information-for-parents-secondary-admissions-2020-21

Admissions to Lancashire Secondary SchoolsInformation for Parents 2020-21 APPLY ONLINE www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools SCHOOL SECONDARY ADMISSIONS... Email ad

Admissions to Lancashire Secondary Schools

Information for Parents 2020-21

APPLY ONLINE www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools

www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools

SCHOOL

SECONDARY

ADMISSIONS

• It’s quick, easy and secure

• Don’t forget to resubmit your application if you access it for any reason

• You can amend your application right up to the deadline date if you wish

• You’ll get an email acknowledgement when you submit your application.

• There’s lots of further information and resources

• You can view your school offer via the online system on the morning of the day the offers are sent out.

Once you have submitted your application you will receive an email acknowledgement

If you log back in to the system during the application period, don’t forget to re-submit your application, even if you have not made any changes You will receive an email confirming the re-submitted application each time you do this.

The closing date for applications is Thursday 31 October 2019

PLEASE KEEP THIS SAFE

This space has been provided for you to keep a note of your email address and login / password details in case you need to make a change to your online application Make sure that the email

address you use will be accessible on 2 March 2020.

You can ring our helpline on 0300 123 6707 if you have any questions or are unsure about what to do

Most Voluntary Aided and Foundation schools and some Academies and Free Schools also ask that you complete a supplementary form These are available from these schools directly and one form should be completed for each school

Email address

/ Log in

Password

APPLY ONLINE www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools

Admissions to Lancashire Secondary Schools

Information for Parents 2020-21

SCHOOL ADMISSIONS 2020/21 Information for Parents SECONDARY

Dear Parents

This information is for parents whose children transfer to secondary schools and academies in September

2020 It answers the questions parents usually ask

Parents can apply online for Lancashire places at: www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools

All Lancashire secondary schools and academies have equal preference admission policies Different arrangements exist for some and these are either described here or you are told how to obtain more information

Each school and academy produces its own prospectus which gives details such as the curriculum, activities, facilities, examination results and information about last year's admissions The prospectus for a church school will also tell you about the religious life of the school Each holds an open day/evening Details are given in the local press or can be obtained from the Area Education Office (details below) It is a good idea for parents

to visit schools and academies before applying for places

Offers will be issued on Monday 2 March 2020 Most parents are offered a place at one of their preferred options If this is not possible, you will receive advice about waiting (reserve) lists and the appeals process You are also advised to read the information provided on eligibility for home to school transport in section 1 (18) and section 4 (E), since this may be an important aspect to consider when expressing your preferences The staff who work in the Area Education Offices are there to help you with the application process Should you have any queries or concerns about school admissions, you can contact them on the telephone numbers shown below

Further information is available from your Area Education Office:

NORTH AREA SOUTH AREA EAST AREA

Lancaster, Morecambe,

Wyre and Fylde

Preston, South Ribble, West Lancashire and Chorley

Hyndburn, Ribble Valley, Burnley, Pendle

and Rossendale

 (01524) 581148  (01772) 532109  (01254) 220747

Area Education Office (North)

White Cross Neighbourhood

Centre

Quarry Road

Lancaster LA1 3SE

Area Education Office (South) Level 2, Room C37, County Hall Preston PR1 0LD

Area Education Office (East)

44 Union Street Accrington BB5 1PL

Please apply online by

Thursday 31 October 2019

Edwina Grant OBE Executive Director for Education and Children's Services

2

The information contained in this booklet is important It concerns your child's education If you need help or advice on any matter relating to school admissions, including translation of the information, please contact your Area Education Office listed on page 1

Where to find help with translations

SCHOOL ADMISSIONS 2020/21 Information for Parents SECONDARY

Page

Where to find help with translations 2

Apply online & information about Supplementary Information Forms

(SIFs)

4

When will I hear the outcome of my application? 6

Section 1: Parents' questions

This section answers the questions most frequently asked by parents.

Section 3: The Appeals system

Your right to appeal if your child is refused a place at your preferred school.

16

Section 4: Further information, including transport 17

Applying for a place in a school outside Lancashire; transport; Education, Health

Glossary

An explanation of the educational terms used in this booklet.

