Microsoft Word - LB Newham School Admission Arrangements

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 1

School Admission Arrangements

Infant, Junior, Primary and

Secondary

For entry from September 2023

Determination: Friday 11

February 2022

Intellectual property of LB Newham

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 2

Section 1: Introduction and legal overview

All admissions authorities for state funded schools in England must comply with the current School

Admissions Code September 2021, published by Department for Education that sets out the law

and guidance relating to school admissions.

Local authorities have an important role in monitoring compliance with the Admissions Code and

are required to report annually to the Schools Adjudicator on the fairness and legality of the

admissions arrangements for all schools in their area, including those for whom they are not the

admissions authority.

As the admissions authority for the community and voluntary controlled infant, junior and primary

schools located in Newham, the LB Newham is required to draft, consult on and determine their

admission arrangements including the oversubscription criteria.

For all state funded schools, the law requires that where applications exceed the Published

Admission Number (PAN), their admission authority must strictly apply their published

arrangements and oversubscription criteria to determine which children are offered the places

available.

This policy sets out the arrangements (rules) that the Local Authority (LB Newham) will follow to

determine the placement of children in our maintained schools. To promote a clear, fair and

transparent approach, the LB of Newham recommends and invites academies and free schools to

adopt these arrangements with our oversubscription criteria or their own.

Prior to formal consultation to LB Newham’s School Admissions Forum, work in partnership with

LB Newham officers to agree the content of this policy.

Formal public consultation of these arrangements was last carried out between 5 December 2017

and 31 January 2018. LB Newham consulted with:

a) Parents of children between the ages of two and eighteen;

b) Other persons in the relevant area who in the opinion of the admission authority have an

interest in the proposed admissions;

c) All other admission authorities within the relevant area (except that primary schools need

not consult secondary schools);

d) Whichever of the governing body and the local authority who are not the admission

authority;

e) Any adjoining neighbouring local authorities where the admission authority is the local

authority; and

f) In the case of schools designated with a religious character, the body or person

representing the religion or religious denomination.

Unless there are any proposed non-statutory local changes, the next public consultation will not be

until the autumn of 2024.

These admission arrangements were formulated to ensure they comply with the Equality Act

2010

and therefore do not unlawfully discriminate against pupils, parents or carers because of

their sex, race, religion or beliefs, disability, sexual orientation or pupils who are pregnant,

undergoing gender reassignment or school age parents.

The Equality Act 2010 replaced all previous equality legislation such as the Race Relations Act, Disability Discrimination Act and Sex Discrimination Act. This act provides a single, consolidated source of discrimination law, covering all

the types of discrimination that are unlawful. It simplifies the law by removing anomalies and inconsistencies that had developed over time in the existing legislation, and it extends the protection from discrimination in certain areas.

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All references in this document to previously looked after children in the Code mean children who

were adopted (or subject to child arrangements orders or special guardianship orders) immediately

following having been looked after as well as those children who appear (to the admission

authority) to have been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state care as a result

of being adopted.

Publication and availability

These will be available on the LB Newham’s website and the websites of:

 Newham community schools

 Newham voluntary controlled school

 Academy schools located in Newham whose Governing Bodies/Trust have adopted these

as their own arrangements.

The arrangements will be published in the electronic and hard copy versions of the LB Newham’s

annual composite prospectuses – autumn 2022 editions available for 1 September 2022:

 We are starting school (Reception entry from September 2023 and in year 2022/2023)

 We are going to secondary school (Year 7 entry from September 2023 and in year

2022/2023)

All admission arrangements including oversubscription criteria are available upon request (hard

copy or electronic) from any school or the local authority where they are located.

Associated regulations, statutory guidance and information

Read in conjunction with:

 Pan London schemes for 2023 entry

 School Standards Framework Act 1998

 School Admissions Code (September 2021)

 School Admissions Appeals Code (February 2012)

 Fair Access Protocols guidance for school leaders and local authorities (August 2021)

 School Admissions: applications for overseas children (November 2020)

 Admission of Summer Born Children advice for local authorities and school admission

authorities (May 2021)

 Summer Born Children Starting School advice for parents (September 2020)

 Children Missing Education statutory guidance (September 2016)

 School Attendance guidance (August 2020)

 Steps in the process for applications from Crown servants (June 2021)

Information and definitions

For the purpose of this document, the universal term ‘school’, will be used when referring to all

state funded academies, community schools, free schools, studio schools, university technical

colleges, voluntary aided faith schools and voluntary controlled faith schools.

Preference

Throughout this document, the terms parental preference and preference are used. To ensure

legal compliance and accuracy of meaning these terms cannot be interchanged with the word

choice because:

Preference: provides applicants the opportunity to indicate what schools they would like if it were

possible.

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Choice: means one of their named schools must be offered to an applicant. Where the number of

places (supply) is less than demand this is not always possible, meaning we cannot offer

applicants a choice.

For school applicants the law only the right of expressing a preference.

Compulsory school age and school leaving age (legal requirements)

All parents/carers with parental responsibility for a child must ensure the child is in receipt of

suitable education and their home local authority is aware of these arrangements during the period

when a child is compulsory school age.

Where a person with parental responsibility for a child fails to ensure the child is receiving suitable

education appropriate local,

Legal action will be carried out to protect the child’s right to education.

Compulsory school age is set out in section 8 of the Education Act 1996 and The Education (Start

of Compulsory School Age) Order 1998. A child reaches compulsory school age on the

prescribed day following their fifth birthday (or on their fifth birthday if it falls on a prescribed day).

The prescribed days are 31 December, 31 March and 31 August. From this date, parent/carers

must ensure their child receives suitable education until the last Friday in June of the year they

become 16 provided their birthday is before the beginning of the next school year.

A child ceases to be of compulsory school age on the last Friday of June in the school year they

become 16. If a child is educated outside their normal age group (i.e. is in year 10 when this date

is reached), the school will continue to receive funding for that child but the child will no longer be

of compulsory school age during the school year in which most children take their GCSE

examinations and cannot, therefore, be obliged to attend.

A child can leave school on the last Friday in June if they will be 16 by the end of the school

summer holidays.

Post 16

From the September after they are 16, all young people must do one of the following but they are

free to choose which of these options they take:

• Remain in full-time education, e.g. at a college or school sixth form

• Start an apprenticeship or traineeship

• Full time employment combined part-time education or training

Any young person not in education, employment or training (also known as NEET) are registered

with the Department of Education by their home authority and they will receive support to obtain a

suitable placement.

Parental responsibility

All parent/carers of children of compulsory school age (5 to 16) are required by law to ensure that

they receive suitable education by regular attendance at school or otherwise. Failure to comply

with this duty can lead to penalty notices being issues and prosecution.

Local Authority responsibility and action

The introduction of academy schools means that the local authority no longer maintains (has

responsibility for) all state funded schools in their area. However, the LB Newham still has the duty

to provide sufficient school places or education otherwise for all children of compulsory school age

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resident in the borough, irrespective of their immigration status, including those from families with

no recourse to public funds and works in partnership with all schools in Newham to ensure this

can be delivered.

To ensure all children of compulsory school age receive suitable education their parent/carers

must apply for a school place or notify the local authority in writing of the alternative arrangements

they have made. Where this does not occur or the alternative arrangements are found to be

unsatisfactory, the child will be officially recorded as missing education and action will be taken

against the person(s) with parental responsibility.

Parents/carers who do not secure education for their child

Where a parent/carer of a school aged child who is residing in the LB Newham, fails to complete a

‘common application form’ (CAF) or provide suitable alternative education within 15 days of arrival

in Newham, or the child being out of education, we reserve the right to apply on their behalf.

This action will result in their child being allocated a placement at the closest school to the child’s

home with a suitable place available at that time.

Where the child has a sibling at a Newham school, in the first instance we will try to allocate a

place at the same school if a place is available at the time. If the school is full, we will then

allocate a place at the closest school to the child’s home where a place is available.

For any child with special educational or access needs that cannot be met in a mainstream school,

the 0-25 SEND integrated service will support the family in securing a suitable placement.

Section 2: School places

Published Admission Number (PAN)

The Published Admission Number (PAN) is the number of places available in a school for each

normal point of entry. The Department for Education capacity formula and other factors are used

by the local authority/admission authority to determine this number.

The normal point of entry is:

Reception – for infant, primary schools and all through schools where the school does not

increase in size for secondary education.

Year 3 – for junior schools

Year 7 – for secondary schools

Year 9 or 10 – for University Technical Colleges UTC’s and Studio schools

Year 12 – for sixth form

Outside of the year of entry, it is expected that the PAN will continue to be applied for In Year

admissions as a roll limit (see above). However, if circumstances at the school have significantly

changed since the publication of the admission number, a place may be refused even if the

admission number has not been reached, as a cap on the PAN may have been introduced.

For the majority of schools located in Newham the limit on roll number in other year groups is the

same as the PAN but for these year groups most places are already taken as pupils move from

one year group up to the next.

