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St. Mary’s Catholic Primary School

Reception Admission Policy 2014 -2015

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ADMISSION POLICY 2014 - 2015 St. Mary’s Catholic Primary School was founded by the Catholic Church to provide education for children of Catholic families. The school is conducted by its governing body as part of the Catholic Church in accordance with its trust deed and instrument of government, and seeks at all times to be a witness to Jesus Christ. Applications are invited for September 2014 from families whose child attains 4 years of age between 01/09/2013 and 31/08/2014. Whenever there are more applications than places available, priority will always be given to Catholic applicants in accordance with the oversubscription criteria listed below. In this policy, ‘applicant’ refers to you, the parent applying for a place, and ‘candidate’ refers to the child for whom an application is made. As a Catholic school, we aim to provide a Catholic education for all our pupils. At a Catholic school, Catholic doctrine and practice permeate every aspect of the school’s activity. It is essential that the Catholic character of the school’s education is fully supported by all families in the school. All applicants are therefore expected to give their full, unreserved and positive support for the aims and ethos of the school. All Catholic applicants wishing to claim priority must provide a reference from a Catholic priest in accordance with our oversubscription criteria. The governing body has responsibility for admissions to this school and the Published Admission Number (PAN) is 60 pupils to the reception classes in the school year which begins in September 2014 Oversubscription Criteria Where there are more applications for places than the number of places available, places will be offered according to the following order of priority. 1. Catholic looked after children and Catholic children who have been adopted (or subject to residence orders or special guardianship orders)immediately following having been looked after. 2. Baptised Catholics who have siblings in the school at the time of enrolment. 3. Baptised Practising Catholics who are resident in the parishes* of The Sacred Heart and The Immaculate Heart of Mary, whose practice is confirmed by a reference from the Catholic priest. 4. Baptised Catholics who are resident in the parishes of The Sacred Heart and The Immaculate Heart of Mary. 5. Other Baptised Catholic children. 6. Other looked after children and other children who have been adopted (or subject to residence orders or special guardianship orders)immediately following having been looked after. 7. Christians and those of other faiths who have siblings in the school at the time of enrolment. 8. Catechumens and members of an Eastern Christian Church. (see notes) 9. Christians of other denominations whose parents wish them to have a Catholic education and whose application is supported by a minister of religion. 10.Children of other faiths whose parents wish them to have a Catholic education and whose application is supported by a religious leader. 11. Any other applicants. * Please see map attached to SIF for parish boundaries

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Exceptional Need The Governing Body will give top priority after the appropriate category of looked-after children, to an application where compelling evidence is provided at the time of application, from an appropriate professional such as a doctor, priest or social worker, of an exceptional social, medical, pastoral or other need of the child, which can only be met at this school. Where the offer of places to all the applicants in any of the categories listed above would lead to oversubscription the following provisions will be applied. Tie Break Where the offer of places to all the applicants in any of the sub-categories listed above would still lead to oversubscription, the places up to the admission number will be offered to those living nearest to the school as measured by the shortest walking distance by following road networks including public rights of way,(using the Local Authority’s computerised measuring system) from the child’s home to the main school entrance. (A public right of way is one which is determined by the “Countryside Act 1968”.) Where applicants live in the same block of flats, internal walkways will be treated as public rights of way. Residential Address The address used will be the address where the child spends 50% or more of the school week. Parents are advised that should the cut off point divide twins or multiple siblings, the place will be offered by random allocation using a lottery draw system, which will be carried out by governors in the presence of an independent witness. Application Procedures and Timetable

The closing date for applying for a place in Reception is 15th January 2014

In order to make a full application : 1)You should complete the school’s Supplementary Information Form attached to this policy. Alternatively you can download it from our website or pick it up from the council or school office. Please return it to the Governors’ Admission Panel via the school office, together with all other relevant paperwork required for your application. 2)You must also complete a Common Application Form from your Local Education Authority and return it to them as per their instructions. If you do not complete both the CAF and the SIF and return them by the closing date, the governing body may be unable to consider your application fully and it is unlikely that your child will get a place at the school. You will be advised of the outcome of your application by 16th April, initially by a letter from the LA on behalf of the Governing Body. If unsuccessful you may ask us for the reasons, related to the oversubscription criteria listed above, and you have the right of appeal to an independent appeal panel.

