The admissions policy
(for admission in academic year September 2008– August 2009)
Governors have again carried out an annual review of their admission arrangements in line with the government’s Admissions Code and having regard to the LA consultation and their proposed timeline for co-ordinated admission arrangements. This section sets down the school’s policy.
ADMISSION NUMBER
Governors have set a planned admission number (PAN) of 140 pupils. This admission number has been in place for some years now and applies to all year groups. It is in line with the indicative admission limit arrived at through the net capacity calculations which follow DfES guidelines. Additionally, as a condition of gaining planning permission for the last building project, Governors entered into an undertaking with Aylesbury Vale District Planning Authority (through a planning obligation agreement) not to grow the school. Governors have therefore confirmed that they will continue with an admission number of 140 pupils.
The admission number will apply to all year groups except Years 12 and 13/14 (the sixth form). The policy for admission to the sixth form is found in a separate application pack available on request from the school.
MAKING APPLICATION / THE TIMESCALE
Copies of the School Prospectus and explanatory booklet are available at the start of the preceding autumn term and supplies of these are sent directly to local schools. Under the new co-ordinated arrangements applicants will be required to complete the LA common application form together with a supplementary form for Waddesdon School. These forms will be provided in the LA Admissions Booklet. Parents making application under one of the church criteria will be asked to pass a separate church affiliation form to their vicar, priest or minister. This will also be provided within the LA admissions booklet, although spare copies can be provided by the school.
The school holds open days and evenings for parents and prospective pupils at the end of September. Parents are also welcome to arrange a separate visit by telephoning the school to make a prior appointment.
The closing date for receipt of applications by the LEA for admission into Year 7 in September 2008 will be 19 October 2007.
The LA advises that only in the most exceptional cases will it be possible to make changes to the preference order and then only until 12 November 2007. Any applications received by the LA after this date but before 1 January 2008 will be processed as late applications and dealt with after those received by the closing date.
Applications received by the LA from 1 January 2008 onwards will not be processed until after 3 March 2008.
The Admissions Committee of the Governing Body will meet between December 2007 and early January 2008 to determine which applicants can be offered places and to prepare a waiting list for places which might occur later. The decisions of Governors will be passed to the LA who will send out the allocation letters to parents on behalf of the Governing Body on 1 March 2008.
Parents who are unsuccessful in their application for a place at Waddesdon School will be given the opportunity of a meeting with representatives from the Governing Body. (In order to arrange this, parents should telephone the school). The purpose of this meeting will be to explain in detail why a parent’s application has been unsuccessful, to receive any further information the parent wishes to submit, to provide information about the waiting list and to give advice about the appeal process.
Admission appeals will be heard by an Independent Panel convened by Oxford Diocese. The majority of appeals will usually be heard during May. The exact dates will be dependent on the availability of Panel Members. (Please note that admission appeals for Waddesdon School are NOT heard by appeal panels convened by Buckinghamshire County Council.)
REPEAT APPLICATIONS
It will be the policy of Governors not to consider repeat applications in the same academic year.
THE CATCHMENT AREA
The LA now uses the postcode system to help define residence within catchment areas.
A large map can be seen at the school showing the catchment boundary lines. A smaller copy is available in the LA booklet.
POST CODE DEFINITIONS
The postcodes within the catchment area have been set out in a table to make it easier for parents to check whether or not their residence falls within the defined catchment area.
Parents should note that a handful of postcodes fall only partially within the revised Waddesdon catchment area and these are shown separately below.
HP18 9PL
OX25 1PU
OX25 1QA
OX25 1QG
OX25 1QN
The list below details the postcodes that are contained within the revised
catchment area for Waddesdon CE School which was effective from
September 2005.
