Application

Every council has a local education authorityThe LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county., local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county..

• In every LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. there is an admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. department which is responsible for pupil admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. to that authority.
• You can locate your admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. department on your LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county.’s website, or by phoning your local council.
• The LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. issues an admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. booklet/guide and a central application form. Usually these are distributed through primary schools but you can request copies directly from the LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county..
• The application and admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools.  process begins in September the year before your child starts secondary school.
• The application form must be completed by the end of October the year before your child starts secondary school.
• You will be asked to list at least three secondary school preferences.
• In all authorities you will receive your offer of a place no later than 1st March of the year that your child starts secondary school. You will receive the offer of only one school.

The LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. handles applications to all their schools through a central  application form. Some schools will require you to complete a supplementary form along with the central form. Normally, you can get the supplementary form directly from those schools. The schools that require a supplementary form are usually those that select and academiesAcademies are privately sponsored, but are still state schools. Previously failing schools which have closed have been reAlso known as ‘Religious Studies' (RS). RE, Religious Education, is a compulsory subject in state* schools.-launched as Academies. Some Academies are new build with extensive resources..

AdmissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. booklet/ guide

• LEAs must publish an admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools.’ guide to all the state-funded schools in the LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county., by the 12th September. The guide must include
  • admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. arrangements
  • supplementary information

for each of the state-funded schools.

• LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. booklets or guides often tell you whether each school is over or under-subscribed.

School over-subscription/ admission  criteria

• If a school does not select, is under-subscribed and is your first preference, then you should be allocated this school. If a school is over-subscribed then  each school has  its over-subscription/ admission criteria.
• Some LEAs have shared admission criteria for the majority of their schools.
• Admission criteria are dictated by national guidelines, the School AdmissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. Code, but do vary between schools. The priority categories for admission, have to be:

1. Children in care.

2. Children with a statement of special needs.

• The next categories for admission are often:

3. Children who live nearest to the school/in the catchmentA school’s catchment is the locality from where a school is most likely to take their students. area.

4. Children with siblings at the school.

5. All other children.

• There are other categories:
  • grammarState grammar schools are selective schools. They have an entrance test, often still called the 11 plus exam, which selects the most academic students. Relatively few areas still have grammar schools. schoolsState grammarState grammar schools are selective schools. They have an entrance test, often still called the 11 plus exam, which selects the most academic students. Relatively few areas still have grammar schools. schools are selective schools. They have an entrance test, often still called the 11 plus exam, which selects the most academic students. Relatively few areas still have grammarState grammar schools are selective schools. They have an entrance test, often still called the 11 plus exam, which selects the most academic students. Relatively few areas still have grammar schools. schools. select by ability.
  • some schools select a quota of pupils with particular aptitudes. The quota can be no more than 10%. The aptitudes can be
  •      physical education or other sports
  •      the performing arts, or any one or more of those arts
  •      modern foreign languagesMFLMFL, Modern Foreign Languages, is the study of foreign languages at secondary school., Modern Foreign Languages, is the study of foreign languages at secondary school. , or any such language
  •      design and technology and information technology
  • children of teachers at the school.
  • church or faith schools usually select according to a particular faith or denomination. Some academiesAcademies are privately sponsored, but are still state schools. Previously failing schools which have closed have been reAlso known as ‘Religious Studies' (RS). RE, Religious Education, is a compulsory subject in state* schools.-launched as Academies. Some Academies are new build with extensive resources. are church schools.
  • named feeder schools.
  • some schools use the system of ‘bandingAlso known as ‘streaming’. Banding is a way of organising students into ability groups. Banding means that students are put into the same ability groups for most or all subjects. So if a student is in the top band for Maths, they will also be in the top band for other subjects, like English and Science. Banding is also a method some local authorities use to ensure that students from different ability groups are represented in all their comprehensive schools.’ selecting students so they get spread of pupils of different abilities or from the local area.

• LEAs or individual schools operate catchmentA school’s catchment is the locality from where a school is most likely to take their students. area systems. If they do operate a catchmentA school’s catchment is the locality from where a school is most likely to take their students. system however, this does not guarantee you a place if you live in that catchmentA school’s catchment is the locality from where a school is most likely to take their students.. It depends on the nature and number of applications for a school each year.
• Some authorities or individual schools do not operate catchmentA school’s catchment is the locality from where a school is most likely to take their students. areas, but use the ‘nearest to the school’ system. With this system, the more oversubscribed the school is, the shorter the distance of residence from the school for acceptance.
• LEAs or individual schools must  maintain waiting lists for  at least the first term of the academic year of admssion. These are maintainedMaintained schools are funded by the government via the local authority, and do not charge fees to students. The categories of maintained school are: communityCommunity schools are the standard type of maintained, state school., foundationFoundation schools are broadly the same as trust schools. The governing body is the employer and admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. authority, rather than the local authority, as is the case for maintained schools. Faith schools are often trust schools. (including trustTrust schools are broadly the same as foundationFoundation schools are broadly the same as trust schools. The governing body is the employer and admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. authority, rather than the local authority, as is the case for maintained schools. Faith schools are often trust schools. schoolsFoundationFoundation schools are broadly the same as trust schools. The governing body is the employer and admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. authority, rather than the local authority, as is the case for maintained schools. Faith schools are often trust schools. schools are broadly the same as trust schools. The governing body is the employer and admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. authority, rather than the local authority, as is the case for maintained schools. Faith schools are often trust schools.. They receive extra support (usually non-monetary) from a charitable trust made up of partners working together for the benefit of the school. The governing body is the employer and admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. authority, rather than the local authority, as is the case for maintained schools. Faith schools are often trust schools.), voluntary aidedIn voluntary aided schools (many of which are faith schools) the governing body, as opposed to the local education authority*, employs the staff, and decides admission arrangements. and voluntary controlledIn Voluntary controlled schools, the charitable foundationFoundation schools are broadly the same as trust schools. The governing body is the employer and admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools. authority, rather than the local authority, as is the case for maintained schools. Faith schools are often trust schools. which owns the school, (often a church organisation) appoints the governorsEvery school has a governing body. They are a group of volunteers chosen by parents, the local authority, the community and school staff.They are responsible for strategic and legal aspects of the school’s work. The governing body line manages the Head teacher., but the teachers are employed by the local education authority*, which is also responsible for admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools.*.. in the order of their over-subscription criteria. This information sisexplained in the LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools.’ booklet.
• If you want to apply for a school outside the LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. where you live, every LEAThe LEA, local education authority, is in charge of delivering education for the council in a borough or county. has to operate a system for managing such requests.
• LEAs cannot and do not offer a first come first served admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools.’ process. There is no advantage in getting your application in early.
• Church schools are allowed to interview prospective students and their parents to assess religious commitment. Otherwise, state schoolsState schools are non-fee paying schools provided by the state. are not allowed to use interviews to assess applicants.
• It is important to note that the Head teacher does not ‘choose’ their students. In some situations, such as that of church schools, the governing body makes decisions on admissionsAdmissions is the department in the local education authority responsible for allocating children to schools.’ issues. The Head teacher is likely to be a member of the governing body, but cannot make decisions on their own.