Norton St Nicholas C of E (VA) Primary and Nursery School
Guided by God, we live, learn and love.
Admissions for the next academic year - September 2024 to August 2025
ADMISSIONS POLICY
The Governors of the school are responsible in law for the admission of pupils. The Local Authority (LA), Hertfordshire County Council, operates an agreed co-ordinated admissions scheme in line with government legislation. The LA will coordinate the process on behalf of the school according to the scheme published each year. The governing body, as the admission authority, will allocate the available places in line with this policy. However, offers will be made by the home LA.
There are two types of admissions to our school:
Admissions to the Reception Class 2024-25
The closing date for admission application forms to be received by the home Local Authority is Monday 15th January. Information on completing the ‘on line’ application and notification dates of admission decisions are published in the LA admissions literature which is also available from their website www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/admissions.
A Supplementary Information Form (SIF) must be returned to the school office by Monday 15th January if applying under categories 2 or 4 (see below for oversubscription criteria).
It is essential that parents follow exactly the timescale stipulated on the form as dates vary slightly from year to year.
Please note:
- Attendance at our nursery does not guarantee a place in reception and that all parents must apply in the normal way for a school place if they want their child to transfer to the reception class.
The admission arrangements for our Nursery and Reception classes are different. The admission arrangements detailed in this document do not apply for those being admitted into any nursery or pre-school provision. The school’s nursery admission arrangements are outlined on the school website.
If you have more than one child going through the application process at the same time, you must make a separate application for each of them.
There are 30 places available in our reception class (Admission Number 30).
If a twin/multiple birth child is offered a place at the school and an application has also been received for the other twin/multiple birth child, the other twin/multiple birth child will also be offered a place, even if that means exceeding the PAN
In year admissions during the school year 2024-25
In year admissions are for applications to join the school at any point other than the beginning of reception.
The school is part of In Year Co-ordination; therefore please refer to the HCC website at www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/admissions where parents will find all the necessary information and the online application.
Online applications can be accessed via www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/admissions or from the Customer Service Centre, 0300 123 4043. Parents should return the application form direct to the County Council.
The county council will write to you with the outcome of your In Year application.
Please note:
- If you have more than one child going through the application process at the same time, you must make a separate application for each of them.
- The school participates in the county council’s Fair Access protocol and children will be admitted under the Fair Access Protocol before children on the Continuing Interest list, and also above the PAN if necessary.
The admissions process
All applications must be made on the home LA online application (www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/admissions)
Parents/carers are requested to complete our Supplementary Information Form (SIF) if they are applying under categories 2 or 4 and return it to the school office. If a SIF is not completed the Governing Body will apply their admission arrangements using the information submitted on the LA online application only, which may result in your application being given a lower priority.
In the event of over-subscription, the Governors have adopted the following admissions policy. Where there are more applications than places, children will be allocated places according to the following policy and priority order:
Section 324 of the Education Act 1996 requires the governing bodies of all maintained schools to admit children with an EHC (Education, Health and Care) Plan that names the school. The school does not have any specific units or facilities for pupils with physical disabilities. As far as possible the school will ensure that pupils with disabilities have access to the same opportunities as other pupils.
Oversubscription criteria
Rule 1: Children looked after and children who were previously looked after, including those who appear (to the admission authority) to have been in state care outside of England, and ceased to be in state care as a result of being adopted or became subject to a child arrangement order or a special guardianship order.
Rule 2a: Children whose parents/guardians have attended public services at the churches of St. Nicholas or St. George’s in the parish of Norton on average at least twice a month in each of the two calendar years prior to the date of application. Written confirmation is required from the parish priest/minister.
Rule 2b: Children whose parents / guardians have moved into the Parish of Norton (see notes) within the two years prior to application, and now attend public services at the churches of St. Nicholas or St. George’s in the parish of Norton and previously attended public services at another church belonging to Churches Together in England, the Evangelical Alliance or the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC). This must be for a total of at least twice a month in each of the two calendar years prior to the date of application. Written confirmation is required from the parish priests/ministers.
Rule 3: Children with a sibling (see definitions) attending the school at the time of application.
Rule 4: Children whose parents / guardians permanently live in the Parish of Norton (see notes) and who at the time of application have attended public worship on average at least twice a month in each of the two calendar years prior to the date of application at a church belonging to Churches Together in England, the Evangelical Alliance or the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC). Written confirmation is required from the parish priest/minister.
Rule 5: Children of staff (see definitions) who have been employed for a minimum of two years’ continuous service at the time of application and who are the biological or adoptive parent, or who have other legal responsibility for that child, or who have been cohabiting with the parent of the child throughout the two year qualifying period. The child must reside at the same permanent address of the staff member at the time of application. Clarification evidence will be requested.
Rule 6: Those children whose home is closest to the school as measured using the computerised, ‘straight line’, mapping system; Governors obtain all the measurements from Hertfordshire County Council.
In the event that during the period specified for attendance at worship the church has been closed for public worship and has not provided alternative premises for that worship, the requirements of these admissions arrangements in relation to attendance will only apply to the period when the church or alternative premises have been available for public worship.