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Offer acceptance reply slips should be completed and returned to Brent LA by 30th April 2014 Waiting Lists Lists will be maintained throughout the school year. A child’s position on the waiting list does not depend upon the time they have been on the list but will be determined by how they meet the oversubscription criteria. This means that a child’s position on the list can go down as well as up, depending upon the child’s circumstances and those of other applicants. The waiting list will be closed each year and will not roll over. Parents wishing to stay on the waiting list will be required to submit a request to the school. Pupils with a Statement of Special Educational Needs The admission of pupils with a statement of Special Educational Needs is dealt with by a completely separate procedure. This procedure is integral to the making and maintaining of statements by the pupil’s home Local Education Authority. Details of this separate procedure is set out in the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. Notes (these notes form part of the oversubscription criteria) ‘looked after child’ has the same meaning as in section 22 of the Children Act 1989, and means any child in the care of a local authority or provided with accommodation by them (e.g. children with foster parents). ‘Catholic’ means a member of a Church in full communion with the See of Rome. This includes the Eastern Catholic Churches. This will normally be evidenced by a certificate of baptism in a Catholic Church or a certificate of reception into the full communion of the Catholic Church. For the purposes of this policy, it includes a looked after child who is part of a Catholic family where a priest’s reference demonstrates that the child would have been baptised or received if it were not for their status as a looked after child (e.g. a looked after child in the process of adoption by a Catholic family). ‘Practising Catholic’ means a Catholic child from a practising Catholic family where this practice is verified by a reference from a Catholic priest in the standard format laid down by the Diocese. ‘Family’ includes the Catholic or Catholics who have legal responsibility for the child. Siblings refer to brother and sisters, step brothers and sisters, half brothers and sisters or adopted brothers and sisters.. ‘Parent’ should be defined as the person or persons who have legal responsibility for a child. ‘Christian’ is defined as a member of a church which belongs to ‘Churches Together in Britain and Ireland’. ‘Catechumen’ means a member of the catechumenate of a Catholic Church. This will be evidenced by a certificate of reception into the order of catechumens. ‘Eastern Christian Church’ includes Orthodox Churches, and is evidenced by a certificate of baptism or reception from the authorities of that Church. For the purposes of this policy, parish boundaries are determined by the Catholic Diocese of Westminster.

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Appeals Procedure: Parents have the right of appeal against a decision not to admit a child. Parents wishing to exercise their right of appeal against a refusal of admission should forward their appeal to the Chair of Governors who will pass all information to the independent appeals panel. Please note the Appeals Panel will be independent from the school. Parents are entitled to attend the appeal panel meeting to give grounds for their appeal personally and / or to be represented. Appealing for a place does not guarantee entry to the school. In accordance with the DFE appeals code the school has set the following date of 23rd May 2014 as the closing deadline by which appeals against refusal for admission must be lodged. Appeals must be heard within forty school days of the appeal being lodged. Appeals will be heard before 20th June 2014. The appeals panel will write to all concerned parents stating the date, time and venue of the meeting place. In-year admissions (those made outside the timetabled admission process) hearings must be held within forty schooldays of the appeal being lodged. Please note parents cannot appeal against the refusal of a place in the nursery. Casual Admissions /In-year admissions Applications for In-Year admissions are made directly to the school. Where there is no waiting list and places available, children will be admitted. If more applications are received than there are places available then applications will be ranked by the governing body in accordance with the oversubscription criteria, as above. The Special Educational Needs of

children will also be considered as noted previously on page 4. If a place cannot be offered

at this time then you may ask us for the reasons and you will be informed of your right of appeal. You will be offered the opportunity of being placed on a waiting list. This waiting list will be maintained by the governing body in the order of the oversubscription criteria ( as modified above ) and not in the order in which the applications are received. Names are removed from the list at the end of each academic year. When a place becomes available the governing body will decide who is at the top of the list and inform the parent that the school is making an offer.

