term in September 2023 |
If you would like to delay your child’s entry, so they do not start full-time in September 2022, you must still apply at the normal time. Once allocated a school place, you should then advise the school in writing of your child’s intended start date and keep in regular contact with the school regarding any changes to this intended date. Start dates are recommended to be at the start of each half term, but these can be varied by agreement with the school.
The school will hold a place for that child and not offer it to another child during the remainder of the Reception year. You should contact the school to make arrangements for admission of your child by no later than 20 school days before the intended start date. If you do not contact the school in the 20 school days before an intended and/or previously communicated start date, the school will make all reasonable efforts to contact you by telephone and in writing at any known physical address or email address. In the event that all attempts to contact you are unsuccessful, the school place may be withdrawn.
3 Parent/carers will also be able to request a part-time place until the start of the term after the child turns five. It is a legal requirement that all children must enter formal full-time education at the start of the term after their fifth birthday, but if you would like to discuss part-time education for your child so they do not start full-time in September 2021, you must still apply at the normal time. Once allocated a school place, you should then ask the school in writing what part-time provision may be offered, advise them of your child’s intended full-time start date and keep in regular contact with the school regarding any changes to this intended date.
4 Some parent/carers of ‘summer born’ children (those children born between 01 April and 31 August) may wish to investigate the possibility of ‘deferred entry’ into a lower year group. If you are considering this for your child, please contact the School Services team who can provide you with information and advice.
If you would like to defer your child’s entry, so they do not start in Reception in September 2022, but instead start Reception in September 2023, you must still apply at the normal time and parallel to your application, put a formal request in writing to defer your child’s admission to a lower year group.
For the purposes of coming to a decision on such deferrals for those children living in the City of York, the LA has developed a city-wide policy and invited all other admission authorities to take part in joint arrangements. More information on delayed and deferred entry can be found in the City of York Delayed and Deferred Admissions Policy.
Places are not held open for children who defer entry, so parent/carers must, if their request is approved, reapply by 15 January the following year for a place in Reception alongside children who are one school year younger. Parent/carers may make an identical application for the same schools, or request different schools from their initial application.
Parents/carers should be aware that as the numbers of applications and preferences, and even the number of available places, may differ from year to year, that a deferral does not mean a place at the same school can be allocated one year later. It will not be known which school is allocated for an agreed deferral until 19 April in the school year the child turns 5 and the results of the application one year later may result in a different school being allocated.
5 If you would like to investigate accelerating your child’s entry, so they do not start in the year group relevant to the child’s age (the school year they turn five), but instead start at an earlier time, you should contact the LA at an early stage to discuss your intentions and what the best approach might be.
If you would like to accelerate your child’s entry, you should then put a formal request in writing, together with any supporting information, by no later than 29 November 2021. The LA will then consider your request, if necessary in conjunction with other schools, early years providers and professionals.
If the request is approved, wherever possible you should submit an application as part of the normal admissions round, for the year group it has been agreed is the most appropriate for the child. Parents/carers should make it clear in their application that an application out of the usual year group has been agreed. The application will then be considered in accordance with this admissions policy. The LA will not give the application lower priority on the basis that the child is being admitted out of their normal age group. If the request is rejected, you should apply in the usual way for your child to join their correct age group. Should parents/carers disagree with a decision to refuse their request, they should put their complaint in writing and follow the LA’s complaints policy.
6 Applications should be made by the closing date for applications which is 15 January 2022. Applications can be made online at www.york.gov.uk/schooladmissions. It is expected that most applications will be made online, but where applicants cannot apply online, they may request support from the LA, schools, or a paper application form known as the ‘School admissions application for Primary School in September 2022.
7 When making an application, parent/carers are advised to supply any additional information that may be required to the admission authority in writing, preferably by emailing education@york.gov.uk with the child’s details. For example, additional information will need to be provided when applying on the basis of being ‘previously looked after’ or having exceptional social or medical needs which relate to the preferred school. Further guidance on additional information can be found in the Guide for Parents.