| HP18 0EE | HP18 0JW | HP18 0SR | HP18 0LX | HP18 0QG | HP22 4AN |
| HP18 0EF | HP18 0JX | HP18 0SS | HP18 0LY | HP18 0QH | HP22 4AP |
| HP18 0EG | HP18 0JY | HP18 0ST | HP18 0LZ | HP18 0QJ | HP22 4AQ |
| HP18 0EH | HP18 0JZ | HP18 0SU | HP18 0NA | HP18 0QL | HP22 4AR |
| HP18 0EJ | HP18 0LA | HP18 0SW | HP18 0NB | HP18 0QN | HP22 4AS |
| HP18 0EL | HP18 0LB | HP18 0SX | HP18 0ND | HP18 0QP | HP22 4AT |
| HP18 0EN | HP18 0LE | HP18 0SY | HP18 0NE | HP18 0QQ | HP22 4AW |
| HP18 0EP | HP18 0LF | HP18 0SZ | HP18 0NF | HP18 0QT | HP22 4AX |
| HP18 0ER | HP18 0LG | HP18 0TA | HP18 0NG | HP18 0QU | HP22 4AY |
| HP18 0ES | HP18 0LH | HP18 0TD | HP18 0NH | HP18 0QW | HP22 4AZ |
| HP18 0ET | HP18 0LJ | HP18 0TE | HP18 0NJ | HP18 0QX | HP22 4BA |
| HP18 0HA | HP18 0LL | HP18 0TF | HP18 0NN | HP18 0QY | HP22 4BB |
| HP18 0HB | HP18 0LN | HP18 0TG | HP18 0NP | HP18 0RA | HP22 4BD |
| HP18 0HD | HP18 0LP | HP18 0TH | HP18 0NQ | HP18 0RB | HP22 4BE |
| HP18 0HE | HP18 0LQ | HP18 0TJ | HP18 0NR | HP18 0RD | HP22 4BG |
| HP18 0HF | HP18 0LR | HP18 0TN | HP18 0NS | HP18 0RF | HP22 4BH |
| HP18 0HG | HP18 0LS | HP18 0TP | HP18 0NT | HP18 0RG | HP22 4BJ |
| HP18 0HH | HP18 0LT | HP18 0TQ | HP18 0NU | HP18 0RH | HP22 4BL |
| HP18 0HJ | HP18 0LU | HP18 0TR | HP18 0NW | HP18 9NU | HP22 4BN |
| HP18 0HL | HP18 0RL | HP18 0TS | HP18 0NX | HP18 9NX | HP22 4BP |
| HP18 0HQ | HP18 0RN | HP18 0TT | HP18 0NZ | HP18 9NY | HP22 4BQ |
| HP18 0HS | HP18 0RP | HP18 0TU | HP18 0PA | HP18 9NZ | HP22 4BS |
| HP18 0HT | HP18 0RQ | HP18 0TW | HP18 0PB | HP18 9PA | HP22 4BT |
| HP18 0HX | HP18 0RS | HP18 0TX | HP18 0PD | HP18 9PB | HP22 4BU |
| HP18 0JA | HP18 0RT | HP18 0TY | HP18 0PG | HP18 9PD | HP22 4BW |
| HP18 0JB | HP18 0RX | HP18 0TZ | HP18 0PH | HP18 9PE | HP22 4BX |
| HP18 0JD | HP18 0RY | HP18 0UA | HP18 0PJ | HP18 9PF | HP22 4BY |
| HP18 0JE | HP18 0RZ | HP18 0UD | HP18 0PL | HP18 9PG | HP22 4DA |
| HP18 0JF | HP18 0SA | HP18 0UH | HP18 0PN | HP18 9PJ | HP22 4DE |
| HP18 0JG | HP18 0SB | HP18 0UT | HP18 0PQ | HP18 9PQ | HP22 4DF |
| HP18 0JH | HP18 0SD | HP18 0XA | HP18 0PR | HP18 9PR | HP22 4DG |
| HP18 0JJ | HP18 0SE | HP18 0XB | HP18 0PX | HP18 9XZ | HP22 4DJ |
| HP18 0JL | HP1B 0SF | HP18 0XL | HP18 0PY | HP22 4AD | HP22 4DL |
| HP18 0JN | HP18 0SH | HP18 0YH | HP18 0PZ | HP22 4AE | HP22 4DQ |
| HP18 0JQ | HP18 0SJ | HP18 0YJ | HP18 0QA | HP22 4AF | HP22 4HU |
| HP18 0JR | HP18 0SL | HP18 9NP | HP18 0QB | HP22 4AG | HP22 4RJ |
| HP18 0JS | HP18 0SN | HP18 9NS | HP18 0QD | HP22 4AH | |
| HP18 0JT | HP18 0SP | HP18 9NT | HP18 0QE | HP22 4AJ | |
| HP18 0JU | HP18 0SQ | HP18 0LW | HP18 0QF | HP22 4AL |
CRITERIA FOR ADMISSION
The following admissions criteria are applied in the order of priority set out below:
1. Residence in the catchment area (as per the map which can be seen at the school and defined by postcode) and which largely includes the parishes of:
Within this criterion governors will consider applications in the following priority order:
Children in Public Care
Other applications
2. Children from families with a strong commitment to the Church of England
Governors will consider applications under this criterion in the following priority order:
a. those with a sibling already at the school (as defined by criterion 3)
b. those without a sibling at the school (as defined by criterion 3)
(A church affiliation form completed by the minister will be essential for this criterion to be considered)
3. Siblings
In order to qualify under this criterion there must be a child already attending Waddesdon CE School. This child must still be in attendance when the brother/sister is admitted. This is particularly relevant if the older child is at present in years 11, 12 or 13 and may be leaving at the end of the school year. In determining siblings, step siblings and siblings by adoption will be treated on an equal basis with other siblings.
4. Students with special abilities in Music
If application is made under this criterion the Governors will be looking for evidence of exceptional ability in Music that can be nurtured by the school. Evidence will be required that the child has achieved at least grade three in music and is now working at grade four or above. The school may select up to 15% of pupils based on this criterion.
5. Parent(s) with a strong church commitment to other
churches which are affiliated to or represented at Churches Together in England (A church affiliation form completed by the minister is essential for this criterion to be considered)
6. Parent(s) who attend church occasionally (A church affiliation form completed by the minister is essential for this criterion to be considered)
7. Special cases
Applications under this criterion will be considered if children have special educational, medical or social reasons for gaining a place at the school which can be supported by written evidence from a doctor or social worker. Members of other religious faiths may also apply under this criterion provided they have a letter of support from their local religious leader. For children who have a formal statement of SEN please see the next section.
