Summary of consultation on admission arrangements for   community and voluntary controlled schools 2021-2022

Period of consultation: 7 October 2019 to 24 November 2019

This consultation invites you to give your views about the proposed admission arrangements for community and voluntary controlled schools in Nottinghamshire for 2021-2022.    

Background information

Admission authorities

There are different types of schools in Nottinghamshire.  The County Council is the admission authority for community and voluntary controlled schools.  This means that we are responsible for the admission arrangements for these schools.

Other types of schools - academies, foundation, free, studio, trust and voluntary aided schools are own admission authorities.  These schools are responsible for their own admission arrangements and have to run their own consultation.  You would need to visit individual school websites for details.

Admission arrangements including oversubscription criteria

All schools must have admission arrangements that clearly set out how children will be admitted, including information about what happens if there are more applications than places available (oversubscription criteria). 

All admission authorities must include the oversubscription criteria in their arrangements.  The criteria must be reasonable, clear, objective, procedurally fair, and comply with all relevant legislation, including equalities legislation.

It is for admission authorities to decide which criteria are most suitable for the school according to the local circumstances.    

Nottinghamshire community and voluntary controlled schools have defined catchment areas and children living in these areas have higher priority for places than children outside of catchment.   This supports parents who wish their children to attend a local publicly funded school.  Details of catchment areas are available at www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/education/school-admissions/schoolcatchment-areas

This does not prevent parents who live outside the catchment area of a school, or even outside Nottinghamshire, from expressing a preference for that school.  

Children living in the catchment area with a brother or sister (sibling) attending the school are given priority over other children living inside the catchment area.  Children living outside the catchment area with a brother or sister attending the school are given priority over all other children living outside the catchment area.

What is included in the consultation?

Nottinghamshire County Council is consulting on admission arrangements 2021-2022 for community and voluntary controlled schools within Nottinghamshire.  

These arrangements are relevant for children who will be starting primary school, moving to junior school, moving to secondary school and children transferring school during the school year 20212022.

You will find the following in the full consultation document available at www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/admissionsconsultation

Summary of proposed changes to admission arrangements for 2021-2022 include:

• Relevant areas (section 1.1)
   
  This is the area which the admission authority for the school must consult all other prescribed schools within that area about any proposed changes to its admission arrangements.  The area is determined by the local authority and reviewed every two years.
   
  Nottinghamshire County Council (NCC) historically established 7 relevant areas which were coterminous with the 7 district council areas.  
   
  It is proposed to extend relevant areas for those schools that have a catchment area or linked schools that fall in other district areas or neighbouring local authority areas.  This includes those schools giving priority for children living in a parish where the parish is in more than one administrative district area or neighbouring local authority area.
   
• Oversubscription criteria – All Hallows CofE Primary School, Gedling (section 1.4C)
   
  A change is proposed to the criteria for this school, table 1.4C indicates the admission arrangements determined for 2020-2021 and those proposed changes for 2021-2022.  The change gives higher priority to children living in the catchment who have a brother or sister attending the school (from criterion 3 to criterion 2) and to include priority for children who live in catchment who regularly worship at other churches or who have regular involvement with another faith.  A further criterion has been included to give priority to children living in the catchment area.  For children living outside the catchment area, evidence of regular involvement with the church has been removed from the criterion and priority will be given to those children living closest to the school by direct distance.
   
• Proposed admission number (PAN): the number of places that can be allocated in the year group (section 2)
   
  For some community and voluntary controlled schools there is a proposal to change the PAN.  This is the number of places that must be offered in each relevant age group.  Changes are proposed in the following schools for 2021-2022:
  o Bassetlaw area - Clarborough Primary School – increase from 20 to 30 o Bassetlaw area – St Augustine’s School – reduce from 75 to 60 o Mansfield area – King Edward Primary and Nursery School – reduce from 90 to 60 o Newark area – Caunton Dean Hole CofE Primary School – reduce from 10 to 8 
   
               
• Coordination of admission of pupils to primary and secondary schools in Nottinghamshire (section 3)
   
  Coordination means that local authorities exchange information and work together to ensure that, as far as possible, every parent of a child living in a local authority area who has applied for a publicly funded school or academy is sent one, and only one, offer of a school place. 
   
  Nottinghamshire County Council is proposing a change to the coordinated schemes to ensure known Nottinghamshire children at key transfer points (infant to junior transfer and primary to secondary transfer) will have an allocated school place by September.
   
  This means that where no application has been received for known children living in
  Nottinghamshire and no educational provision has been identified elsewhere for a child on 31 August 2021, NCC will identify the next closest Nottinghamshire school to the child’s home address with an available school place and send an offer of a school place.
   
  There are minor changes to the dates within the primary and secondary coordinated schemes (sections 3.10 and 3.11).
   
   
  • In-year applications timeline (section 4)
   
  Nottinghamshire County Council has an in-year coordinated scheme for all community and voluntary controlled schools.  Some own admission authorities have also joined that scheme.  
   
  Nottinghamshire County Council currently processes in-year applications within 20 school days.  If it is not possible to identify a school place, the application is then referred to Fair Access.  
   
  It is proposed to reduce the timeline for processing in-year applications from 20 school days to 10 working days.  This will support NCC to reduce the time it takes to secure a school place inyear and will ensure there is limited delay for children moving into or within the county who require a school place.  
   
   
  Who do we consult with?
   
  We will be seeking the views of the following groups: 
   

• parents of children between the ages of two and eighteen
• other people in the area who may have an interest in the proposed admission arrangements
• all other admission authorities within the relevant area 
• all community and voluntary controlled schools in Nottinghamshire
• chairs of governing bodies of Nottinghamshire schools 
• diocesan representatives (relevant religious authorities)
• admission authorities in neighbouring local authority areas • all registered early years providers within Nottinghamshire
   
   
   
             
  You can give your views on the consultation between 7 October 2019 and 24 November 2019
   
  Full details of the proposed admission arrangements for 2021-2022 are available at www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/admissionsconsultation
    
  Anyone can comment on the arrangements.  If you wish to respond, you can do this up to 24 November 2019 by:
   
• completing the online response form on the public website www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/admissionsconsultation
• emailing admissionsconsultations@nottscc.gov.uk
• writing to School Admissions Consultation, Support to Schools Service, Meadow House, Littleworth, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire NG18 2TA.
   
   
  The School Admissions Code 2014 (1.45) states that the full proposed admission arrangements must be available on the website for the duration of the consultation period.  
   
  What happens after the consultation closes?  
   
   
  All responses received by 24 November 2019 will be considered.  Elected members (County Councillors) make a decision on behalf of Nottinghamshire taking into account a range of information, including the consultation responses.  All admission authorities have to agree the admission arrangements that are most suitable according to the local circumstances.  
   
  Determining admission arrangements 2021-2022
  Admission arrangements for community and voluntary controlled schools must be agreed
  (determined) by Nottinghamshire County Council by 28 February 2020 even if there have been no changes from previous years.
   
   
  Publication of determined arrangements 2021-2022
  Once Nottinghamshire County Council has determined their admission arrangements, they will be available on the public website for the whole offer year (the academic year in which offers for places are made).  Local authorities must publish on their website by 15 March 2020.
   

https://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/education/school-admissions/admissions-consultation-2021-22