8 Any school’s resources, such as teachers and classrooms, have to be used carefully to ensure the best possible standards for education and a safe environment. If no limit were set on the number of children that can go to a school each year these standards could not be maintained. Infant Class Size legislation may also limit the number of pupils that can be admitted in reception, Year 1 and Year 2. For these reasons each school has a Published Admission Number – that is the number of places available that will be offered in the year of entry.
9 Applicants may be successful in obtaining a place at a school that does not serve the local ‘catchment’ area in which they live. If allocated a place at such a school, applicants will be responsible for travel arrangements and the costs of travel to and from school.
10 Applicants are advised to consider their ‘catchment’ school when making an application. If the place your child is allocated is at a school which you are not in the catchment area for, or if you move out of the catchment area you now reside in, then you may have less chance of being successful when applying for any younger siblings. Catchment areas are designated by the LA and are made available to applicants in the Guide for Parents, online at www.york.gov.uk and upon request from the School Services team.
B Oversubscription criteria
Some schools will be oversubscribed – that is where the number of applicants exceeds the Published Admission Number. Where this is the case, priority is given to certain categories of children. The oversubscription criteria set out below will be used to prioritise all applicants who have applied for a place at a school in these circumstances in the following priority order:
1 Children who are either currently or have previously been ‘looked after’. This applies to all children who are currently in the care of a local authority; all children who have been adopted from local authority care (subject to an adoption, residence or special guardianship order); and all children who appear to have been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state care as a result of being adopted. A child is regarded as having been in state care in a place outside of England if they were accommodated by a public authority, a religious organisation or any other provider of care whose sole purpose is to benefit society;
It is the responsibility of parent/carers, or the child’s social worker to provide the information to the admission authority that this criterion applies.
2 Children who live within the catchment area normally served by the preferred school, with a sibling at the preferred school at the time of admission. Catchment areas are designated by the LA and are made available to parent/carers in the Guide for Parents, online at www.york.gov.uk, and upon request from the School Services team. Siblings are defined as brothers or sisters living in the same house, as their primary place of residence (including half-, step- and foster-brothers or sisters);
The LA uses the address provided in the application, and using GIS software, determines which catchment area an address, and therefore a child, resides in. This address must be the address at which the child is ordinarily resident. Further detailed advice on addresses is contained within the Guide for Parents.
It is the responsibility of parent/carers to include with their application the name of any sibling(s) where this criterion applies for checking by the LA.
3 Children who live within the catchment area normally served by the preferred school. Catchment areas are designated by the LA and are made available to parent/carers in the Guide for Parents, online at www.york.gov.uk, and upon request from the School Services team;
The LA uses the address provided in the application, and using GIS software, determines which catchment area an address, and therefore a child, resides in. This address must be the address at which the child is ordinarily resident. Further detailed advice on addresses is contained within the Guide for Parents.
4 Children considered by the admission authority to have exceptional social or medical needs which makes the preferred school the most suitable school for the child. The admission authority may consult with other medical or educational professionals for a further opinion as to whether the child should be allocated a place at the preferred school due to a particular medical condition or social need;
It is the responsibility of parent/carers to provide the additional information where they believe this criterion applies. To be given priority on this basis, the admission authority would have to be satisfied that the child’s needs were such that the preferred school would be the most suitable school for the child.
Admissions officers defer these considerations and decisions to a panel of children’s services officers, in areas such as safeguarding and education social care. This ‘Exceptional Social and Medical (ESM) Panel’ considers any documentation provided by parent/carers and assesses whether these needs are ‘exceptional’ in nature. Admissions officers have no decision-making role in this process and only identify those applications to be considered by the ESM Panel and request further information from parent/carers. Those applications with supporting information that the ESM Panel determines are ‘exceptional’ would have to be where only the preferred school could meet the child’s need.
5 Children with a sibling at the preferred school at the time of admission. Siblings are defined as brothers or sisters living in the same house, as their primary place of residence (including half-, step and foster-brothers or sisters);
It is the responsibility of parent/carers to include with their application the name of any sibling(s) where this criterion applies for checking by the LA.