To determine the number of forms of entry in a year group (classes) you divide the PAN by 30. In

some instances, the result will include 0.5 of a class, which is possible where the accommodation

is in an old building with small size rooms.

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A child cannot be refused admission to the normal year of entry on the grounds of prejudice to the

provision of efficient education and efficient use of resources unless the published admission

number has been reached or exceeded

Admissions numbers (PAN) for entry in the academic year 2023/2024 are detailed in appendix 1.

Special Educational Needs: Resource provisions in mainstream schools

Special Educational Needs resource provisions are located within a number of schools in

Newham. These are designed for children with particular diagnosed special educational needs

including complex needs and severe communication difficulties.

Placement in these provisions is determined by the LB Newham 0-25 SEND integrated service

and are usually for children with an Education Health and Care plan.

Additional places and capping

Additional places

In the event of an unexpected and significant increase to the school aged population, in particular

for year groups that occurs too late to be addressed as part of the Council’s formal place planning

strategy, to ensure we can meet our legal duty to provide suitable education to all children resident

in the borough it may be necessary to introduce additional places.

Any proposed increase would be managed by the LB Newham in joint partnership with the

relevant admission authorities.

Additional places may be delivered outside of any formal expansion through:

 Bulge classes: additional class or classes for a specific year group that will continue

through the school year on year until the bulge expires at the end of year group 6 or 11

as appropriate to the age range of the school.

 Temporary over allocation: additional places in one or more year groups available for a

fixed period agreed through a formal mutual agreement between the LA and the school.

 Short term measures to maximise the number of children who receive a place at their

preferred school or to ensure we have sufficient places at the normal point of entry.

These are generally only in place between national offer day and the start of the new

school year but can be applied to other year groups.

Capping places

Where a school is significantly undersubscribed in any particular year group for a prolonged

period, it is possible for the admission number to be capped to withdraw a fixed number of places

for a specified period, on the understanding they will be made available at time of increased

pressure on places.

Additional places through bulges/over allocation and the withdrawal of places through capping will

be delivered under strict controls and with the mutual agreement of the Local Authority and the

Trust/Governing Board of the school. These controls will include the potential impact on families

and all schools within the borough.

Section 3: Admissions framework

Normal Admissions (also known as planned or cohort admissions)

The law requires that all families with a child must apply to their home authority irrespective of the

location of their preferred school(s). This means families living in Newham must apply to London

Borough of Newham, Pupil Services. .

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LB Newham’s Pupil Services will:

 Securely share, preferences information for schools outside of Newham, using an

encrypted process, with the local authority where the preference school is located. This is to

determine the outcome of each application (preference) and offer the highest single offer

available to each Newham family who submits and application for a school place.

 Notify all Newham applicants of the outcome of their school application – including the

name of the preference allocated or alternative allocation made. These will be issued via an

electronic communication where the family have applied using the Pan London

eAdmissions portal or letter where a paper application was completed.

 Track applications to ensure all Newham families whether in year 6 in a school located in or

out of Newham apply for a secondary school place or confirm they are staying on role at

their current school if all through.

All families are given the option to request a paper copy of their child’s offer letter for their

retention.

In Year Admissions (also known as late arrivals, mid term or mid phase admissions)

For In year admissions applies to all year groups outside of normal admissions and for Year 7 and

Reception entry in September 2023, where the application is being submitted after 31 August

2023:

 Newham residents wanting to apply for any schools located in Newham must use LB

Newham’s In Year common application form (CAF) In year application form

 Newham residents wanting to apply for schools outside of the borough must check the

website for the borough where the school is located to obtain details of the application

process.

 Families from outside of Newham who want to apply for a school/academy located in

Newham must apply direct to LB Newham Pupil Services In year application form

 Newham Pupil Services will notify the family and their home borough of the outcome.

 Families who apply but preference cannot be met will be allocated an alternative school

place at the school closet to their home with a suitable vacancy unless the child already

has a school place in Newham (even if they have not yet started) or they do not reside

in Newham – where they will be advised to contact their home authority to arrange

education if they are not currently on roll elsewhere.

 All families who are not offered a place at any of their preferred schools are given their

statutory right of appeal and their child is automatically added to the waiting list for any

school ranked higher than the named school.

For all year groups parents/carers living in Newham have the right to name six preferences, or

more if they choose to, being the schools they would prefer their child to attend, using our

common application form (CAF). The preferences must be named in the order of priority, with 1

preference being the highest – this is known as the rank order.

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The In Year online eform can be completed at In year application form, or requested by phone on

020 8430 2000 or by post from:

Pupil Services

P.O. Box 69972,

London,

E16 9DG

Children from overseas and from Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the

Channel Islands.

Note: this section does not apply to Crown Servants, who are dealt with under the statutory

provisions of the School Admissions Code.

Right to attend school in England.

In most cases, foreign national children in the UK have the right to attend schools in England.

School admission authorities must not refuse to admit a child on the basis of their nationality or

immigration status nor remove them from roll on this basis.

It is the responsibility of parents/carers, not the local authority nor a school, to check that their

children have a right, under their visa entry conditions, to study at a school.

Families should check their right of abode or that the conditions of their immigration status

otherwise permit them to access a state-funded school before applying for a school place in

Newham.

Information on how to determine a family’s rights https://www.gov.uk/right-of-abode

Any EEA or Swiss national arriving in the UK by 31 December 2020 is eligible to apply to the EU

Settlement Scheme, and continue to be able to study in schools in England as they do now if their

application is successful.

Children aged under 18 are classed as dependent children if they are the children:

 of foreign nationals who have settled status in the UK,

 of a family who are entering the UK on a work visa or Student visa,

 who are part of a family entering or residing in the UK under the immigration route for

British National (Overseas) citizens and their dependants.

These children are entitled to enter the country with their family, or to join their family and study at

a state-funded or independent school once in the UK.

Foreign nationals cannot use the 6-month Standard Visitor visa, or 11-month Short-term Study

(English language) visa, to enter the UK to enrol as a pupil at a school.

Unaccompanied children may also enter the UK to access a school. To comply with their visa

terms, unaccompanied foreign national children, and young people (including such EEA nationals

entering the UK after 31 December 2020) who are entering on a Child Student visa or Student

visa must, when accessing education in England, study at the independent school, sixth form

college or further education college which is sponsoring them.

Normal Admissions (standard entry points into school – see page 5)

For normal admission, the law requires applications must be made to the child’s local authority. If

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an application is made from another country (including Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Isle

Man or the Channel Islands) Newham will consider the application as adequate proof of an

intention to move or return to the area and include it within the local authority co-ordinated

process.

In these circumstances all local authorities can reasonably request the evidence of the new

address to confirm which local authority should be responsible for the application and to determine

the application.

Applications with an address outside England will not be accepted for processing by Newham

unless the Newham is satisfied that there is robust evidence of a confirmed link to a residential

address in the borough. Such a link should satisfy the terms of the Pan London framework, and

must not be the address of a friend or relative, place of work or other address of convenience

unless there is evidence it will be a relatively permanent arrangement.

Where Newham is satisfied that there is evidence of a confirmed link to an address in the borough

a further test will be applied to decide if Newham believes the child will be resident at that address

on or before the date of admission (start of the new school year in September).

To confirm a link to an address Newham will also check that no other applications are made from

the same address being used by the applicant form outside of England unless we have accepted

that the living arrangements will be with extended family.

If it cannot be confirmed that the applicant and the child will be linked to the future address in

Newham the application will not be accepted and the applicants will be advised to reapply when

they have a verifiable address in England.

Where an application is being made for a child who is living outside of England at the time of

submission, the application must be made on a paper form not via the Pan London eAdmissions

portal.

Note: Applicants with an address outside of England cannot apply using the Pan London

eAdmissions system. These applicants must contact [email protected] for the

Newham common application form.

In Year Admissions

For in Year applications as Newham co-ordinates in-year applications on behalf of schools located

in Newham, we do not require applicants to currently live in the area (or the country).

All applications will be processed using the child’s home address at the time of the application,

even if this is outside of the England (except for children of service personnel and crown servants

–see below).

Future addresses in the England will not be accepted even if contracts/rental agreements have

been signed.

Where a place can be offered using the child’s overseas current address, the expectation is that

the child will be available to take up the place on the proposed start date, which could be as soon

as the day after the place being offered. If a child cannot take up the place as they are not in

Newham and cannot reasonably travel to Newham the local authority may withdraw the place and

allocate to another child. Before taking this action, the local authority and admission authority

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(school) will contact the parents/carers to give them an opportunity to explain why there has been

a delay in taking up the place and find out when the child might begin attending.

For the children of service personnel with a confirmed posting to Newham, or crown servants

returning from overseas to live in Newham, the Local authority will allocate a place in advance of

the family arriving in the area. On the understanding, the application is accompanied by an official

letter that declares a relocation date and a unit postal address or quartering area address.