Deferred Entry Applicants may defer entry to school up until statutory school agei.e. the first day of term following the child’s fifth birthday. Application is made in the usual way and then the deferment is requested. The place will then be held until the first day of the spring or summer term. Applicants may also request that their child attend part-time until statutory school age is reached. Entry may not be deferred beyond statutory school age or beyond the year of application. Applicants whose children have birthdays in the summer term should be aware that, if they wish to defer, they will need to apply for a Year 1 place for the following September and if the school is oversubscribed they are very unlikely to obtain a place.

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Fair Access Protocol The school is committed to taking its fair share of children who are vulnerable and/or hard to place, as set out in locally agreed protocols. Accordingly, outside the normal admissions round the governing body is empowered to give absolute priority to a child where admission is requested under any local protocol that has been agreed by both the Diocese and the governing body for the current school year. The governing body has this power even when admitting the child would mean exceeding the published admissions number. Nursery Admissions Parents wishing to apply for a place must follow the procedure as set down in the Nursery admissions policy. Please note there is no automatic transfer from the nursery into the school and the previous noted admissions procedure for Reception must be followed as stated above. Change of Details If any of the details on either of your forms change between the date of application and receipt of the letter of offer or refusal, you must inform the school and the local authority immediately. If misleading information is given or allowed to remain on either of your forms, the Governing Body reserves the right to withdraw the place, even if the child has started at the school.

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St. Mary's Catholic Primary School

Supplementary Forms

To be completed in BLOCK LETTERS by the Parent/Guardian

Child’s Details Child’s Surname:

Child’s Christian or other first name:

Date of Birth:

Home Address:

Post Code:

Parent/ Carer Details 1

st Parent(s) Carer (s)

Name:

Address:

Telephone number:

Mobile:

Alternative contact details:

Name:

Address:

Telephone number:

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Details of Religion Religion of Child

Please tick:

Catholic: Other Christian (name of denomination

e.g. Methodist)

Other Faith Name:

Catholic Parish you live in:

Church where child was baptised and date

of baptism: (baptism certificate required) :

Name and position of priest or religious

leader supplying reference (where

appropriate)

Name of brother or sister attending this

school in September 2014 or when the

intended applicant is due to start :

Name: Class :

Is your child ‘looked after by the Local

Authority , adopted having previously been

‘looked after’ or subject to residency or

special guardianship orders? (Please circle

your response)

YES NO

Does your child have exceptional medical, pastoral or social needs that can only be

met by attendance at this school? Please circle. (Professional evidence will be

required.)

YES NO

I confirm that I have read and understood the Admissions Policy and that the

information I have provided is correct. I understand that I must notify the

school immediately if there is any change to these details and that should

any information I have given prove to be inaccurate that the governors may

withdraw any offer of a place even if the child has already started school.

Signed_________________________ Date_________________________

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Please note:

Where applicable parents can obtain a priest’s reference form from the

parish office or from the Diocese of Westminster website at

www.rcdow.org.uk/education Follow Guidance &Policy Documents,

Admissions: Guidance notes and reference form for priests.

Applicants from other Christian denominations and other faiths may

attach a reference from their minster or religious leader.

You must complete your local authority’s Common Application Form

and return it to the council offices by the closing date. If you do not do

this you will not be offered a place.

Checklist:

Have you enclosed? Copy of baptism certificate

Priest’s Reference Form (Where necessary)

Evidence of exceptional needs (Where appropriate)

Have you completed your local authority’s Common Application form?

This form should be completed and returned to the

school office of St. Mary’s Catholic Primary School ,

Canterbury Road, Kilburn, London NW6 5ST

Tel: 0207 6243830

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