Secondary school admissions

An 'In Year Transfer' application is the process which a parent or legal guardian must complete to secure a school place other than at the normal point of admission into reception or year 7. In Year Transfers are most common for families who move house to a new area or can no longer easily access their current school. If you are considering moving your child for any other reason, please read our Changing schools - advice to parents before completing the application for In Year Transfer.

The application process

Herefordshire local authority is the admissions authority for all community and voluntary controlled schools in the county and coordinates their admissions. All other schools including voluntary aided, academies, free and trust schools are their own admissions authorities (AA) but some academies use Herefordshire Council school admissions to coordinate their in year transfer applications under a service level agreement. You can find details of what type of school you are applying to at Get Information about Schools - GOV.UK.

Check whether Herefordshire Council school admissions team coordinates the admissions of the school you are applying for

Which school should I apply for?

You may apply to any school, although it is common for parents to apply to a nearby school or the catchment school because this is where children from the local community most commonly attend.

Please ensure you have read the information on school transport.

It is a good idea to arrange to visit a school you may be interested in, as:

• You will meet with staff, and sometimes pupils too
• You may be able to have a tour of the school
• It will allow you to make comparisons between schools where you are considering several schools
• Many schools act as their own Admission Authorities, so visiting can also 'fast-track' your application and prevent any delay in securing a place once you have moved

You can find the nearest and catchment primary school to a chosen location using Find a school.

The Department for Education Get Information about Schools - GOV.UK allows you to search for information about each of the publicly funded schools in Herefordshire.

You can find:

• School contact details
• OFSTED information
• Physical accessibility ratings
• Website details for the school

The In Year Transfer application form

Please read the guidance notes attached to the form. Please submit your form to schooladmissions@herefordshire.gov.uk for the School Admissions team to process.

The back page of the application has a section for your current school to complete. This applies to state-funded schools only, and not private schools or non-UK schools. The information provided on the form will help the school to prepare for your child's admission should a place be offered.

Download application form for In Year Transfer

Children with an Education Health and Care Plan

Children with an Education Health and Care Plan commonly require additional support at school. Schools will require support from the Local Authority's SEND team to accommodate any additional needs that a child may have. Please contact the SEND team if your child has an EHCP and you wish them to move school in year. See the School age children with special educational needs and disabilities section.

Children who are looked after

Applications for Children looked after (CLA) should be made by the child's social worker using a specific form, please contact Herefordshire school admissions for details

Applications for children in Years 10 and 11

If your child has already started studying courses in Year 10 or 11 there may be issues over the availability of the course subjects at any school that you may be interested in transferring to. Because there are a number of exam boards to which schools can subscribe the exam options that your child currently studies may not be available. Consequently it is very important that parents discuss with the school what curriculum can be offered so that a transfer does not adversely affect your child's chances of a successful outcome for their exam results.

What happens once I submit my application?

The success of your application will largely be determined by the ability of the school to accommodate an additional child in the appropriate year group. Schools are required to aim to notify parents of the outcome of their application in writing within 10 school days, but parents must be notified in writing within 15 school days. If refused a place you will be informed of your right to appeal this decision. The School Admissions office can provide you with guidance on the appeals process, and can offer advice about alternative schools that may be able to accommodate you.

Please contact us on:

• Telephone: 01432 260927
• Email: schooladmissions@herefordshire.gov.uk

Why might my application be refused?

School Admissions are governed by the School Admissions Code, the code states (section 1.4) that Admission authorities may admit above their published admission number (PAN) through in-year admissions. The PAN only applies to the relevant age group. This means that admission authorities may not refuse admission to other age groups on the grounds that they have already reached their PAN. They may, however, refuse admission where the admission of another child would prejudice the provision of efficient education or efficient use of resources.

However the Admissions Code states that no more than 30 children can be accommodated in Reception, Year 1 or Year 2 class per qualified class teacher. Where a school has reached their prescribed limit you may meet with a refusal. In rural areas schools can have a PAN of less than 30. In these instances it is important to understand that the school's classes are often made up of two or more year groups, so for instance a school with a PAN of 10 may organise their classes so that Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are accommodated in the same class.

Where a school receives multiple in-year admissions and do not have sufficient places for every child who has applied for one, they must allocate places on the basis of the oversubscription criteria in their determined admission arrangements. For details of the over subscription criteria please refer to the admissions section of the schools website you are applying for.

Appeal a refusal of a school place

If your child has been refused a place at your requested school, you can appeal the decision.

Download and complete appeal refusal of a school place form

It is very important that a fair and independent process is in place for parents to appeal against decisions made by an admissions authority.

Parents can ask for their child to be admitted to any school in any school term. For example if a family has recently moved home. However, only one appeal per child for a particular school is allowed in each school year.

The appeal process we use follows strict national guidance. An appeal is given if we are unable to offer your child the requested school.

Decision by the Governors of a voluntary aided, foundation school or academy

If you want to appeal against a decision by the Governors of a voluntary aided, foundation school or academy you will need to contact the school direct to see if they are organising their own appeals. We sometimes to do their appeals.

For applications for in-year admissions, appeals must be heard within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged. School appeals are unlikely to be heard through the summer holidays.

You can find out more about appeals at the GOV.UK website. The ACE Education website also has a useful document about appealing for a school.place.

GOV.UK guidance - Advice for parents and guardians on school admission appeals

In Year Fair Access

All local authorities are required to have an In Year Fair Access Protocol. The protocol is designed to ensure that no school is asked to accommodate an unreasonable number of challenging pupils, and to ensure that there is not an unreasonable delay in placing pupils that are deemed to be challenging. On rare occasions applications can be referred to the In Year Fair Access Panel whose task it is to make decisions on individual applications. You will be notified in writing if this happens, and an officer from the School Admissions team will guide you through the process.

Foreign national children seeking a state school place

The government provides guidance on school applications for foreign national children and children resident outside England. This includes information about the rights of foreign nationals to access schools in England, and the process for doing so.