20

Children with an Education, Health and Care Plan 21

Addresses and telephone numbers for neighbouring Authorities and other sources

Timetable for admission to Lancashire Secondary Schools 2020/21 Inside back

cover

The information in this booklet is correct at the time of printing but may change subsequently

Contents

 It’s quick, easy and secure

 You can amend your application right up to the deadline date if you wish

 You’ll get an email acknowledgement when you submit your application

 You can view your school offer via the online system on the day the offers are sent out

Voluntary Aided (Church) Schools and Foundation Schools and Academies / Free Schools normally require a supplementary information form (SIF) to be completed (The SIF is in addition

to the online application and requests additional information that is used by the governing body of the school to apply their oversubscription criteria when allocating places.)

For each school that is a preference on your online application, you will need to contact the school direct to obtain a copy of their supplementary information form

You should then send your completed supplementary information form direct to the relevant school

by the closing date of 31 October 2019

If you have submitted and received an email acknowledgment of an online application you can log back onto the system during the application period to view this

If however you go back in to your original application this may have been over written (it definitely will if you make any changes) It will then no longer be valid

This applies for all changes, even very minor ones e.g hyphens, apostrophes and typo corrections

To ensure that your online application remains valid you are therefore strongly advised to press the re-submit button if you revisit the system at any time during the application period (whether or not changes were made)

REVISITING AN ONLINE APPLICATION SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION FORMS

SCHOOL ADMISSIONS 2020/21 Information for Parents SECONDARY

The aim of Lancashire's Co-ordinated Scheme is to ensure that all parents are given a single offer

of a secondary place (issued on the same day)

Every parent will be asked to express their three secondary school preferences online All preferences are included on one application which saves parents applying separately to a variety of different schools and academies

For parents living

(See page 15 regarding late applications.)

For parents living

You can name Lancashire schools as preferences on another Authority's application Your home Authority will then process your application Contact details for neighbouring Authorities are included at the back of this booklet (page 22)

Late applications will usually be dealt with after those received by the set closing date

For parents living

inside Lancashire

who would like to access a

secondary place within

another Authority

If you live in Lancashire, but would like to express a preference for

a secondary place within a neighbouring Authority, please apply online on the Lancashire County Council system You can name schools in other Authorities on the Lancashire form Lancashire County Council will process your application because you are a Lancashire resident.

Applications made online are submitted direct to Lancashire Authority and parents may make changes (and have each change receipted by email) up to the closing date of Thursday 31 October

2019 If you revisit an acknowledged online application and make any changes at all (even

very minor ones) then you must re-submit

If there is a reason why you cannot apply online then please contact your Area Education Office (see page 1)

PLEASE NOTE THAT NORMALLY PREFERENCES CANNOT BE CHANGED AFTER THE CLOSING DATE OF 31 OCTOBER 2019, UNLESS THERE HAS BEEN A SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN CIRCUMSTANCES (SEE SECTION 2K)

Introduction

6

The online system asks you to select your three preferences and rank them in priority order Before you make your selection you are advised to attend school/academy open days and evenings

You are strongly encouraged to use all three of your preferences If you are in any doubt please

speak with your child's class teacher or staff at your Area Education Office (see page 1)

You are entirely free to express your preferences as you wish You are however strongly advised to consider a nearby/local school or academy as one of your three preferred options if the admission policy for that school means that it is likely that a place will be offered This is especially important

in areas where demand for places is high or is increasing and can help to ensure that you will be offered a local option

During the Spring term, the allocation process will take place There will be over 13,000 applications

to consider and thorough checks are put in place

If there is a query about your application, the Area Pupil Access Office or the relevant school or academy will contact you Addresses, for example, are cross-checked with those supplied by your child's primary school or academy If there is a discrepancy, you will need to provide evidence of your address before an offer can be made These checks are to make sure that places are allocated fairly and correctly in line with guidance from the Department for Education (DfE) and the Office of the Schools' Adjudicator (OSA) (see Section 2, part H of this booklet)

It is understood that the admissions process can be very stressful for both parents and children We will do all we can to ensure that the process is carried out fairly and consistently Most Lancashire parents do receive an offer for one of their three secondary preferences

Offers will be issued on Monday 2 March 2020 which is the National Offer Date for secondary

applications

Lancashire County Council will send all offers to Lancashire parents, including Voluntary Aided Schools, Foundation Schools, Academies and schools in neighbouring authorities If you receive an offer from another local authority or school/academy, please contact the Area Education Office immediately The Co-ordinated Scheme means that the only legally valid offer is that made by the home Local Authority, and other offers will not be valid

Please read the rest of this booklet carefully, as it offers help, advice and guidance on identifying your preferred options for your child/children

When will I hear the outcome of my application?

