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Kent Scheme for Secondary Transfer
THE FOLLOWING IS AN EXCERPT FROM THE KENT PUBLISHED SCHEME.
This is for entry in September 2009; 2010 is very similar
Omissions are primarily of technical instructions about procedures to be followed by schools, and not of direct relevance to parents.
SCHEME TO CO-ORDINATE SECONDARY ADMISSIONS
1. In this scheme:
“the LA” means Kent County Council acting in their capacity as local authority;
“admission authority” in relation to a community or voluntary controlled school means the LA and, in relation to a foundation or VA school and Academy, means the governing body of that school;
4. The Kent schools that require children to sit the Kent test (as in Paragraph 10) are listed below:
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Norton Knatchbull |
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Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School |
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Simon Langton Girls' Grammar School |
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Sir Roger Manwood's School |
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Skinners' School |
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Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School |
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Weald of |
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THE SCHEME
1. The LA expects that all schools and Admissions Authorities engaged in the sharing of admissions data will manage personal information in accordance with the Data Protection Principles, as defined in the Data Protection Act 1998.
Secondary Common Application Form
2. There will be a standard form for residents of the LA area known as the Secondary Common Application Form (SCAF). The LA will take all reasonable steps to ensure that every parent resident in the LA area who has a child in their last year of primary education receives a copy of the SCAF (and a written explanation) of the co-ordinated admissions scheme.
3.The SCAF will be used for the purpose of admitting pupils into the first year of secondary education in the specified year, and any successive year in which this scheme is still in force
4.The SCAF must be used as a means of expressing one or more preferences for the purposes of section 86 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, by parents resident in the LA area wishing to express a preference for their child:
(a) to be admitted to a school within the LA area (including VA and Foundation schools and Academies)
5. The SCAF will:
(b) invite parents to give their reasons for each preference.
(ii) if a place cannot be offered at a nominated school, a place will be offered at an alternative school.
(d) specify the closing date and where it must be returned, in accordance with paragraph 7.
6.The LA will make appropriate arrangements to ensure:
(b) that the SCAF is accompanied by a written explanation of the co-ordinated admissions scheme.
7. Completed paper SCAFs are to be returned to the LA by 7 November 2008. Alternatively a parent may apply on-line via the LA website before this date. To assist the LA in keeping track of parents who do not complete a SCAF, primary schools can ask for the on-line reference from parents if they have concerns, or enquire with the on-line admissions team to establish if an online application has been received.
Supplementary Information Forms
8. All preferences expressed on a SCAF are valid applications. A school can ask parents who wish to nominate it, or have nominated it, on the SCAF, to provide additional information on a supplementary form only where the additional information is required for the governing body to apply its over-subscription criteria to the application. Where a supplementary form is required it must be returned to the school. All schools that use supplementary forms must include the proposed form in their consultation with other admission authorities, including the LA, and in their published admission arrangements.
9. A supplementary form is not a valid application by itself: this can be made only on the SCAF or, if the child is resident in another area, the home area’s Common Application Form. When supplementary forms are received the school must verify with the LA before consideration and ranking of applicants that a SCAF or neighbouring area’s SCAF has been received from the parent and, if not, contact the parent and ask them to complete one. In these circumstances, the school should also send the LA a copy of the supplementary form if so requested. Under the requirements of the scheme, parents will not be under any obligation to complete any part of an individual school’s supplementary form where this is not strictly required for the governing body to apply its over-subscription criteria.
Testing
10. Registration for the
11. Parents who do not register for the
12. In the following exceptional circumstances, where a child is unable to sit the
illness on one or both test dates, confirmed by a doctor’s certificate;
a move into the Kent LA area after the closing date for test registration on 12 July 2008. (NB: This can only be arranged if parents return the late SCAF before 15 December 2008.
Outside these specific circumstances, children who have not registered for testing but have named a grammar school will not have an opportunity to sit the test until after 31 March 2009. Parents would need to approach the nominated school directly if it is a foundation or voluntary aided school, or Kent LA if a community or VC school.
13. Following the marking and the application of the Head teacher assessment stage, on 20 October 2008 the LA will write to parents advising of the assessment decision. Parents will have until 7 November 2008 to return their completed SCAF. There will be no right of appeal against the outcome of a child’s assessment, but parents may make an admission appeal after 2 March 2009 to the independent appeal panel if their child is refused admission to any school.
Late Applications Received After the SCAF Closing Date but Before 15 December 2008
14. The closing date for applications in the normal admissions round is 7 November 2008. As far as is reasonably practicable applications for places in the normal admissions round that are received after that date but before 15 December 2008 will be accepted, provided there is a good reason for the delay. Examples of what will be considered as good reason include: when a single parent has been ill for some time, or has been dealing with the death of a close relative; a family has just moved into the area or is returning from abroad (proof of ownership or tenancy of a Kent property will normally be required in these cases).
15.Exceptional provision is made for the families of Service Personnel and Crown Servants, as recommended in the School Admissions Code. Applications will be accepted up until 14 December 2008, where it is confirmed by the appropriate authority that the family will be resident in
Late Applications Received on or after 15 December 2008 but Before 26 March 2009
16.The LA will hold late applications until they are passed to schools on 27 March 2009.