Application dates

The UK Government has set national closing and offer dates for applications for normal

admissions. These dates only apply to applications for reception and year 7 entry in September of

the new academic year and year 3 where a child is moving from an infant to a junior school.

Secondary (Year 7)

National closing day – 31 October, preceding the year of entry.

Applications received by LB Newham Pupil Services by 11.59pm on this date will be processed as

on time and those received after will be processed as late. To avoid any potential technical issues

it is recommend that applicants to not wait until the closing date to apply.

Applications after this time are processed known as late and cannot be considered for a place until

all on time applicants have been provided with places. This means families who apply late are

greatly reducing their opportunity to gain a place at one of their preferred schools.

National offer day – 1 March or first working day after this date where it falls on a weekend or a

bank holiday.

This is the date when outcomes are issued to all on time applicants. Where the application was

made online, via the Pan London eAdmissions portal the outcome will be available online during

the late afternoon/early evening.

For families who applied using a paper application form their outcome letter will be sent using 1

class post on national offer day.

Late applications (received after national closing date)

Applicants whose common application form (CAF) is received by the third Friday in February in the

year of expected admission will be sent their outcome on national offer day.

Applicants whose common application form (CAF) is received after the third Friday in February in

the year of expected admission will be sent their outcome within 10 days of their application – with

the first offer day being five days after national offer day.

In very exceptional circumstances, some late application will be processed as on time. This will be

the decision of the child’s home local authority and will be binding on all named preferred schools.

There is no right of appeal against a decision not to treat a late application as on time.

Primary (Reception and Year 3 moving from an infant class to juniors)

National closing day – 15 January, preceding the academic year of entry.

Applications received by LB Newham Pupil Services by 11.59pm on this date will be processed as

on time and those received after will be processed as late. To avoid any potential technical issues

it is recommend that applicants to not wait until the closing date to apply.

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Applications after this time are processed known as late and cannot be considered for a place until

all on time applicants have been provided with places. This means families who apply late are

greatly reducing their opportunity to gain a place at one of their preferred schools.

National offer day – 16 April or first working day after this date where it falls on a weekend or a

bank holiday.

This is the date when outcomes are issued to all on time applicants. Where the application was

made online, via the Pan London eAdmissions portal the outcome will be available online during

the late afternoon/early evening.

For families who applied using a paper application form their outcome letter will be sent using 1

class post on national offer day

Late applications (received after national closing date)

Applicants whose common application form (CAF) is received by the third Friday in March in the

year of expected admission will be sent their outcome on national offer day.

Applicants whose common application form (CAF) is received after the third Friday in February in

the year of expected admission will be sent their outcome within 10 days of their application – with

the first offer day being five days after national offer day.

In very exceptional circumstances some late application will be processed as on time. This will be

the decision of the child’s home local authority and will be binding on all named preferred schools.

There is no right of appeal against a decision not to treat a late application as on time.

In Year applications

For In Year admissions there are no statutory or local closing or offer dates. Our target is to send

notification of the outcome of each application within 10 school days. At the start of each

academic year this may not always be possible due to the volume of applications received.

School applications - common application form (CAF)

It is the responsibility/duty of all parents/carers to apply for a school place for any school aged

child for whom they have parental responsibility or arrange suitable alternative education and

formally notify their home Local authority of these arrangements.

For all normal and in year applicants

Newham does cannot automatically reserve any child a place at any school including the:

 School closest to their home;

 School where their siblings or relatives are or used to be on roll;

 School where their child formerly attended;

 School where their child attends Saturday school or other clubs/extended services;

 Faith school linked to the place of worship where they practise;

 School where their parent/carer works.

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A child can only be considered for a place at schools where their parent/carer has applied by

completing and successfully submitting the appropriate common application form (CAF).

However, this does not mean they can only be placed at one of the schools named as a

preference. We reserve the right to allocate an alternative placement if we cannot meet parental

preference or the preferred schools cannot meet a Newham child’s needs.

Parents/carers are given the opportunity to name their preferred schools as part of their common

application. The applicant can name as many school preferences as they would like but we

recommend at least three and no more than six.

All of the schools/academies named by parents/carers on an application form will be treated

equally to assess whether a school place can be offered to their child based on places available or

their oversubscription criteria where applications exceed places available.

All applicants are given the opportunity to supply their religious, philosophical, medical, personal or

social reasons for wanting a school place at the time of application. However all school

placements must still be made in accordance with a schools oversubscription criteria and any

associated admissions schemes.

For normal admissions (reception, primary to secondary school transition, infant to junior transition

and entry to UTC’s) applications for the next academic year received by the published national

closing dates will have priority above those who apply after that date, provided their preference for

the school has not been withdrawn. A preference will be withdrawn if a change of preference is

submitted before the deadline and the school is not included on the new form.

Each application form submitted for a child for the same academic year will supersede the last

except where a change of preference is received for a Year 7 or reception class after the national

closing dates (see above). In this instance, the latest application received before the closing date

will be used to determine the initial allocation and the change of preference will be processed as a

late application.

Applications that have been sent to Pupil Services but not received will only be backdated if the

parent/carer has proof of submission from the Head Teacher/Business Manager or Office

Manager of their child’s current school. No other proof of postage or delivery will be accepted.

To guarantee delivery of your application the Council recommends that you apply online. If you

apply online you will receive an application reference to confirm receipt.

For in year admissions – applications for internal school transfers within Newham are treated the

same as new arrivals, those returning to Newham or those wanting to receive an education in

Newham from outside of the borough. The only exception being that if preference cannot be met

for a Newham resident who is a new arrival or a child returning to Newham an alternative

allocation will be made to ensure we fulfil our duty to provide education for our residents.

All school places are offered based on the child’s date of birth. Their academic ability cannot be

taken into account at the application (see point below).

Supplementary information form (SIF)

For both normal and in year, applications can only be considered under any of the faith based

criterion for voluntary aided school where the applicant has completed and submitted the named

school’s own Supplementary Information Form (SIF).

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A SIF is available from the named school and can usually be downloaded from their website. The

form must be returned direct to the school not Pupil Services and not as an attachment to an

application via the eAdmissions portal.

Where a common application (CAF) for a school that uses SIF for oversubscription purposes is

received but no SIF is submitted the application can only be considered under the non faith

criterion.

SIFs without the correct common application form (CAF) cannot be considered as the CAF and

not the SIF is the actual application.

Certificate of Catholic Practice

‘Certificate of Catholic Practice’ means a certificate issued by the family’s parish priest (or the

priest in charge of the church where the family attends Mass) in the form laid down by the Bishops’

Conference of England and Wales. It will be issued if the priest is satisfied that at least one

Catholic parent or carer (along with the child, if he or she is over seven years old) have (except

when it was impossible to do so) attended Mass on Sundays and holydays of obligation for at least

five years (or, in the case of the child, since the age of seven, if shorter). It will also be issued

when the practice has been continuous since being received into the Church if that occurred less

than five years ago. It is expected that most Certificates will be issued on the basis of attendance.

A Certificate may also be issued by the priest when attendance is interrupted by exceptional

circumstances which excuse from the obligation to attend on that occasion or occasions. Further

details of these circumstances can be found in the guidance issued to priests

http://www.dioceseofbrentwood.net/

Applicants should check the website of the Diocese for any changes due to Covid 19 related

matters that may impact on the certificate.

Applications out of normal year group: gifted and talented children and those who have

missed part or whole school years.

All school places in Newham are offered for a specific year group based on the child’s date of birth

not their stage of academic development. However the law does not prescribe the year group a

child should be admitted to.

There is no legal barrier to children being educated outside their normal year group as determined

on the child’s date of birth. Parents/carers can seek in writing at the point of application places

outside their child’s normal academic year group.

Applications

In year (new arrivals to Newham, returning to Newham and changing schools in Newham)

 In Year applications for a place out of normal year group

o Parents/carers must:

o Apply using the In year common application form or request the paper version

o Name preferred schools (all within the same phase of education)

o Submit the application along with a letter specifying a place is being sought outside

of their child’s normal year group based on their age, what year group they want

their child to be admitted to and the reasons why.

Normal admissions (standard transition points)

 Normal admissions: Moving from primary to secondary school, seeking a place out of

normal year group

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o Parents/carers cannot use the Pan London eAdmissions form as this only accepts

applications within the expected age range for year 7:

o Request and complete - Primary to secondary transition common application form

o Name preferred secondary schools

o Submit the application along with a letter specifying a place is being sought outside

of their child’s normal year group based on their age, what year group they want

their child to be admitted to and the reasons why.

 Normal admissions: Starting reception, seeking a place in a year group out of the normal

year group (includes Summer Born children)

o Parents/carers cannot use the Pan London eAdmissions form as this only accepts

applications within the expected age range for reception:

o Request and submit – Reception common application form

o Name preferred infant or primary schools

o Submit the application along with a letter specifying a place is being sought outside

of their child’s normal year group based on their age, what year group they want

their child to be admitted to and the reasons why.