If you applied online, you can log back into your application on 2 March 2020 to find out the school

we have offered your child

You should also receive an automated email alert on 2 March confirming your school offer

If you do not receive an email alert, this could be due to a change in email address Alternatively, your mail server has delayed the delivery of the email or sent it to your spam or junk mail folder You can log into the online application system without having received an alert

If you applied on time using a paper form we will post you an offer letter by second class post on

2 March 2020

Unfortunately, offer information cannot be given out by phone

SCHOOL ADMISSIONS 2020/21 Information for Parents SECONDARY

1 How do arrangements differ between establishments?

There are several types of publicly funded schools and academies They have different admission arrangements

 Community and Voluntary Controlled Schools - for these schools Lancashire County Council is

the admission authority, sets the admissions policy and allocates places

 Voluntary Aided and Foundation Schools - these are Lancashire maintained schools where it is the

Governors who are the admission authority The Governors set the admission policy and decide which children to admit

 Academies (and Free Schools) - these are independent state schools not maintained by the local

authority It is the governing body who are the admissions authority, set the admissions policy and decide which children to admit Admissions are however co-ordinated by the County Council Free Schools may be exempt from co-ordination in the first year that they open

Most secondary schools in Lancashire are comprehensive, but there are a small number of schools which select pupils and applicants must firstly take an entrance examination Most schools cater for pupils aged 11

- 16 and some have sixth forms where pupils can continue their education until 18+

A summary of the admission policy for each Voluntary Aided, Foundation, Free School and Academy is provided in the area supplement with this booklet The detailed policy for each of these is described in the school's prospectus

2 Can I apply online for all of these?

If you live in Lancashire the online system may be used to apply for places at 11-18 secondary schools and academies in Lancashire You can identify out of county preferences on your application If you live outside Lancashire, you must follow the application process of your home Authority to apply for Lancashire options If you use Lancashire's online system to apply for a place, ensure that your mail box has enough spare capacity

to receive an email acknowledgement of receipt of your application

(There is a paper form if you are not able to make an online application – please contact the Area Education Office – see page 1)

Some church schools or academies may also require applicants to complete a supplementary form This allows your application to be considered against any religious criteria which are used in its admission policy Arrangements relating to the supplementary form will vary between church schools and you should contact each directly if you require further information about their form

3 Who is due to transfer to secondary school in September 2020?

Children born between 1 September 2008 and 31 August 2009 inclusive will normally transfer from primary to secondary school in September 2020 Only in the most exceptional circumstances, strongly supported by the primary and secondary school Headteachers concerned, will children born out of year group be allowed to transfer a year early

Applications for exceptional early transfer must be submitted before December 2019 to the Area Education

Office in writing for the attention of the Area Pupil Access Officer

4 How do I express my preferences?

If you are a Lancashire resident you can apply using the online application system You can name up to three

preferences, in priority order, and give reasons, if you wish You are strongly advised to use all three

preferences and to name different schools or academies Each of the three preferences will be considered equally

Each preference is considered equally If you name the same school or academy two or three times this will only limit your chances of receiving a place See Section 2 of this booklet about filling in the form The online system will not accept duplicate preferences

You should name your three preferences in priority order Your application for a place at each will then be considered separately and equally in order to decide the pupil's priority for a place within the relevant published admission criteria

Where more than one secondary offer is possible, the order of priority as stated on your application will be considered The highest named preference at which there is an available place, will be the single offer Priority order is only used in a tie break situation and not for initial allocations

Section 1: Parents' questions

8

5 Revisiting an online application

If you have submitted and received an email acknowledgement of an online application you can log back onto

the system during the application period to view this If however you go back into your original application

this may have been over written (it definitely will if you make any changes) It will then no longer be valid This applies for all changes even very minor ones e.g hyphens, apostrophes, and typo corrections

To ensure that your online application remains valid you are therefore strongly advised to press the re-submit button if you revisit the system at any time during the application period (whether or not changes were made)

6 What are my chances of obtaining my preferred school or academy?

The Local Authority and School/Academy Governing Bodies will make every effort to meet your preferences Unfortunately however where there are more applications than there are available places then some parents and children will be disappointed

The area supplement does give background information about how many people have applied previously and about allocations The pattern of intake can vary year on year

Parents can seek information and advice from Area Education Offices and Headteachers

7 How are places allocated?

For Community and Voluntary Controlled Schools, the criteria used to allocate places are described on page

12 and in the area supplement given with this booklet For Voluntary Aided Schools, Foundation Schools,

Free Schools and Academies, a summary of the admissions policy is described on the County Council

webpages

Full details of the admissions criteria for Voluntary Aided Schools, Foundation Schools, Free Schools and Academies are available in each prospectus (obtainable from the school or academy) It is strongly advised that you obtain copies

Each school has an admission number showing the maximum number of pupils that will be admitted DfE guidance allows published admission numbers to be exceeded under Fair Access Protocols (which have been agreed for all Lancashire secondary schools) (See Section 3 - Oversubscribed Year Groups.)

