Admission to voluntary controlled schools
The one voluntary controlled school in the Bridgend County Borough is Pen y Fai Church in Wales Primary School, which is financed by the local authority. The admissions criteria are consistent with that of the local authority, as detailed in this policy, and with the Trust Deed of the school. Appeal arrangements are managed by the local authority and are consistent with the provision of the Trust Deed.
Admission to voluntary aided schools
There are five voluntary aided schools in the Bridgend County Borough, which are financed largely by the local authority. These are:
The governing body of each voluntary aided school is the admission authority with responsibility for all admission arrangements. Parents/carers who wish to seek admission/s to these schools will need to contact the school/s directly for further information.
Admissions to sixth forms
The local authority is the admitting authority for post-16 admissions to sixth forms in the community schools within the Bridgend County Borough. However, the individual schools administer the admission arrangements on behalf of the local authority. Therefore, applications in this category should be made directly to the school.
While the local authority has a policy of open access to schools’ sixth forms, the individual schools are responsible for determining and issuing entry criteria on sixth-form admissions.
Admission arrangements for other post-16 further education institutions are determined by those institutions and applications should be made directly to the institution/s concerned.
Admissions to special schools
The two special schools in the Bridgend County Borough are regional centres with pupils admitted from neighbouring local authorities. Admissions to these schools are not included within, or subject to the provisions of this policy.
Requests for admission outside of the normal age group
Occasionally, a parent/carer or school may seek a place outside of the chronological age group for a child who they consider to be gifted/talented or experiencing problems, or who has missed part of a school year, for example, due to ill health.
The local authority will consider each request carefully and make decisions on the basis of the circumstances of each case. The local authority will consider what is most beneficial for the child and, in every case, will consider information from the parents/carers, the school, an educational psychologist and any other appropriate parties, to inform its decision.
If the local authority decides that an out-of-year group application is appropriate, but that application is refused due to no places being available in the requested year group at the school, the parents/carers have a statutory right of appeal. However, there is no right of appeal if the local authority has offered a place but not in the requested year group (ie where the place offered is in the correct year group for the child’s chronological age).
If the local authority decides that an out-of-year group application is appropriate and the application is for a part-time nursery place in the following January or April, or a full-time nursery, reception, junior school Year 3 or secondary school Year 7 place from the following September, the application will be subject to, and considered in accordance with, the conditions and criteria applicable to those admissions rounds.
Submission of applications
The requirement to apply for a school place
For both admissions rounds and in-year admissions/transfers, a school admissio application must be completed by a parent/carer.
A separate application is required for each child.
A child will not be permitted to start at a school until an application has been received and processed by the local authority, and a school place has been offered by the local authority.
The applicant
In respect of applications for nursery children and children of statutory school-age, the
application must be made by a ‘parent’ of the child, as defined by Section 576 of the
Education Act 1996. This states that a ‘parent’, in relation to a child or young person,
includes any person who is not a biological parent but who has parental responsibility, or
who has care of the child.
Therefore, for the purposes of education law, a ‘parent’ is deemed to include:
How to apply
Applications can be completed online through sign up to ‘My Account’ on the Bridgend County Borough Council website.
Any parents/carers who do not have access to their own computer/laptop or smart phone, may use the computers available within the libraries in the county borough to sign up to My Account and complete a school admission application. A parent/carer who remains unable to create a My Account and access the relevant online school admission application, may contact the local authority and request a hardcopy school admission application.
If parents/carers permit completion and submission of a school admission application for their child through the My Account of a third party, the My Account holder will be deemed to be submitting the application on behalf of, and with the full authority of, the parents/carers of the child. In these circumstances, the parents/carers will be considered as accepting responsibility for the consequence of any errors or deficiencies in the completion of the application and/or the submission of the application.
Twitter