The admissions committee(s) of the preferred school(s) will consider any parental representations

to support their request for their child to be educated a year group higher or lower than for their

age group. Once outcomes from each of the preferred schools have been received Pupil Services

will then proceed to apply standard admission processes which includes confirming if a vacancy is

available in that year group and if the child has the priority for any place available under the

schools published admission arrangements. In all cases, the decision of the admissions

committee is final and there is no right of appeal for a place outside a child’s academic year group.

Where admission to a year group higher or lower than the child’s expected year group based on

their age is granted, Pupil Services will then offer the highest preference of the schools named that

have a vacancy and have agreed.

Where admission is not granted outside of the normal academic year group by the schools

admissions committee the local authority will then use the application to offer a place in the child’s

normal year group based on their date of birth unless the parents/carers school preferences are

for a different phase of education to that expected based on the child’s date of birth the local

authority will ask the family to submit a fresh form naming schools for the expected phase of

education. If the child already has a school place or the offer of a school place in Newham they will

be expected to continue attending their current school. Any new placements will be based on the

child’s age not ability, educational history or parental representations.

This does not affect a parent/carers right of an appeal for a place at their preferred school where

they have applied and been refused, remembering an appeal is only a school not a particular year

group. There is no statutory right of an independent appeal for a child to be granted a place out of

their normal year group based on their date of birth.

Looked After and Previously Looked After Child

For school admissions, all schools are required by law to prioritise looked after children and

previously looked after children in their oversubscription criteria. These children must be ranked

under criterion one, with the exception of some faith schools where the highest priority ranking

only applies to looked after children and previously looked after children of that faith.

Looked after children

A looked after child is a child who is:

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(a) in the care of a local authority,

(b) being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social

services functions (see the definition in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989)

Previously Looked After Child

A child who was previously looked after but immediately after being looked after became subject

to an adoption, child arrangements, or special guardianship order including those who appear [to

the admission authority] to have been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state

care as a result of being adopted.

An adoption order in England, is an order under the Adoption Act 1976 (see Section 12 adoption

orders) and children who were adopted under the Adoption and Children Act 2002 (see Section 46

adoption orders). A ‘child arrangements order’ is an order settling the arrangements to be made as

to the person with whom the child is to live under Section 8 of the Children Act 1989 as amended

by Section 14 of the Children and Families Act 2014. Section 14A of the Children Act 1989 defines

a ‘special guardianship order’ as an order appointing one or more individuals to be a child’s

special guardian (or special guardians).

Staff Child

A child whose parent/carer (person with legal parental responsibility for the child) is directly

employed by the school meaning not contracted via a third party.

The law only permits staff child priority where either or both of the following circumstances apply:

a) Where the member of staff has been employed at the school for two or more years at the

time at which the application for admission to the school is made;

b) The member of staff is recruited to fill a vacant post for which there is a demonstrable skill

shortage.

For category b where employment commences after national closing day the application will be

considered under their original priority until after the national offer day 1 March (secondary) and 16

April (primary).

For both normal and in year admissions, proof of employment eligibility must be verified in writing

by the headteacher/principal to Newham Pupil Services.

Proof of employment cannot be accepted from the applicant.

Service child

For Newham school admission purposes a child is recognised as a service child when:

 One of their parents/carers (with legal guardianship) is serving in the regular British armed

forces, at the national closing date for primary to secondary transition or the application

date for In Year applications.

 One of their parents/carers (with legal guardianship) died whilst serving in the British armed

forces and the pupil receives a pension under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme or

the War Pensions Scheme.

Siblings.

Sibling priority can only be granted where it forms part of a school’s published oversubscription

criteria.

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Only siblings reasonably expected to be on roll at the school when the child for whom a place is

being sought is due to start can be accepted for sibling priority purposes.

If a family has more than one child at the preferred school, they must name a child in the sibling

section who is reasonably expected to be on roll when the child on the application is due to start.

Naming the eldest child is not advisable if they are in year group 6 or 11 as they may have left the

preferred school when the child for whom the family are applying for a place is due to start (unless

the school has a sixth form).

Where the applicant has failed to provide the full name and date of birth of the sibling in the

appropriate section of the application form or the name provided is not the one used to register the

child at their school, sibling priority may not be granted.

Sibling details only entered in the reasons section for wanting a place may not be considered.

Named siblings must be living at the same address as the child for whom the application is being

made at the time of application.

Sibling connections and addresses will be verified by the Local Authority in partnership with the

preferred school, so it is essential that families notify each of their children’s schools of any

address change before submitting their application.

A sibling connection does not count when the sibling is attending the school’s nursery class unless

specified otherwise.

For admission purposes siblings are defined as each of two or more children living in the same

household at the same address and have one or both parents in common;

 Brother (both children have the same blood mother and blood father)

 Sister (both children have the same blood mother and blood father)

 Half-brother (both children have the same blood mother or blood father)

 Half-sister (both children have the same blood mother or blood father)

 Adopted siblings

 Step-brother through marriage,

 Step- sister through marriage,

 Common law step-brother

 Common law step-sister

 Foster brother (only those placed by a local authority).

 Foster sister (only those placed by any local authority).

 Children subject of a residence order.

Examples of those who will not be considered as siblings

 Cousins, aunties, uncles, friends, other family members even when living in the same

home,

 Other children living in the same household who are not included in the list above,

 Children living at the address under an informal or formal private fostering arrangement.

 Children who share the same child minder

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If a child awaiting a school offer or on a waiting list for a new offer and has a sibling who has

started at the school following the submission of their application, their parent/carer must notify

Pupil Services in writing ([email protected]) of the sibling’s recent enrolment details

for the child’s priority for a place from the waiting list to be changed to include their new sibling

priority.

Conversely if a child is on a waiting list and has sibling priority, if their sibling is removed from the

schools roll following the submission of their application their parent/carer must notify Pupil

Services in writing (pupil.services@newham.gov.uk ) of the sibling’s leave date for the child so

their sibling priority for a place can be withdrawn.

Twins, children of multiple births and siblings who are not twins but are born in the same

school year

Normal admissions: Reception and Year 7 for entry in following September.

Twins, children from multiple births and siblings who are not twins but are born in the same within

a period that means they are in the same academic year group will be admitted over the 30 class

limit if one of the children is the 30th child admitted for a one form entry school or 60

for two form

entry school and so on.

In year’ admissions: entry outside the normal admission rounds.

Twins, children from multiple births and siblings who are not twins but are born in the same within

a period that means they are in the same academic year group may not be allocated a place over

the school’s admission limit for their year group, if only one sibling can be offered a place.

Where not all the children can be offered a place random allocation would be used to determine

which of the children will be offered the place or places available. An officer independent of

Children’s Services will be responsible for drawing the name of the successful applicant and the

draw will be overseen by an independent adjudicator who will not work in Children Services or be

involved with the admissions process.

Priority areas

Only Sarah Bonnell School has determined a priority area. This has fixed boundaries determined

by the Council and approved via formal consultation.

Although this school is located on the borough boundary, to comply with the law and the

Greenwich judgement, the priority area does not follow the borough boundary it follows natural

and manmade geographical features.

Residing in the priority area does not guarantee a child a place at the school but it does mean they

have priority over children who live outside the priority area who do not have siblings on roll at the

school.

Interested parties can find out if home address the child’s is in the Sarah Bonnell Priority area by

visiting our School Finder app located on the Newham website. Alternatively you can call the

Council on 020 08430 2000 for help and advice.

Catchment areas

Schools located in Newham do not have catchment areas.

Parish Catchments (Faith schools only)

The Diocese of Brentwood (Catholic schools in Newham) or Diocese of Chelmsford (St. Luke’s

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Church of England primary school) determine this fixed boundaries and these are approved via

formal processes.

Residing in parish does not guarantee a child a place at the school.

Parent/carers can find out which school(s) parish area you live in by visiting our School Finder app

located on the Newham website. Alternatively you can call the Council on 020 08430 2000 for

help and advice.

More information on Parish catchments is available in the admission arrangements for each of our

faith schools that can be viewed on the Newham website and the schools own websites.

Home address

A child’s home address is where they reside for the majority of the school year, being 1

September to the end of July. This is the address we use to determine residency in the priority

area for Sarah Bonnell, Catholic or Church of England parish and home to school distance as

applicable to an application.

Where a child’s natural parents are not living together and the child spends a few days in both

households on week days, then the address that will be used for admissions will be the one from

which the child goes to school in the morning most often on week days.

For families who own more than one property, where any of these properties is occupied by a third

party through a rental, family or friendship agreement, it cannot be considered as the child’s home

address. If the family have more than one property and full, Council tax is paid for both properties

the address that has been registered for the child for the preceding three months will be used for

admissions purposes.