The School Admissions Code allows individual admission authorities to exceed their published admission number if they inform the local Authority in time for effective co-ordination to occur

8 What happens if I am not offered a place at my preferred option?

Where a place cannot be offered at the school or academy to which you gave the highest priority on your application, you will receive an alternative school offer This may be one of your preferred options and therefore you may be happy to accept the offer made

For a small number of parents the initial offer may not be for one of their preferences

In either case you will be given the opportunity to put your child's name on the reserve (waiting) lists of any other establishment and to appeal for places at any school

Where a place has been refused at appeal, a re-appeal request for the same school in the same year group will only be considered if there has been a relevant, significant and material change in the family's circumstances since the original appeal hearing (which was not known at the time of the original hearing)

9 Are waiting lists kept?

Yes A place will be offered if one later becomes available The list is kept in priority order using the admission criteria The list may change as children move into and out of the area or accept alternative places If a place becomes available and you are top of the list, you will be offered a place whether or not you have appealed (see question 10 below) If you want to know your approximate position on the reserve list, contact your Area Education Office (see page 1)

Lists will be kept at Area Education Offices until the end of August immediately prior to schools starting After

31 August 2020 individual admission authorities must keep a waiting list for one term into the new school year Parents who want a pupil's name to remain on the waiting list for a voluntary aided or foundation school, free school or academy must contact them direct early in the new school year to confirm that this is the case Places are only offered from reserve (waiting) lists where the allocated number of children falls below the admission number for the year group

10 Can I appeal against the refusal of a place at the preferred option?

All admissions authorities will do everything possible to meet your preferences before an appeal becomes necessary You will be informed about other available places It would be helpful if you visited the offered school or academy If you are still unhappy you have the right to appeal to an Independent Admission Appeal

SCHOOL ADMISSIONS 2020/21 Information for Parents SECONDARY

Panel whose members played no part in the original allocation of places Appeal details will be given in the letter which offers you a place If you have been refused a place at more than one establishment, you can appeal against the decision in each case

11 Where can I get more advice about how appeals work?

Contact the Area Education Office - see page 1 of this booklet

12 What if I am moving house?

If you are about to move house, please contact the Area Education Office with your new address so that letters which are sent to you do not go astray If you have already exchanged contracts on a house or have evidence

of a confirmed offer of tenancy, you can ask for your child's application to be considered from the new address

It is required that a family does not just own a property in a particular location, but that they are actually resident

in the property Evidence of your/the child's residency in the new property will be required

If you make a permanent house move after applying, but before allocation procedures have been undertaken, you must contact the Area Education Office You would be able to change your preferences if you are changing address to a more distant property and the allocation will be based on the new address

If you move temporarily during the admissions process you must also discuss the matter with the Area Education Office Temporary addresses are rarely accepted for admission purposes We can't accept

a temporary address if you still possess a property that was previously used as a home address

If you are moving to another area of Lancashire, details of schools in the area can be obtained from any Area Education Office Admission Authorities will check address details and may randomly sample applications You should contact the Area Education Office if there are any changes in your child's living arrangements during the application and allocation of places period (1 September 2019 to 1 March 2020) No address changes can be accepted after 13 January 2020

Places offered for Lancashire schools may be subsequently withdrawn where misleading or inaccurate information has been discovered (see Section 2 paragraphs A and H)

13 Shared Parenting and Residence

Some children live with one parent part of the week and another for the rest Only one address can be used for school admission purposes This should be where the child lives for most of the school week If advice is needed, please contact the Area Education Office

Parents should be aware that entitlement to assistance with transport is assessed separately after the admissions process They cannot use one address to access a preferred school place and then flip to another for transport assessment This will not be accepted, even if the child's pattern of residence changes There must be very exceptional reasons; e.g bereavement, house fire at one address, evidenced sale of one address

