Admissions Policy
ADMISSIONS POLICY
Academic Year
Parents wishing to apply for a place within The Academy of Cuxton Schools will need to comply with Medway Council’s procedures for application.
Over Subscription Criteria for The Academy of Cuxton Schools
Before the application of oversubscription criteria, children with a statement of special educational need or Education, Health and Care Plan which names the school will be admitted. As a result of this, the published admissions number will be reduced accordingly.
The published admission number for Cuxton Infant School is 60.
The published admission number for Cuxton Junior School is 60.
If the number of preferences for either school is more than the number of spaces available, places will be allocated in the following priority order:
- Children in public care/looked after children and previously looked after children - (see note 1)
- Attendance at the paired infant school – Cuxton Infant School (see note 2)
- Sibling (a brother or sister attending Cuxton Infant School or Cuxton Junior School at the time of application and who will still be attending in September 2019) – (see note 3)
- Medical, health and special access reasons – (see note 4)
- Children of teaching staff – (see note 5)
- Nearness of children’s home.
Please note for children of multiple birth
In the event of the school being oversubscribed where the parent/carer for the final qualifying place(s) available is the parent/carer of twins, triplets or other multiple births, the School will give multiple birth applications a higher priority for place than other applications with the exception of children in public care. Parents/carers/carers must tick the appropriate box on the application to indicate the children are of multiple births.
Tiebreaker
In the unlikely event that two or more children in all other ways have equal eligibility for the last available place at the school, the names will be issued a number and drawn randomly to decide which child should be given the place.
Definitions and Notes
1. Looked after children are children who are (i) in the care of a local authority, or (ii) being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social services functions (as defined in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989) at the time of making the application for a school.
Previously looked after children are children who were looked after, but ceased to be so because they were adopted (under the terms of the Adoption and Children Act 2002, Section 46), or became subject to a residence order or special guardianship order (under the terms of the Children Act 1989, Section 8 and Section 14A).
Please note that the Council may ask for a copy of the adoption/residence order and proof of the Looked after child status to validate this criterion.
2. This criterion applies to applications for Year 3 in Cuxton Junior School. Where admission links (pairing) have been established between the infant and junior school concerned, children attending Cuxton Infant School are given a higher priority for admission to Cuxton Junior School.
3. We give priority to children who have a sibling at the named school. Sibling means children who live as brother/sister in the same house and includes natural siblings, adopted siblings, foster siblings and step siblings. Extended family, for example cousins, living in the same house do not qualify as siblings.
The sibling link also applies across 'paired' schools. This means if parents/carers are applying for Year R in the Cuxton Infant school and have an older sibling in Cuxton Junior School, the sibling link will be considered. Also, if the parent is applying for Year 3 in Cuxton Junior School and has a younger sibling in Cuxton Infant School the sibling link will apply.
Please note that if the older sibling is in Year 6 at the time of application, the link cannot be considered, as they will not be in the school when the younger child would start in September.
4. Medical, health and special access reasons will be applied in accordance with the school’s legal obligations, in particular those under the Equality Act 2010, as follows:
- For children whose mental or physical impairment means that they have a demonstrable and significant need to attend a particular school, or
- For children whose parent/carers mental or physical impairment means that they have a demonstrable and significant need for their child to attend a particular school.
Such claims must be clearly identified on the application and need to be supported by written evidence from a suitably qualified medical or other practitioner who can demonstrate a specific connection between the needs of the child or parent/carer and the particular school. All evidence must be sent to the Student Service Team by the closing date for applications who will seek advice from the school concerning admissibility.
5. A child can be considered under this criterion where a member of teaching staff has been employed at the school requested for two or more years at the time the application is made.
6. The distance calculated is the shortest available walking route between the child’s home andschool using roads and footpaths known to the mapping layer used by the Student Services Admissions Team within the Geographical Information Software (GIS).
The start point
The centre point of the nearest road or footpath known to the GIS to the seed point of the child’s home. (The seed point is a grid reference for the property taken from Ordnance Survey mapping data). This may not always be the postal address road, in rare Surrounding Children with Excellence circumstances where an alternative road or footpath is actually nearer to the seed point of the property this will be used.
The end point
A pre-defined centre point of the road adjacent the school site or a pre-defined centre point within the school site. The same end point is used for all distance calculations to the
school concerned.
The distance
The distance calculated is the shortest available walking route known to the Medway GIS using the centre point of streets and other available walking routes.
The Medway GIS may not know all footpaths that are in existence and certain new roads may not be known. Where a footpath or new road is not known to the GIS an alternative route will be used. Where a child’s home is situated on a new road the distance calculation will begin from the nearest available known road plotted in the GIS. New developments may be subject to this. In certain cases it may not be possible to calculate a distance where the entire route is deemed as a walking route. In these circumstances the distance calculated is used purely to prioritise an application for admission. There is no expectation that the walk should be taken.
After a place has been allocated but prior to the taking up of that place a number of checks will be undertaken that will include an identity check and residence check. Where Governors are satisfied that false or misleading information has been given to gain admission the offer of a place will be withdrawn.
In Year Admissions
- Parents can apply for a casual admission at any time during the school year.
- Contact the school office and request a casual admission form.
- Return the form to the office and a meeting will be set up with the head teacher or deputy head teacher.
- If no places are available you will be made aware of the appeals procedure.
Casual Admissions when transferring schools without moving home
If a parent wishes to transfer their child from another school without moving home, the School will contact the child’s current school to ascertain the situation so that our school is able to offer the correct support should the child be offered a place. It is also expected that the parent/carer of the child, along with the child themselves when appropriate, visit our school before any place will be offered.
APPEALS
Parents/carers have the right to appeal if a place is not offered to their child. Appeals will be handled in line with the School Admissions Appeals Code by an independent panel. Appeals should be made in writing to the school.