Any address supplied as the child’s home address (including moorings) will not be considered if it

is:

 An address registered with the Council as commercial property (the only exception is

where a commercial address is confirmed by the Housing Section of the child’s home

borough or the Home Office as being their official temporary home address) ,

 An address registered with the Council as empty or derelict

 A tenant's address, where the property owned by the parent/carer and rented to a third

party who is not the applicant,

 Another family member’s/friend’s address who does not have parental responsibility for

the child, even if the tenant is responsible for the child’s daycare arrangements,

 Their child-minder's address,

 A PO Box address (except where the PO box address is a result of Police or Social

Care intervention - the Local Authority will work with the appropriate professionals to

establish the address to be used for admissions purposes)

 Second or other additional properties owned by the child’s family, which do not have

other tenants and where the child is not resident for at least 6 months of the academic

year.

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 Future addresses even if contracts have been exchanged or the Council have offered

the property in writing

 Any address not registered for Council Tax as an official residential abode

This is not an exhaustive list.

These cannot be used for the purposes of allocating school places.

Verification of Home Address

All offers and alternative allocations in Newham are conditional on the information being provided

on the application being accurate at the time of submission. This means that address and date of

birth checks are not made until the admission meeting, at which point they are mandatory.

See appendix 2 for full details of the documentation required for admission.

In addition to the conditional offer scheme, we may also operate internal verification programmes

using other Council databases such as Council Tax, Electoral Register and Licensed Landlords.

Where any allegation of using a false address is made, a thorough investigation using all available

resources will be carried out.

In some cases unannounced home visits maybe made by officers/representatives from the

Council or the school.

It is an offence to provide false address information when applying for a school place. If a family

are found to have provided a false address or other information, that was considered as a

deliberate act to mislead, the school place offered maybe withdrawn. In some instances this can

lead to prosecution and the child being removed from the roll of a school.

Change of home address

If a child awaiting a school offer or is on a waiting list, changes their home address their

parent/carer must notify Pupil Services in writing (pupil.servic[email protected]) and provide

Newham approved proof of that change.

Any change of home address will not on its own be considered as a fresh application.

On receipt of any change of address, Pupil Services will recalculate the home to school distances

for any school where they are on the waiting list.

If they are applying for a year 7 or reception class for next September entry, if the address change

is prior to the national closing date 31 October and 15 January respectively preceding entry, it will

be used to determine the offer or alternative allocation for national offer day in March and April.

If the change is after the national closing date it will be used as a correspondence address only

until the day after national of offer day, at which point it will then be used as the address for

admissions purposes.

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If Pupil Services are not notified of an address change, in writing by the family to

(pupil.services@newham.gov.uk), the Council cannot be held responsible for correspondence

being sent to a child’s previous address or the child’s priority for a placement being incorrect.

If a child changes home address to live temporarily or permanently with another person other than

their parent/carer named on the application, even if this person is a family member, Pupil Services

will need proof of the change of parental responsibility before the address change will be applied.

If a child is moving address with their family or they are moving to live with another member of

their family, the address on the application must be the address they were living at, at the time the

application is signed by the applicant, not their future address.

Special Education Needs and Disability

Children with an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) or Statement of Special Educational Needs

will be placed under the current Special Education Needs and Disability regulations.

Placements in special schools are determined outside of these arrangements using the current

Special Education Needs and Disability regulations and any associated local published protocols.

Placement in resource provisions located within schools in Newham are determined the 0-25

SEND Service.

All other children with special educational needs but do not have an EHCP or the need for a

placement in resource provision will be placed using the admission arrangements in this

document.

Section: School placements

All offer of placements is determined by the school’s own admissions authority.

Maintained and voluntary controlled schools (excluding voluntary aided faith schools): LB

Newham is the Admission Authority.

Maintained voluntary aided faith schools: the school are their own Admission Authority.

Academy schools (including free schools and UTC’s): the school or their Trust, as published

are the Admission Authority.

Academy schools have the option of devolving responsibility for all or some elements of their

admission to the local authority.

Admissions are co-ordinated by London Borough of Newham for all schools in the area. They will

determine the highest single offer that can be made to all applicants and send the offer outcomes

on behalf of all admission authorities.

Equal preference - single offer scheme

The Local authority operates an equal preference system in line with the School Admissions Code.

This means all schools named by the parent/carer on their common application form (CAF) will be

treated equally to assess whether a school place can be offered to their child based on the

published admissions criteria for each school named. In cases where more than one school place

can be offered to a child, the ranked order (the preference order) on the CAF will be taken into

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account and the school place offered will be in the school that was ranked highest of those that

can be offered.

If a child was not initially offered a place at the school named as their parent/carer's first

preference and a place can be offered from the waiting list at a school that was ranked higher than

the school currently offered. The existing offer will be automatically withdrawn even if it was

previously accepted, unless the child has started at the school or the parent/carer has notified

Newham in writing that they no longer want their child to be considered for places at a school

ranked higher than the school offered. This notification will mean that the child will be removed

from the waiting list for those schools and the child can only be considered for a place if the

parent/carer submits a fresh application.

School offer and alternative allocations

Where a school has places available applicants will automatically be offered a place unless they

have been permanently excluded in the last year, or have an Education Health Care Plan or

Statement of Special Educational Needs. For these children LB Newham follows the SEND and

Exclusion regulations and local protocols.

All school places are offered on the condition that the information provided on the application form

was accurate at the time of submission.

If at any time a school has more applications than places available their oversubscription criteria

will be applied to determine which children can be offered a place or the child’s waiting list position

where the school is full.

For normal admissions being primary to secondary transition and starting primary school, up to 1

September in the year of entry, offers will be made under the Pan London co-ordinated scheme.

Newham will make every effort to offer every child a place at one of a parent/carers preferred

schools, where this is not possible and the child is out of education because they are not on roll at

a school, or where no previously allocated placement is available to them, an alternative

placement will be allocated unless the child does not live in Newham. This alternative will be the

closest to their home address that had a place available at the time of their application.

For children who do not live in Newham, their home borough will be responsible for providing a

suitable alternative placement.

If the closest school to their home address with a vacancy is a state funded independent school it

can only be allocated if the Admissions Committee for that establishment have agreed in writing to

participate in the Local Authority’s alternative allocation process.

Newham cannot guarantee that any alternative allocation will be close to the family’s home, but it

will be within the borough boundary.

Where a child has physical access requirements, and their preferences cannot be met, they will be

placed in the closest school to their home that has places available and can meet their access

needs.

The Authority will not allocate a second alternative placement, as a result of a placement

becoming available at a school closer to their home unless they are number one on that schools

waiting list. The only exception to this is where Newham parent/carers secure education

otherwise and later apply again for a school place. It is possible that a subsequent alternative

allocation may be further from the child’s home address than the last and each allocation will be

for the closest school to their home at the time of application.

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For normal admissions, on the day after national offer day, the local authority will contact all

applicants who child was allocated an alternative placement because preference could not be met,

advising them of all the schools with remaining places. Applicants will be given the opportunity via

this written communication change their alternative allocation to another school with a place

available. Revised alternative allocations will be made on a first come first served basis.

The Authority cannot guarantee that siblings will be placed in the same school. If this is the case

and an alternative allocation is required for all of the children as parental preference cannot be

met, or the parent has agreed via their application form, the Authority will attempt to place all the

siblings or the majority of the siblings in the closest school that can accommodate the maximum

number of the children, even if individually they could have been placed in separate schools closer

to their home address.

If a parent/carer of a compulsory school aged child is unhappy with the school offered they must

still ensure their child is admitted to and regularly attends that school unless they can provide

evidence they have suitable alternative education for their child, or they no longer need a school

place in Newham as they have moved away and can prove they are in the process of securing

education for their child outside of Newham.

Acceptances and refusals

For both normal and In Year admissions where a place is offered in Newham (except for Year 7 in

an All Through School) we will automatically register your acceptance on our records – unless you

fully complete and return the refusal section of the outcome notification. This means parent/carers

can be confident that their offered place is secured.

Where a place has been offered in a school outside of Newham, as part of Pan London co-

ordination, the place will not be automatically accepted. Acceptance must be made by the

published closing date either online via the Pan London eAdmissions portal for applicants who

applied online or by email to pupil.services@newham.gov.uk

For normal admissions for All Through Schools where a parent/carer has applied for year 7 place

in another school, we will ask for written confirmation as to whether the child will be remaining at

their All Through School for the first day of the new school year in September or they will be

accepting the place offered in the offered school. If the latter we will write to you confirming that

you will be off rolled at your current school at the end of Year 6.

If a parent/carer completes and submits the refusal form, if a satisfactory reason is supplied the

place will be withdrawn and Pupil Services will write confirming the place will no longer be

available for their child. Where the reason is unsatisfactory and indicates the child may be missing

education an officer for the named school or the Local Authority will contact the family to seek

further information and provide advices on next steps.