14 Applications from abroad (and other areas of the UK)

It is required that families must be physically resident in Lancashire (or nearby) in order to apply within the annual intake processes Exceptional circumstances will be considered on request (and will require that individual families provide the necessary evidence for consideration) Exceptions will usually include:

(a) UK Service Personnel families who can provide evidence of a posting into the area and the date from which this will occur

(b) New to area families purchasing / renting / leasing an address in Lancashire (providing legal evidence

of a contract exchange or lease agreement as a minimum) – see notes below

Where families are planning to return to an address (whether pre owned or not) within Lancashire, and can provide evidence of ownership, it is required that they are physically in residence during the application period

in order for applications to be accepted for annual intakes This means that the child is in residence with parent/ parents at their permanent address This applies to those returning from living abroad and those returning from periods of employment / secondment abroad This principle applies also to (b) above If there are challenges to an LA decision not to accept an application within the agreed arrangements to coordinate then individual admission authorities will be consulted Note however that admission policies require that a family does not just own a property in a particular location, but that they are actually resident at that property Where families relocate or return to an address in Lancashire after a statutory closing date but during the allocation period (ahead of finalisation of offers) then there will be consideration of accepting a late application Appropriate evidence must be provided of ownership and date of relocation and residence at that address The agreed timetable for co-ordination for the primary and secondary annual intake processes include agreed dates after which offers will not be amended This will usually be mid-February for secondary admissions and the end of March for primary admissions

Note: If your child has an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) arrangements are different for

appealing against a place not being offered You should contact the information, Advice & Support Team

at the Area Education Offices for further information (0300 123 6706 www.lancashire.gov.uk/SEND)

10

Please note that late entry to the annual intake processes will not be possible after the statutory closing dates

unless an exception is agreed by the Local Authority and / or the admission authority

15 What if I am new to the area or want to transfer my child?

If you are seeking a place because you are moving into the area or wish to transfer your child, other than at

the beginning of Year 7, procedures are slightly different

For places in Years 8 to 11 you should apply directly to the headteacher requesting a place On occasions

parents may be referred to the Area Education Office (see page 1) who can also assist if you are unsure about

available places You may be required to complete an in-year admission application form

Most Lancashire schools and academies operate a first day of term protocol Where transfer requests are

approved the pupil may only be able to start at the new school on the first day of the next school term

(dependent upon individual circumstances)

Please note: Children will not normally be able to start at a new Community or Voluntary Controlled

School other than at the beginning of a term unless they have moved into the area, or there are

exceptional circumstances

16 Can I change my secondary preferences?

Up to the closing date of Thursday 31 October 2019 applicants are able to change their preferences or the

priority order of these as often as they wish (this is until 11.59 pm on that date) Amended applications must

be re-submitted

After the closing date it is however, not usually possible for changes to be permitted Individual Admission

Authorities will consider requests for changes

17 Who makes valid (legal) offers for places?

For Lancashire secondary schools, the only legally valid offers for places are those issued by Lancashire

County Council or from your home local authority if you live outside of Lancashire If you do live outside of

Lancashire, your home local authority must have liaised with Lancashire to reach agreement prior to confirming

an offer for a Lancashire secondary place

Any other offers for a Lancashire secondary place – verbal, email or in writing – are invalid and do not apply

Secondary offers from any school or academy or from another local authority without Lancashire's agreement

are also invalid

Any offers made which are not within the procedures agreed by Lancashire and neighbouring admission

authorities will be deemed invalid and the places will not be allocated

If you are in receipt of an offer of a place which you are uncertain about you must contact the Area Pupil

Access Team for the area where you live – or the area adjacent to where you live if you reside outside of

Lancashire

18 What are the arrangements for free home to school transport?

Please see Section 4E of this booklet for a summary of the County Council's home to school transport

policy, contact your Area Education Office or visit www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools

Parents should consider the logistics and costs of home to school transport when considering their school and

academy preferences It is important to note that the vast majority of admission policies use straight line

measures when allocating places Please check the individual admission arrangements for the schools and

academies which you are considering

In relation to home to school transport it is important that you note however that eligibility is assessed

as a separate exercise after places have been offered:-

 eligibility is assessed using walking routes as accepted by the Local Authority (home address to school /

academy)

 the nearest suitable school with a place is also taken into account (at which a place could have been

allocated.)

 the nearest suitable school includes those outside of the defined geographical priority area for any school

or academy at which a place has been offered

 the nearest suitable school will also include those in neighbouring Local Authority areas and districts