Distances are measured using a computerised mapping system to two decimal places. The measurement is taken from the AddressBase Premium address point of your child’s house to the address point of the school. AddressBase Premium details a nationally recognised method of identifying the location of schools and individual residences.
These rules are applied in the order they are printed above. Where the application of the above criteria results in a situation where there are more children with an equal right to admission to the school than the number of available places, a tie break will be used by applying the subsequent rules to those children.
When there is a need for a tie break where two different addresses are the same distance from a school, in the case of a block of flats for example, the lower door number will be deemed nearest as logically this will be on the ground floor and therefore closer. If there are two identical addresses of separate applicants, the tie break will be random. Every child entered onto the HCC admissions database has an individual random number assigned, between 1 and 1 million, against each preference school. When there is a need for a final tie break the random number is used to allocate the place, with the lowest number given priority.
Definitions Looked after children – as defined by LA A “child looked after” is a child who is:
All children adopted from care who are of compulsory school age are eligible for admission under rule 1. Children in the process of being placed for adoption are classified by law as children looked after providing there is a Placement Order and the application would be prioritised under Rule 1. Child Arrangements Order - under the provisions of the Children and Families Act 2014, these settle the arrangements to be made as to the person with whom the child is to live. Special guardianship order – under 14A of The Children Act 1989, an order appointing one or more individuals to be a child’s special guardian or guardians Children who were not “looked after” immediately before being adopted, or made the subject of a child arrangement order or special guardianship order, will not be prioritised under rule 1. Children previously looked after abroad and subsequently adopted will be prioritised under Rule 1 if the child’s previously looked after status and adoption is confirmed by Hertfordshire’s “Virtual School”. The child’s previously looked after status will be decided in accordance with the definition outlined in The Children & Social Work Act 2017:
A child is in “state care” if he or she is in the care of, or accommodated by –
Special guardianship This is an order made by the court that places a child or a young person to live with someone permanently and gives legal status for non-parents who are or wish to care for that child or young person in a long term secure placement. The Adoption and Children Act 2002 introduced special guardianship and special guardianship orders. Siblings A sibling is defined as: the sister or brother, half brother or sister, adopted brother or sister, child of the parent/carer or partner, or children looked after or previously looked after*. In every case the sibling must be living permanently** in a placement within the home as part of the family household from Monday to Friday at the time of this application. A sibling must be on the school roll of the named school at the time of application. If a place is obtained for an older child using fraudulent information, there will be no sibling connection available to subsequent children from that family. *Children previously looked after are those children adopted or with a special guardianship order or child arrangements order. This definition was amended following a determination by the OSA in August 2014. **A sibling link will not be recognised for children living temporarily in the same house, for example a child who usually lives with one parent but has temporarily moved or a looked after child in a respite placement or very short term or bridging foster placement.
Home address The address provided on the application form must be the child’s current permanent address at the time of application. • “At the time of application” means the closing date for applications • “Permanent” means that the child has lived at that address for at least a year Where a family has not lived at an address for a year at the time of application, they must be able to demonstrate that they own the property or have a tenancy agreement for a minimum of 12 months and the child must be resident in the property at the time of application. If, because of the nature of the agreement, it is not possible to provide a 12-month tenancy agreement, alternative proof of address will be requested and verified as necessary with Hertfordshire County Council’s Shared Antifraud Service. It is for the Governing Body (as the admission authority) to determine the address to be used for admission purposes. The application can only be processed using one address. If a child lives at more than one address (for example due to a separation) the address used will be the one where the child lives for the majority of the time. If a child lives at two address equally, parents/carers should make a single joint application naming one address. If a child’s permanent residence is disputed, parents/carers should provide court documentation to evidence the address that should be used for admission allocation purposes. If two applications are received, with different addresses, neither will be processed until the address issue is reconciled. Applications made as part of the main Reception admissions round [and in-year admission applications] are processed by Hertfordshire County Council (“HCC”) on behalf of the Governing Body, in accordance with HCC’s published coordinated admission scheme[s]. If HCC receives two different applications for the same child from the same address e.g. containing different preferences, parents/carers will be invited to submit a joint application or provide court documentation to evidence the preferences that should be used for the admission process. Until the preference issue is reconciled, neither application will be processed. For the main Reception admission round, if the initial differing applications (one or both) were received by HCC “on-time”, an amended joint application will also be considered “on-time” if received before 1st February 2024 (the late deadline). If the amended joint application is received after 1st February 2024, it will be treated as “late”
Parish of Norton The Parish of Norton can be confirmed using the online mapping tool offered by the Church of England at www.achurchnearyou.com
Staff Anyone permanently employed by the school where the school holds the contract. |
Further guidance notes
In the event that during the period specified for attendance at worship the church has been closed for public worship and has not provided alternative premises for that worship, the requirements of these admissions arrangements in relation to attendance will only apply to the period when the church or alternative premises have been available for public worship.