For primary to secondary transition and starting primary school, where a parent indicates on the

Pan London eAdmissions portal they are refusing the place offered, Pupil Services will contact the

family to determine why the child no longer requires the place and what alternative education is

being provided.

Start dates

The normal month for admission for both primary and secondary school is September.

Children usually start on the first day of term as published on the school’s website or at a date

agreed with the head teacher. For reception classes it is common for schools to offer staggered

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start dates so all the new children do not start together so they have time to settle.

In Year applicants, being those outside the normal admission rounds, usually start within five

school days of the parent/carers contact with the named school following receipt of the

offer/allocation outcome notification.

Where a child is moving from one school in Newham to another, the start date will be agreed

between the child’s current school, the offered school and the parent/carer.

Parents/carers must contact the named school to arrange admission within three school days from

receipt of the school offer to arrange an admission meeting. At this meeting, parent/carers must

provide acceptable proof of their child’s date of birth and address that must correspond with the

details supplied on the application form. If a child’s address has changed since the form was

completed, the school will require proof of the address on the application form and the new

address.

If the parent/carer is unable to provide the required documents, the school may arrange an

unannounced home visit to confirm residence.

Deferred entry and part time arrangements

Children due to start reception in September can have their admission deferred up to but not

beyond the term in which the child reaches compulsory school age.

Any offered placement will only be reserved for deferred entry if the parent/carer has applied for

deferment in writing to the head teacher of the school offered, has exceptional circumstances and

the head teachers agrees to their request (this does not apply to summer born deferment)

Children born between 1 April and 31 August will reach compulsory school age on 31 August, that

is, during the summer term.

Children being admitted to reception can be admitted on a part-time basis, until the child reaches

compulsory school age or full-time basis, or choose a place at a nursery or other early learning

setting if the parents prefer.

Any placement will only be considered on a part-time basis if the parent/carer has applied for the

hours they prefer in writing to the head teacher of the school offered and the head teacher agrees

to their request.

Summer born children and requests for admission outside of a child’s year group.

Children are educated in school with others in the same year group. A year group is based on a

child’s date of birth, not their ability or the amount of schooling they have already received.

Parents may request that their child be exceptionally admitted outside their age group. The

admission authority and the headteacher in partnership with the local authority must decide

whether or not the individual child’s circumstances make this appropriate on educational grounds.

Such requests will only be agreed in exceptional circumstances.

If a place is not offered in the year group of the applicant’s choice there is no right to independent

appeal however, they may make a complaint about an admission authority’s decision not to admit

their child outside their normal age group. To make a complaint follow the procedure published on

that school’s website.

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All requests must include the applicant’s reasons. These can be supported by recent professional

evidence of the child’s circumstances which make education outside the age group necessary but

this is not essential. Each admission authority must make its own decision, but all will expect to

see evidence of an individual child’s educational need, rather than general factors which relate to

a wider group of children born at a similar time. They will want to discuss with parents the impact

of the child being educated with children of a different age, both within primary school and at

transition to secondary school when admission outside the age cohort cannot be guaranteed.

Summer born children can be admitted to the reception class in the September following their fifth

birthday, if their parent/carers indicate this on their common application form. It is expected that

parent/carers discuss this as soon as possible with the schools they are interested in applying for

and the local authority and consider the impact of this application on their child’s future educational

career.

Each such application will be considered on an individual basis by the admission authority in

conjunction with the Local Authority. Factors that maybe considered include:

 the needs of the child and the possible impact on them of entering year 1 without

having first attended the reception class;

 in the case of children born prematurely, the fact that they may have naturally fallen into

the lower age group if they had been born on their expected date of birth;

 whether delayed social, emotional or physical development is adversely affecting their

readiness for school;

 relevant research into the outcomes of summer born and premature children – some

links are provided at the end of this document.

This is not an exhaustive list.

When to apply - Option A

Parents requesting admission to an age group below the child’s actual age should submit an

application for the child’s actual age group before the closing date on 15 January proceeding the

September of the desired year of entry. The request for later admission should accompany the

application. This enables the application to be processed and a school place secured in the child’s

actual age group if the request is refused by an Admission Authority.

Example – for a summer born child who based on their date of birth, is due to start in reception

in September 2023, if a parent wants them to start reception in September 2024 they can

submit their application by 15 January 2023 with a request for 2024 start date

When to apply - Option B

Parents seeking admission to an age group below the child’s actual age should submit their

request in the September of the year before the year when children of the same age are due to

start school. This enables a parent to apply for a school place in their child’s actual age group

before the closing date on 15 January proceeding the September of the usual year of entry, if

the request for later admission is refused by an Admissions Authority.

Where a child was not living in Newham on 15 January preceding the start of the academic year,

parents must submit a written communication expressing their wishes along with the professional

evidence with their In Year common application.

In Newham primary head teachers will normally arrange to meet with any parents/carers who

request summer born entry with, where possible, their early year’s provider and other relevant

professionals to determine the outcome. Minutes will be taken at the meeting and all parties will

be asked to sign to confirm they are an accurate representation of the meeting.

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If the admission authority/head teacher approves the request, the parent will be advised to re-

apply by the national closing date for reception for the following year and provide a copy of the

decision.

There can be no guarantee of a place being available at the same school in the next year’s round

of admissions, as this is dependent on the number of applications that year and the priority of all

other applicants. It is not possible to reserve a place for the following year. Parents are therefore

advised to have alternative arrangements in place.

Even where summer born deferment has been agreed by one school there is no guarantee that

another school will accept this decision. This means the new named school will expect the child

to start in year 1, not reception.

Parent/carers must consider this decision carefully as it may result in a child being educated below

their age group for the whole of their time in school, not just primary school.

Waiting lists

For Year 7 entry in the next academic year, waiting lists will open on the day following national

offer day in March.

For reception entry in the next academic year, waiting lists will open on the day following national

offer day in April.

For all other year groups waiting lists open on the first day of the new academic year in September

and are closed and cleared on the last school day of each school term, except where the

application was received in Pupil Services on or after the first day of the month in which the school

holiday starts, then the application will be automatically rolled forward to the same school waiting

list for the new term.

If a child cannot be offered a place at any of their parent/carers preferences as detailed on their

application, a child's name will be automatically added to the waiting list for each of the schools

named (unless one of their preferences is an academy or UTC and their admission arrangements

state a different process).

The offer of a preferred school will automatically result in lower ranked schools being withdrawn

unless the applicant notifies LB Newham’s Pupil Services in a written communication of their

requirements.

All waiting lists must be organised in accordance with the published criteria (below), not on a first

come, first served basis. This means children new to a waiting list are added in their rightful place

based on their priority for a place and not automatically at the bottom.

As a result of waiting lists being organised in accordance with published criteria it is possible for a

child to move down a list as well as up. This can be on a daily basis for schools which have high

numbers of applications and/or high mobility.

A child added to a waiting list will remain on that list until:

The child is offered a place at a school ranked higher;

The child is offered a place at the school and the place is refused;

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 26

The parent/carers request their child to be removed from the list, in writing;

The parent/carer submits a fresh application and has not named the school as one of their

current preferences;

The application was found to be fraudulent or completed to deliberately mislead;

The last school day of each term;

Where the application was received in Pupil Services on or after the first day of the month in

which the school holiday starts, at which time the application will be automatically rolled

forward to the same school waiting list for the new term

Where a child has been removed from a waiting list, to be added again their parent/carer must

complete and submit a fresh application form.

For all schools who participate in the Council’s waiting list scheme, Pupil Services will issue

automatic weekly email advising the applicant of the child’s waiting list position. Note: this service

can only be provided if we have a current valid email address and the applicant has opted in to

this service.

For those families who have a child on a waiting list for whom we have a current valid email

address, we will send notifications when the waiting list are closed and cleared each term.

When any school officially reports a vacancy, the place will be offered to the child who is at the

number one position on the waiting list for that year group on the day the vacancy was reported.

Independent admission appeals

A parent/carer whose child has not been offered a place at a school named on their application

form will be notified in writing of their right to an independent admissions appeal hearing under the

School and Standards Framework Act 1998.

Our appeals process is fully compliant with the Department for Education School Appeals Code

that can be found at School Appeals Code and the temporary changes to the Regulations issued

as result of Covid 19 restrictions www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-admissions-

appeals-code/changesto-the-school-admission-appeals-code-regulations-during-the-coronavirus-

outbreak

Irrespective of the ranked order of the school, offered parent/carers still have the right of appeal for

a place ranked lower than the school offered.

Parents/carers do not have a right of appeal if they have been offered a place and it is not in the

year group they would like. However, they may make a complaint in accordance with the relevant

published complaints procedure.

Accepting/attending another school does not have a detrimental impact on the outcome of an

independent appeal. Irrespective of the family’s view of the likely outcome of their appeal, as

there is no guarantee that any appeal will be successful the LB Newham strongly recommends

that families accept and attend the school offered whilst awaiting the outcome of any appeal.

