| Admissions Policy & Admissions Procedure for Reception Children entering the school in 2009/10 | ||||||
| The first steps on an educational journey where children are valued and enabled to achieve their full potential, in a happy and safe environment. | ||||||
Chipping Hill School published admission number 2009/10: 40 LEA ADMISSIONS POLICY Children are legally entitled to a full-time place in school at the beginning of the term after their fifth birthday. Every effort is made in Essex for children to be admitted at the start of the term during which they become five. At this age they are known as ‘rising fives’. As the date of some bank holidays, like Easter, varies considerably from one year to another, the term dates used to determine when children may be admitted are:
EARLY YEARS ADMISSION Children are admitted to Chipping Hill School in one in-take:
It is LEA policy that where a school offers early entry, parents are able to defer entry until later in the school year. It is not possible to defer entry beyond the beginning of the term after the child’s fifth birthday, nor beyond the academic year for which admission is sought. APPLICATION PROCEDURES Witham schools no longer have a catchment area. For children residing within the priority admission area of Witham* who apply by the closing date there will be a guaranteed place at one of the community or voluntary controlled schools in the area. In the event of over-subscription places will be allocated using the following criteria in the order given:
In the event of oversubscription within any of the above criteria priority
will be given to looked after children. Distances will be measured by straight
line. *A map showing the priority admissions area for Witham is available from the Planning and Admissions Service, Essex County Council.
Children who are cared for by a local authority (looked after) will have the highest priority within each individual criterion unless otherwise stated.
Children with statements of special educational needs that name the school on the statement are required to be admitted to a school regardless of their place in the priority order. Applying for a school place The application process is in accordance with the co-ordinated scheme for primary admissions. A Common Application Form will be sent to all parents/carers, who are registered with a GP, during October 2008. Parents/carers who live in Essex can choose to apply for their child’s school place by completing and returning the Common Application Form or by applying on-line using the Essex On-line Admissions Service at www.essexcc.gov.uk/admissions. Offers of places will be sent on 1 April 2009. Closing date for applications The closing date for applications is 1st December 2008. This also applies to admissions to junior schools, including transfers from infant schools. Guaranteed places Where it is part of a school’s admission policy to guarantee a place for those children who live in the priority admissions area, this applies only to a first application for a reception for your child. Where a parent chooses not to apply for a priority admissions place at that stage, then a place is no longer guaranteed later in their child’s educational career. Similarly the guaranteed place will apply if a family move into a priority admissions area and apply for a school place for the first time from that new address. If at that stage an application is made for a school other than the priority admissions school, then the guaranteed place will not be available in the future. Home address Applications will be processed on the basis of the home address for the
child. In the majority of cases this will be the parent’s home address.
However, where this is not the case, the child is taken to be ‘ordinarily
resident’ at the address of
the parent/guardian that is in receipt of child benefit for the child.
Parents will be asked to provide proof of the home address. In a few cases
children may be ‘ordinarily resident’ for the majority of the
school week with another relative, such as a grandparent. Where this is
the case the application will be processed on the basis of that address.
Proof of this address and arrangement will be required. Siblings For applications made in the normal admission round a sibling is defined as a child living in the same family unit, in the same family household and address as a child who attends the preferred school or partner school in any year group excluding the final year. This, therefore, includes brothers and sisters and step brothers and sisters. In addition biological siblings, in any year group excluding the final year, will be treated as siblings irrespective of place of residence. For mid year applications a sibling is defined as a child living in the same family unit, in the same family household and address as a child who attends the preferred school or partner school at the time of application and determination and with a reasonable expectation that the sibling will be attending at the time of admission. Medical circumstances Exceptional medical reasons may override other admission criteria if supported by medical evidence. The medical reasons should be in relation to the child and should be clearly stated on the application form. Applications made on this basis will be considered by a panel of County Council Officers. To demonstrate the medical need of a child which can most appropriately be met at the preferred school medical evidence from an appropriate professional will be required. The panel will decide whether the evidence provided demonstrates that it is necessary for the school to admit the child on medical grounds as no other local school would be able to meet the specific medical need. Withdrawal of an offer If a school place has been secured through false information or has been offered in error, the offer of the place may be withdrawn. Waiting lists Essex County Council will hold waiting lists in priority order according to the school’s admission criteria until the end of the first week of the Autumn term 2009. Late Applications Applications received after the published closing date will be treated as late applications unless there is evidence to show that the application could not have reasonably been made on time. Late applications will be given a lower priority and will not be assured a place even if the application is for a place at a local school which normally guarantees places for catchment children. Where a school is over-subscribed late applications will be refused and placed at the bottom of any waiting list held for the particular school. If there is more than one late application then the place on the waiting list will be determined by the admissions criteria for the school. Changing primary schools The opportunity to transfer depends on places being available at the preferred school. If approved, a place is usually made available at the start of the following term. A child should not be withdrawn from the current school until a place has been secured elsewhere. Applications for transfer will not be dealt with until the half term prior to the requested admission date. In cases where a child moves into a district area (proof of address required) and, as a result of the move the child would be without a school place, the application will be dealt with immediately. Applications made after the start of the autumn term On receipt of an application after the start of the autumn term the County Council will contact the school in writing for the up-to-date numbers. If there are spaces in the year group an offer will be made. If not a refusal will be sent and the right of appeal given if it was a first application for the year group or if it was a second application resulting from a significant and material change in circumstances relevant to the application. (If there is not a significant and material change in circumstances a second application received during the same academic year will not be determined and, as such, no second right of appeal will be given.) When there are more applications, received on the same day, than the number of places available the school’s admission criteria will be used to determine any offers that can be made. There is a rolling process in place that considers re-applications over a two week period. Details of the process will be available to parents who have applied and been refused a place after the start of the autumn term. Appeals against admission decisions Parents have the right to appeal against admissions decision to an Independent Appeal Panel. Information about how to appeal against a refusal of a school place will be sent with the offer pack. Notice of appeal should be sent
to the clerk to the Independent Appeal Panel, PO Box 11, Chelmsford,
CM1 1LX. |
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