In the case of overseas worship
In cases where a family has lived and worshipped overseas and subsequently lived in the parish of Norton less than three years prior to application, the Governors will seek to verify that the overseas church subscribes to the doctrine of the Holy Trinity and will waive the time requirement of frequent worship taking a reasonable view of church attendance based on the evidence available.
Age of Admission and Deferral of Places
The school’s policy is that children born on and between 1 September 2019 and 31 August 2020* would normally commence primary school in Reception in the academic year beginning in September 2024, with the curriculum differentiated as necessary to meet the needs of individual children
All children of this age are entitled to a full-time place. Parents can defer the date their child is admitted to school until later in the same academic year or until the term in which the child reaches compulsory school age. Summer born children are only able to “defer” entry to Reception class until the beginning of the final term of the school year for which the offer was made.
Where parents wish, children can attend part-time until they reach compulsory school age. Any parents wishing to take up a part-time place or deferred entry should contact the school to discuss their child’s requirements. Such decisions must always be made in the best interests of the child.
*Summer born children (1st April – 31st August) – Entry to Reception
Legally, a child does not have to start school until the start of the term following their fifth birthday. Children born between 1st April 2020 and 31 August 2020 are categorised as ‘summer born’. If parents/carers do not believe that their child is ready to join Reception in 2024 they should contact the school.
If parents wish to delay their application for a Reception place, in the first instance they should discuss their situation with the Headteacher. Following this discussion, parents should write to the Governing Body detailing their request and reasons for stated request, including relevant supporting evidence. The Governing Body will meet to discuss the individual needs of every case. The school’s governing body, as the relevant admission authority, will decide whether the application will be accepted on the basis of the information submitted. The governors’ decision will be based upon the circumstances of each case and must always be made in the best interests of the child. Decisions will be communicated to parents in writing directly from the Chair of Governors. Parents wishing to make such a request are advised to do so prior to application.
If accepted, a new application must be made as part of the September 2025 admissions round. Any delayed applications will be processed in exactly the same way as all other reception applications received at that time; there is no guarantee that a place will be offered at a child’s preferred school.
If the application is not accepted, there is no right of appeal.
Children Out of Year Group
The school’s policy is for children to be educated within their correct chronological year group, with the curriculum differentiated as necessary to meet the needs of individual children. This is in line with DfE guidance* which states that “in general, children should be educated in their normal age group”.
If parents/carers believe their child(ren) should be educated in a different year group they should, at the time of application, submit supporting evidence from relevant professionals working with the child and family stating why the child must be placed outside their normal age appropriate cohort. DfE guidance makes clear that “it is reasonable for admission authorities to expect parents to provide them with information in support of their request – since without it they are unlikely to be able to make a decision on the basis of the circumstances of the case”.
The school’s governing body, as the relevant admission authority, will decide whether the application will be accepted on the basis of the information submitted. The governors’ decision will be based upon the circumstances of each case including the view of parents, the Headteacher, the child's social, academic and emotional development and whether the child has been previously educated out of year group. Such decisions must always be made in the best interests of the child. There is no guarantee that an application will be accepted on this basis. If the application is not accepted, this does not constitute a refusal of a place and there is no right to an independent statutory appeal.
Similarly there is no right of appeal for a place in a specific year group at a school. The internal management and organisation of a school, including the placement of pupils in classes, is a matter for the Headteacher and senior leadership of the school.
*Advice on the admission of summer born children” September 2020
Fraudulent applications
The school, in liaison with Hertfordshire County Council, will do as much as possible to prevent applications being made from fraudulent addresses. Address evidence is frequently requested, monitored and checked and school places will be withdrawn when false information is deliberately provided.
Action will be taken in the following circumstances:
When a child’s application address does not match the address of that child at their current school;
When a child lives at a different address to the applicant
When the applicant does not have parental responsibility
When a family move shortly after the closing date of applications when one or more of the following applies:
The family has moved to a property from which their application was less likely to be successful
The family has returned to an existing property
The family lived in rented accommodation for a short period of time (anything less than a year) over the application period
Council tax information shows a different residence at the time of application
When a child starts at the allocated school and their address is different from the address used at the time of application
Continuing Interest List
After places have been offered, Hertfordshire County Council, on behalf of the Governors of the school will maintain a continuing interest (waiting) list. A child’s position on a CI list will be determined by the admission criteria outlined above and a child’s place on the list can change as other children join or leave it. The County Council will contact parents/carers if a vacancy becomes available and it can be offered to a child. Continuing interest lists will be maintained for every year group until the summer term (date to be specified and confirmed to parents at the time of allocation). To remain on the CI (waiting) list after this time, parents must confirm they are still interested in a place by completing an In Year application form.
Appeals
Transfer appeals
Parents wishing to appeal who applied through Hertfordshire’s online system should log in to their online application and click on the link ‘register an appeal.’
Out of county residents and paper applicants should call the Customer Service centre on 0300123 4043 to request their registration details and log into
www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/schoolappeals and click on the link ‘log into the appeals system’.
In Year appeals
The County Council will write to you with the outcome of your application and if you have been unsuccessful will include registration details to enable you to log in and appeal online at www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/schoolappeals.