Failure to ensure a child receives suitable education may result in formal attendance proceedings

being initiated.

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 27

If a parent/carer has had an unsuccessful appeal, a second appeal application for a place in the

same academic year, for the same school, will not be considered unless there have been

significant changes in circumstances relevant to the application. The admission authority will make

their decision as to whether to grant the second appeal based on the significance of the change.

Tie Breaker: shortest home to school walking distance

If we have to decide between applicants in any of the above admissions criterion, the tiebreak will

be home to school shortest walking distance, starting with the nearest address. In the event of

two or more children living equidistant from the school, the place will be decided by a random

draw, the first name drawn will be offered the place.

For Sarah Bonnell School only, within each criterion, priority is given to those girls whose main

home address is within the schools priority area, then the home to school distance tie break is

applied.

The Local authority uses an Industry Leading and Council approved Geographical Information

System (GIS) to calculate shortest walking distance measurements. This system provides

distances in miles and yards to three decimal places using a routing database system, based upon

two dimensional maps. Contour, elevation or terrain is not taken into account when the distances

are measured.

Applicants can check their home to school distance for any school in Newham, including those

who use straight line distance by using School Finder on the Newham website. This will show the

start and end points and the route we use. This will assist with making any making informed

decision about the likelihood of being offered a place before naming preferences.

Note: some academy schools in Newham, who do not adopt these arrangements, use straight line

distance or random allocation as their tie breaker.

Home to school distance calculations:

Tiebreak for each oversubscription criterion where there are more applicants in that

criterion group than places

Shortest walking distance

Start point of calculation (home address)

For calculation purposes, the local authority uses the best address database available to

determine the location of the address start point.

This start point is the centroid point of within the property building boundary being the building on

the site. The property buildings used are based upon the UK’s definitive map base supplied by the

UK’s national mapping agency Ordnance Survey (OS).

This means if a child lives in a block of flats where a communal entrance used as an entry point

the LA will use the centroid of the block and not the individual flat for these calculations.

All calculations are based on the child’s home address supplied on the application form being

correct at the date of parental/carer’s signature and the address being classified as a residential

property on the Council’s database.

Shortest walking distance

End point of calculation (school nominated entrance)

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 28

The school’s nominated entrance (nominated gate) used for calculation purposes is the main gate

at the official postal address of the school unless their Governing Body has officially notified the LA

by 31 August every year of a different entrance for measurement purposes. No other entrance will

be used to calculate the distance.

Route (shortest walking distance)

The shortest walking route is calculated using the LA’s adopted highways and approved footpaths

available to the best of our knowledge at the time of the calculations.

The route starts and is measured from the pupils home address centroid, links to the nearest point

on the Ordnance Survey MasterMap Integrated Transport Network (ITN), then follows the shortest

available walking route (see below) to link to the nearest ITN point to the schools nominated

entrance and then ends at that nominated entrance. Doglegs are added to the start and end

points to join the centroid point of the property to the start point of the ITN route to give a full and

accurate measurement.

All routes are measured using data from Ordnance Survey, the officially recognised national

mapping agency. Where necessary we have enhanced this dataset to reflect the characteristics

that aim to best deliver our adopted local standards.

The following are excluded from our calculations (this is not an exhaustive list and maybe subject

to change depending on conditions outside the control of the Admissions Service)

Parks/recreational areas (The Greenway is included in our calculations)

Unofficial crossing points of the A12/3 and the Docks

Footpaths and walkways not approved by the LA

Second stage tiebreak

If the LA’s system calculates that two or more pupils applying for the same school in the same

year group have the same home to school distance (to three decimal places) the following criteria

is used to determine their priority.

For pupils who live in a block of flats, whether they are within a multiple home block or a flat within

a single house, priority will be given based on the floor the child lives, with the lowest floor having

priority over higher floors.

In all other cases random allocation would be used to determine which of the children will be

offered the place available. An officer independent of Children’s Services and the admissions

processes will be responsible for drawing the name of the successful applicant and the draw will

be overseen by an independent adjudicator who will not work in Children Services or have any

involvement with the admissions processes.

For applications from outside of Newham

The route starts and is measured from the pupils home address, links to the nearest point on the

Ordnance Survey MasterMap Integrated Transport Network (ITN), then follows a straight line

measurement (as the crow flies) to the nearest point on the Ordnance Survey MasterMap

Integrated Transport Network (ITN) on the Newham borough boundary, then follows the shortest

available walking route (see below) to link to the nearest ITN point to the schools nominated

entrance and then ends at that nominated entrance.

Gates and entrances

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 29

Note: the entrance (gates) used for home to school distance tiebreaks, is the entrance for the

official postal address except for the following schools that use alternative entrances as requested

by their Governing Body.

Brampton Manor Academy – Boundary Lane E6

Central Park Primary School – Loxford Avenue E6

Little Ilford School – Browning Road E12

St. Angela’s Ursuline Convent School – Main Entrance of Our Lady of Compassion (Upton Park)

St. Bonaventure’s Catholic Comprehensive School – Main Entrance of Our Lady of Compassion

(Upton Park)

St Joachim’s RC Primary School – Front Main Entrance of Newham Dockside

Upton Cross Kirton Road Site – Kirton Road E13

Note: to ensure continuity for all applicants only the LA council approved system can be used to

calculate home to school distance tiebreaks.

Other GIS systems such as Google Maps or personal Satellite Navigation Systems will not

necessarily calculate the same route as the LA approved system as they may not be able to

accommodate our approved routes.

Fair Access Protocol

The Council is legally required to have a Fair Access Protocol.

Fair Access Protocols is only be used to place the following groups of vulnerable and/or hard to

place children, where they are having difficulty in securing a school place in-year, and it can be

demonstrated that reasonable measures have been taken to secure a place through the usual in-

year admission procedures.

This Protocol only applies for families applies outside of normal admissions; it only applies to in

year admissions.

a) children either subject to a Child in Need Plan or a Child Protection Plan or having had a Child

in Need Plan or a Child Protection Plan within 12 months at the point of being referred to the

Protocol;

b) children living in a refuge or in other Relevant Accommodation at the point of being referred to

the Protocol;

c) children from the criminal justice system;

d) children in alternative provision who need to be reintegrated into mainstream education or who

have been permanently excluded but are deemed suitable for mainstream education;

e) children with special educational needs (but without an Education, Health and Care plan),

disabilities or medical conditions;

f) children who are carers;

g) children who are homeless;

h) children in formal kinship care arrangements;

i) children of, or who are, Gypsies, Roma, Travellers, refugees, and asylum seekers;

j) children who have been refused a school place on the grounds of their challenging behaviour

and referred to the Protocol in accordance with paragraph 3.10 of this Code;

k) children for whom a place has not been sought due to exceptional circumstances;

l) children who have been out of education for four or more week where it can be demonstrated

that there are no places available at any school within a reasonable distance of their home. This

does not include circumstances where a suitable place has been offered to a child and this has not

been accepted; and

m) previously looked after children for whom the local authority has been unable to promptly

secure a school place

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 30

Eligibility for the Fair Access Protocol does not limit a parent’s right to make an in-year application

to any school for their child.

There is no duty for local authorities or admission authorities to comply with parental preference

when allocating places through the Fair Access Protocol, but parents’ views should be taken into

account.

Children with an EHCP or those who are Looked After cannot be placed using our Fair Access

Protocol, these are placed using specific regulations.

A copy of our latest Fair Access protocol is available on the Newham website or by calling

020 8430 2000.

London Borough of Newham

School Admission Oversubscription Criteria

For entry from September 2023

Children with an Education Health and Care Plan will have a school named in their plan before

all other applicants are considered.

If we have more applications under the above considerations, than we have places available,

we will apply the admissions criteria below to decide which applicant gets priority. Children in a

lower priority group will not be offered a place unless all the children in the group or groups

higher have been offered.

Priority 1: Looked after child and any child who was previously looked after but immediately

after being looked after became subject to an adoption, child arrangements, or special

guardianship order including those who appear to the London Borough of Newham to have

been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state care as a result of being

adopted.

And then

Priority 2: Children who have been assessed by Newham Council’s Special Educational

Needs Service as requiring a particular named school to meet their special educational needs

and/or physical access. In addition, the child must be on the Special Educational Needs Code

of Practice and be in receipt of ‘high needs funding’ and/ or have physical access difficulties.

And then

Priority 3: Children who have a sibling on roll and they are reasonably expected to still be on

roll at the time of admission in the school.

And then

Priority 4: Children whose parent/carer (person with parental responsibility) are directly

employed by the school.

And then

Priority 5: Service children

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 31

And then

Priority 6: All other children, whether or not they live in Newham.

If we have to decide between applicants in any of the above admissions criterion, the tiebreak

will be, home to school shortest walking distance, starting with the nearest address (see home

to school distance definition above).