Applications made direct to schools
17.Applications made direct to any school on the SCAF must be forwarded to the LA immediately. Where only the supplementary form is received the school must inform the LA immediately so it can verify whether a SCAF has been received from the parent and, if not, contact the parent and ask them to complete a SCAF.
Determining Offers in Response to the SCAF
18. The LA will act as a clearing house for the allocation of places by the relevant admission authorities in response to the SCAFs. The LA will only make any decision with respect to the offer or refusal of a place in response to any preference expressed on the SCAF where:
19. By 12 December 2008 the LA will:
a) notify all schools of the number of applications received for their school;
b) each relevant school.
Offers – 2 March
26. On 2 March 2009 the LA will notify applicants resident in the LA area by letter that they are being offered a place at the allocated school. This letter will give the following information:
the name of the school at which a place is offered;
the reasons why the child is not being offered a place at each of the other schools nominated on the SCAF;
information about the statutory right of appeal against the decisions to refuse places at the other nominated schools;
how to apply for a place on the waiting list for any school named on the SCAF. Parents cannot ask for their child to go on the waiting list for a grammar school unless the child has been assessed suitable for grammar school;
contact details for the school and LA and for the admission authorities of Foundation, VA schools and Academies where they were not offered a place, so that they can lodge an appeal with the governing body.
The letter will notify parents that they need to respond to accept or refuse the offer. It will not inform parents of places still available at other schools.
27. Parents who reside in other LAs, but who have applied for a
28. Kent pupils who have not been offered a place at any of the schools nominated on their SCAF will be offered a place by the LA at the nearest school in the LA area with a place available, following consultation with individual schools. This place will be offered on 2 March 2009.
29. Secondary schools will send their welcome letters on Thursday 5 March 2009.
Acceptance/Refusal 26 March 2009
30. On 26 March 2009 each school will check to see whether they have a response from each pupil who was offered a place on 2 March 2009. If the school has not obtained a response by 26 March 2009, it must remind the parent of the need to respond and point out that the place may be withdrawn if no response is received. Only after having exhausted all reasonable enquiries may it be assumed that a place is not required.
31. By 27 March 2009, schools must let the LA know of any pupils not taking up the place offered in order to maintain the pupil database.
32. On 27 March 2009 the LA will send all schools details of any late applications received on or after 15 December 2008 but before 26 March 2009. Schools will incorporate these applicants into their rank order, taking account of their oversubscription criteria, and make offers to fill any vacancies on 30 March 2009, unless the school is a grammar school and the child has not been assessed as suitable for a grammar school. If they cannot offer a late applicant a place, they must write to the parents confirming this and explaining how they can exercise their right to appeal against the refusal of a place.
Waiting Lists
33. The admission authority for each oversubscribed school will keep a waiting list. This will include details of the following:
a. all applicants who have named the school on the SCAF and were not offered a place on 2 March and who have asked to be included on the school’s waiting list;
b. applicants whose late applications were sent to the school by the LA on 27 March 2009; and
c.applicants whose applications were made direct to the school after 31 March 2009.
A grammar school can only put children on its waiting list if they have been assessed as suitable for a grammar school.
34. Applicants will be listed in order of priority, in accordance with the school’s oversubscription criteria.
Schools with vacancies against their Published Admission Number will have initially offered places on a common date of 30 March 2009, and then as vacancies arise.
If a school has reached its Published Admission Number it may not admit applicants other than through the Independent Appeal process, the In Year Fair Access Protocol or where special arrangements relating to children in Local Authority care apply. The Authority will maintain a database from March to September 2009. To maintain the database, admission authorities will advise the LA when a place is offered to a pupil on a waiting list, and whether the parent has accepted or declined the offer.
Waiting lists will be maintained until the start of the school year in September. Parents with children who are refused admission must be offered a right of appeal (even if their child’s name has been put on the waiting list) and must be given a contact in the LA to ensure that no pupil is left without an offer of a school place.
Appeals
35. All parents have the statutory right to appeal against any decision refusing them a school place, regardless of where they ranked the school on a SCAF.
36. Where a school has places available after 30 March 2009, and parents have lodged an appeal against the refusal of a place, they may be offered a place at the school after 30 March without the appeal being heard. Where the school is a grammar school, a place may only be offered if the child has been assessed as being suitable for a grammar school place and there are no other applicants at that time on the school’s waiting list who rank higher through the application of the school’s over-subscription criteria.
Applications after 31 March for Year 7 places
37. Applications can be made direct to any
38. The LA will keep track of any pupils who apply for casual admission, and intervene as appropriate to ensure that they are placed in a school without undue delay, where necessary employing the “In Year Fair Access Protocol”.
Admissions Authorities within Kent required to adhere to the co-ordinated scheme
39. The table overleaf sets out the admissions authorities in
The list does not include other bodies consulted, namely Canterbury Diocesan Board of Education, Rochester Diocesan Board of Education, the Archdiocese of Southwark Commission for Schools and Colleges and neighbouring Local Authorities). (