8. Other Applications
Deciding Factor: In the event of over subscription in any of the categories, places will be awarded according to the proximity of the pupil's home to the school measured by the shortest distance. This is to be a straight line to the Founder's stone from the nearest boundary point of the pupil's home. (Governors use the LA to operate the GPS mapping system to establish accurate distances)
CHILDREN WITH A STATEMENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEED
The law requires Governors to admit pupils with a statement of special educational need where the Local Education Authority has specifically named Waddesdon CE School on the statement as the most appropriate placement. These applications will usually be agreed in advance of the main allocation process. Where they are a late application to the school Governors can be required to admit even if the admission number has been reached.DETERMINING RESIDENCE
Parents seeking admission for their children are asked to verify that the address they are giving is their child’s permanent residence at the time of completing the application form, will still be at the start of the term in which the child is to be admitted and is also the address at which parents are living. They will also be required to provide supporting proof of residence to the Local Authority.Parents who anticipate moving to an address within the catchment area are asked to provide clear written proof that they will be fully resident by the beginning of the term in which the child will be admitted. They will specifically be asked to provide evidence either of:
confirmation that the house purchase is legally binding (i.e. that they have already exchanged contracts and have established a firm date when they will move into the property) OR
have taken out a lease agreement of at least 12 months on a property in which they and their family will be fully resident and which is appropriate to their family’s needs. Such agreement must also have a minimum of 6 months still to run by the start of the term in which the child will be admitted.
In reaching a decision about residence Governors will not normally expect either:
Families to retain a second residence elsewhere which is their main residence (If the family has more than one residence Governors reserve the right to make enquiries and seek additional documentation to confirm which address is the main family residence)
Only part of the family to move unless as part of a divorce or permanent separation arrangements in which Governors will reserve the right to make enquiries and see additional documentation to verify this
Children to move to a residence other than with their parent/carer unless as part of fostering or care arrangements
CHURCH COMMITMENT
Parents making application under criteria 2, 5, or 6 will need to be aware that church commitment will be measured on the basis of church attendance. In order for Governors to make an assessment of which of these criteria might be satisfied, applicants are asked to hand the special form provided with the application form directly to their minister. Parents should pass the form to their minister with a reply paid envelope, addressed to the school, so that s/he can return it directly.The form requires the minister to sign a clear statement indicating whether or not the applicant fulfils strong church commitment or occasional church commitment. In order to fulfil the category of strong church commitment church attendance is measured on the basis of attending church twice a month for a MINIMUM of the last 3 years. To fulfil the occasional church commitment category attendance is measured over the last 18 months on the basis of 8 times a year. The attendance measured is that of at least one parent.
MULTIPLE BIRTHS
Where an application is being submitted for a child who has a sibling (or siblings) in the same year group it will be the policy of the Governing Body not to offer a place to one child without offering the sibling (s) of the same age group at the same time. In these circumstances Governors may determine to exceed the number of places temporarily on the understanding that this will not create a new admission number and as soon as children leave they will revert to the published admission number.DEFINITION OF A PARENT
This is defined in law (the Education Act 1996) as either:Both natural parents provided they were married to each other at the time of the birth or have married each other since
Any person who has parental responsibility for the child or young person
Any person who has care of the child or young person
CRITERIA TO APPLY TO ALL YEAR GROUPS
The criteria outlined in this policy will apply to all year groups, save for the sixth form where different arrangements apply (see separate information packs for entry to sixth form).WAITING LISTS
Unsuccessful applicants for entry to Year 7 will be placed on a waiting list which will be held in order of the stated admissions criteria. Late applications will be added to this waiting list dependent on the criteria they fulfil. This means that positions on the list may change over time.The past arrangements whereby waiting lists were closed at the end of the second week of term will cease. Governors will maintain active waiting lists for all year groups.
ALLOCATION OF PLACES IN PREVIOUS YEARS
By allocation day in 2007, Governors had received 359 applications for entry into Year 7 for September 2007. Governors awarded places to 140 applicants who were living in the catchment area, had strong Church of England commitment, and those who fulfilled the sibling criterion. They were also able to offer one place to a child fulfilling the music criterion.
In 2006 Governors received 303 applications for 140 places and were able to accommodate requests for children fulfilling criteria 1-5 and some of those within criteria 6. This was the first time for many years that Governors have been able to offer places to applicants below criterion 3.
APPLICATIONS FOR ENTRY TO OTHER YEAR GROUPS
Applications received for entry into other year groups will be considered on the basis of any available vacancies and the criterion into which they fall.RIGHT OF APPEAL
Where a child has been refused a place at the school, parents will be advised of their right to appeal against the decision of the Governing Body to an Independent Appeal Panel convened by Oxford Diocese.EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
In dealing with applications for admission Governors will have full regard to equal opportunities legislation.NAMED CONTACT
All initial enquiries about admission should be made to Mrs Daniell in the school office at Waddesdon (01296-651382). Where enquiries are of a more complex nature, arrangements will be made for the Clerk to Governors, Norma Knight, to make contact with the parent.