For Sarah Bonnell School only: if we have to decide between applicants in any of the above

admissions criterion the tie break, in the first instance priority in each group is given to those

children who live in the schools priority area and then home to school shortest walking distance.

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 32

Appendix 1

Determined Admission Numbers for September 2023

Admission number for Year 7 (normal point of entry) unless otherwise

stated

Bobby Moore Academy 180

Brampton Manor Academy 420

Cumberland Community School 300

East London Science School (see 4 below) 120

Eastlea Community School 180

Forest Gate Community School 270

Harris Academy Chobham (see 1 below) 120

Kingsford Community School 330

Langdon Academy (see 2 below) 270

London Design and Engineering UTC (Year 9) 80

Lister Community School 330

Little Ilford School 360

Oasis Academy Silvertown 120

Plashet School 300

Rokeby School 180

Royal Docks Academy 210

Sarah Bonnell School 270

School 21 (see 3 below) N/A

Stratford School Academy 300

St. Angela’s Ursuline 192

St. Bonaventure’s 186

Notes (read in conjunction with the Additional Places and Capping on page 5):

All through schools (admission from year 7 only)

1. Chobham Academy - only 120 of the 210 places for September are initially available for open

application for primary and secondary transition. The first 90 of the 210 places are taken by their

year 6 pupils, who can automatically move into year 7.

If any of the year 6 chose to move to another school, their place will become available and offered

to the next child on the waiting list with the highest priority.

2. Langdon School Academy – only 270 of the 360 places for September are initially available

for open application for primary to secondary transition.

The first 90 of the 360 are taken by the Academy’s year 6 pupils, who can automatically move into

year 7.

If any of the year 6 chose to move to another school their place will become available and be

offered to the next child on the waiting list with the highest priority.

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 33

3. School 21 – as the primary and secondary phases of the school both have a roll limit of 75,

places will only be available for year 7 of any of their year 6 pupils do not take up their places for

secondary education.

If any of the year 6 pupils’ move to another school, their place will become available to the next

child on the waiting list with the highest priority.

Accommodation

4. East London Science School – until the academy moves into their permanent

accommodation it is possible that the Admission Number maybe lower than the determined

number due to capacity of any temporary accommodation.

The Determined Admission Numbers (AN) may increase as a result of any permanent expansions

agreed via formal consultation after publication of the admissions consultation and final

determination.

Primary (number published is for reception unless otherwise stated)

Altmore Infant School 150

Avenue Primary School 120

Bobby Moore Academy 60

Brampton Primary School 120

Britannia Village Primary School 60

Calverton Primary School 90

Carpenters Primary School 60

Central Park Primary School 120

Harris Academy Chobham 90

Cleves Primary School 60

Colegrave Primary School 90

Curwen Primary School 120

Dersingham Primary School 90

Drew Primary School 60

Earlham Primary School 60

Ellen Wilkinson Primary School 60

Elmhurst Primary School 120

Essex Primary School 120

Gainsborough Primary School 60

Gallions Primary School 90

Godwin Junior School (Year 3) 120

Grange Primary Schools 30

Hallsville Primary School 60

Hartley Primary School 120

Kaizen Primary School 60

Keir Hardie Primary School 60

Kensington Primary School 90

Langdon Academy 90

Lathom Junior School (Year 3) 150

Manor Primary School 60

Maryland Primary School 60

Monega Primary School 90

Nelson Primary School 120

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 34

New City Primary School 90

North Beckton Primary School 90

Odessa Infant School 90

Park Primary School 90

Plaistow Primary School 60

Portway Primary School 120

Ranelagh Primary School 60

Ravenscroft Primary School 90

Roman Road Primary School 90

Rosetta Primary School 90

Royal Wharf Primary School 60

St. James' CoE Junior School (Year 3) 90

St. Stephen's Primary School 90

Salisbury Primary School 90

Sandringham Primary School 120

School 21 75

School 360 60

Scott Wilkie Primary School 60

Selwyn Primary School 60

Shaftesbury Primary School 90

Sheringham Academy 90

Sir John Heron Primary School 60

Southern Road Primary School 90

Star Primary School 90

Tollgate Primary School 60

Upton Cross Primary School (two sites) 150

Vicarage Primary School 120

West Ham Church Primary School 45

William Davies Primary School 30

Winsor Primary School 90

Woodgrange Infant School 120

St. Antony's Catholic Primary School 60

St. Edward's Catholic Primary School 60

St. Francis' Catholic Primary School 60

St. Helen's Catholic Primary School 60

St. Joachim's Catholic Primary School 60

St. Luke's CoE School 30

St. Michael's Catholic Primary School 30

St. Winefride's Catholic School 60

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 35

Appendix 2

Documents for Admission

All school offer and alternative allocations for educational establishments for compulsory school

aged children are conditional. This means they are made on the condition that the information

provided on the application was accurate at the time of signing and submission. If it is found to be

fraudulent or deliberately misleading the school place made be withdrawn. For a child to be

admitted their parent/carer must provide Newham acceptable proofs as specified below. Where

these documents cannot be provided further action maybe required before admission can take

place. This does not mean any child will be refused a school place, but it does mean they may not

be offered a place at an oversubscribed school where they cannot prove they have priority.

Only original copies of documents can be accepted at the school admission meeting, photo copies

are not permissible. Both sides of the documents will be checked for authenticity as photo-copies

and scanned images can now capture watermarks.

Certified, dated photo/scanned copies will be taken in all cases of all documents and added to

pupil file.

Proof of the child’s legal name and date of birth:

 UK Birth Certificate – short or long versions (non UK birth certificates cannot be accepted as

they may be in a language other than English)

 Valid Current Passport (the child maybe included on their parents’ valid current passport)

 Official Documentation from the National Asylum Seeker Service including an application

registration card (ARC).

 The ARC has been issued to asylum claimants and their dependants since 2002. The ARC

may provide public sector bodies with assurance that you or your dependant is an asylum

claimant.

 This is a credit card-sized plastic card issued by the Home Office to individuals who claim

asylum. It contains information about the holder’s identity or claimed identity although it is

not evidence of identity.

Note: only Adoption or Deed Poll documentation can be accepted as proof of a child’s official

name change following the issue date of any of the above documents.

Proof of the child’s main address:

Documentation to confirm the child’s current home address must be addressed to at least one of

the parent/carers detailed on the Common Application Form (CAF) who must live at the same

address as the child.

If the child has moved since the application form was completed proof of both their new address

and the address on the application form must be provided. Pupil Services must be notified of any

address change since the Common Application Form CAF was completed in case the place may

have been secured by fraudulent means.

If a child’s parents are not living together and the child spends a few days in both households on

week days, then best practice is to take proof of both addresses, but for admission as a minimum,

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 36

they must provide proof of the address registered on the CAF which should be the one from which

the child goes to school in the morning most often on week days.

 Council Tax Bill for the current financial year (residential not commercial)

 Current Housing Benefit Entitlement Letter (financial details should be deleted on the copy in

their presence)

 Current Tenancy Agreement for Council Housing or Housing Association Property

 Tenancy Agreement for Private Accommodation from Newham Accredited Landlord

(acceptable to December 2012) or Tenancy Agreement from a Newham Licensed Landlord

(accepted from January 2013 onwards)

 Letter from the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) Team informing the family of the

address of the accommodation being provided for the family.

 A letter from Adult/Children’s Services Asylum Team informing the family of the address of the

accommodation being provided for the family

Note: Tenancy Agreements from Landlords who are not accredited (licensed from January 2013)

by Newham and documents relating to house/flat purchase must not be accepted. If you are

provided with a child’s home address that is Private Sector Housing and the property is

unlicensed, the case must be reported by the school via the Private Sector Housing – Report an

Unlicensed Private Rented Property page of the Newham website.

AND one of the following Utility Bills (this is not required for families supported by NASS or a

Social Care Asylum Team). In all cases the amount due and their balance should be deleted from

the copy in the parent/carers presence).

 Gas Bill/Payment Schedule/Reminder – dated for the current financial year

 Electricity Bill/Payment Schedule/Reminder – dated for the current financial year

 Water Bill/Payment Schedule/Reminder – dated for the current financial year

 Telephone Bill/Reminder – dated for the current financial year

 Mobile Phone Bill/Reminder – dated for the current financial year

Medical Contacts

Doctor’s Surgery Name, Surgery Address and Telephone Number, GP Name (optional)

AND

Dentist’s Surgery Name, Surgery Address and Telephone Number, Dentist’s Name (optional)

Emergency Contacts

For all children you must hold at least two Emergency Contacts who must be aged 18 or over

(If possible, at least one of the contacts should be able to speak English).

Full Name

Address

Language

Author: Group Manager Pupil Services Page 37

Relationship to the Child

Home Number

Mobile Number

Proof of parental responsibility:

Documents should be provided by the person living with child to confirm their parental

responsibility and details of other persons with parental responsibility for this child.