6 Children who live closest to the preferred school using the nearest available safe walking route. Distances are measured by a GIS mapping system from the child’s home address to the closest entrance of the school.
Distances are measured using a system of walking routes rather than straight line distances to better reflect the length of the journey from home to school. Within a contiguous urban area these routes are those that are properly paved and lit alongside roads and other walkways and do not include the York outer ring road. Outside a contiguous urban area, for example for applications from outside the City of York area, these distances continue to be measured along the road network.
Where there are fewer places than children in an oversubscription priority as above, in order to decide to whom places will be allocated, the following tie-breakers will be applied:
· first, to the child(ren) who also fulfil the next highest priority;
· second, to the child(ren) living closest to the school as defined in priority 6;
· and third, if the measurement of the distance from home to school above does not distinguish between two or more applicants with equal priority, random allocation will be used as the final tie-breaker, and independently verified.
Where the application of the above would lead to a place being made available for a child of multiple birth, but not their sibling(s), we will work within the Admissions Code in order to make a place available for the sibling(s) wherever reasonably possible.
For example, for two children who are both resident in the catchment area without a sibling on roll at the time of admission and are thus assigned the same (third) priority, the place would first be allocated to the child who also fulfils the next highest priority, for example, an exceptional social or medical need (fourth priority) over a child who lives closer to the school (sixth priority).
C Appeals
1 Applicants refused a place at the school have a statutory right of appeal. If a preference for a place at the school is refused, the applicant will be informed of the reasons and of their right of appeal. This right does not apply if they are allocated a place but it is not in their preferred year group.
2 Appeals are heard by an independent appeals panel and their decisions are legally binding in line with the School Admission Appeals Code. We will publish our appeals timetable at www.york.gov.uk/schooladmissions by 28 February 2022. Applicants who wish to appeal should contact the School Services team to request the correct appeal form. Appeal forms should be returned within 20 school days of the date the place was refused.
3 Applicants will only be able to appeal once in any one school year unless, in exceptional circumstances, the admission authority has accepted a second application because of a significant and material change in the circumstances of the parent/carer, child or school.
D False Information
Where an offer of a place has been made on the basis of fraudulent or intentionally misleading information, which has effectively denied a place to a child with a stronger claim, the offer of a place will be withdrawn.
E Late Applications
1 Applications received after the closing date of 15 January 2022 may be treated as ‘late’ applications – that is processed after all ‘on-time’ applications.
2 Where possible, ‘late’ applications and changes of preference and/or circumstances will be treated as ‘on-time’ applications if:
a) this is accompanied by a satisfactory reason provided at the time of application; and
b) it can be accommodated within the timescales of the coordinated scheme and/or admission authority’s processes.
3 Late applications received after the offer day, but before the start of the school year will be processed using the same arrangements and criteria as ‘on-time’ applications, although the availability of places will depend on where places are still available as well as the preferences of applicants.
4 Late applications received after the first day of the school year will be considered as ‘in-year’ applications, and be subject to the City of York In Year Admissions Policy. However, these preferences, if unsuccessful, will be held on a waiting list until the end of the first term in line with ‘on-time’ applications as set out in Section F of this policy.
F Waiting List
1 If a school is oversubscribed, a waiting list will be held from when offers have been made until 31 December 2022. After 31 December 2022, if there is still a waiting list, an ‘in-year’ waiting list is then held until the end of that school year. Beyond the first school year, refused preferences do not ‘roll over’ into future school years. Should applicants wish to remain on a waiting list for a future school year, they should submit a new application by 1 June in the relevant year.
2 A child’s position on the list will be determined by the oversubscription criteria set out in Section B of this policy and will reflect their current circumstances where these circumstances have been provided to the admission authority. The list will also contain all other on-time and late preferences that have been refused or are requested. Should a place become available while the waiting list is in operation, a place will be made available to the applicant on the top of the waiting list on the day the place became available.
3 Applications may only be made once for each school year unless there has been a significant and material change in the circumstances of the parent/carer, child or school, which the admission authority agrees requires a new application.
4 Being on a waiting list does not affect a parent’s/carer’s right of appeal against an unsuccessful preference.