 For information about transport to denominational (faith) schools and academies please see Section 4E -

paragraph 2 There have been significant changes to the Local Authority's Home to School

Transport policy for new pupils starting at primary and secondary schools from September 2018

 For Lancashire's selective grammar schools (academies) transport assistance is only available where the

school / academy is nearest to a home address and the relevant distance criterion is met

If your child is not entitled to free school transport to school and you wish your child to travel on

school buses you can normally do so on payment of a daily fare For further information, please see

www.lancashire.gov.uk/schools or contact the School Transport Traveline Service on 0300 123 6738

SCHOOL ADMISSIONS 2020/21 Information for Parents SECONDARY

An admission number will be published showing the maximum number of pupils that the school will admit in the Autumn Term 2020 Parents are given the opportunity to express three preferences for a secondary school Published criteria are used to decide which children should be offered the available places In secondary schools an equal preference system operates, whereby the three parental preferences are given equal status Each preference will be considered equally against the admissions criteria

When a secondary school is oversubscribed the following priorities apply in order:

1 Looked after children and those who have been previously looked after, (see note (x) below), then

2 Children for whom the Local Authority accepts that there are exceptional medical, social or welfare reasons which are directly relevant to the school concerned (See note (i) below) then

3 Children living within the school’s geographical priority area with older brothers or sisters attending the school when the younger child will start, (see note iii below)

4 Children living within the school’s geographical priority area, then

5 Children living outside the school’s geographical priority area with older brothers or sisters still

attending the school when the younger child will start (See note (iii) below) then

6 Children living outside the school’s geographical priority area (see note (iv) below

(iii) Brothers and sisters includes step children, half brothers and sisters, fostered and adopted children living with the same family at the same address (consideration may be given to applying this criterion to full brothers and sisters who reside at different addresses) The priority does not apply to siblings whose brothers and sisters transferred into a sixth form at 16+

(iv) The distance criterion which will be used as the tie breaker if there is oversubscription within any of the admission criteria is a straight line (radial) measure If the Local Authority is unable to distinguish between applicants using the published criteria (eg twins or same block of flats) places will be offered via

a random draw

The distance measure is a straight line (radial) measure centre of building to centre of building

(v) A child's permanent address is the one where he/she normally lives and sleeps and goes to school from Proof of residence may be requested at any time throughout the admission process, (including after a child has accessed a school place) Addresses of relatives and friends must NOT be used neither should addresses of any other properties owned by applicants

(vi) The Local Authority will keep waiting lists for all Lancashire schools until 31 August 2020 These are kept

in priority order using the school's published admission criteria From 1 September 2020 for one school term only waiting lists will be retained by individual admission authorities (the Local authority for community and voluntary controlled schools and individual voluntary aided and trust schools will each retain their own list)

Admissions criteria (rules) for who is given priority for places

in community & voluntary controlled secondary schools

12

(vii) Children will not normally be able to start school other than at the beginning of the term unless they have moved into the area or there are exceptional circumstances

(viii) Applications for school places which are received late will not necessarily be dealt with at the same time

as those received by the set deadline The reasons for a late application may be requested and where these are not exceptional the relevant admission criteria will be initially applied to all others received

on time The late application will be dealt with after this process

Application forms received after the published closing date, will only be considered at that time if the following conditions apply:

(a) if the number of preferences received for the school is below the published admission number or:

(b) there are extenuating circumstances justifying a late application

These may include:

(a) parents moving into the County after the closing date;

(b) parent/carer illness which required hospitalisation for the major part of the period between the publication of the composite prospectus and the closing date for applications

(ix) Where a child lives with one parent for part of the week and another for the rest of the week only one address will be accepted for a school admission application This will normally be the one where the child wakes up for the majority of school days (Monday to Friday) Proof of residence may be requested

at any time throughout the admissions process

(x) The highest priority must be given to looked after children and children who were looked after, but ceased to be so because they were adopted (or became subject to a child arrangements order (residence order) or special guardianship order)

A 'looked after child' ( 1 ) or a child who was previously looked after but immediately after being looked after became subject to an adoption( 2 ) child arrangements order (residency order) ( 3 ) or special guardianship order ( 4)

(1) A 'looked after child' is a child who is (a) in the care of a local authority, or (b) being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social services functions (see the definition in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989) at the time of making an application to a school

(2) This includes children who were adopted under the Adoption Act 1976 (see section 12 adoption orders) and children who were adopted under the Adoption and Childrens Act 2002 (see section 46 adoption orders)

(3) Under the provisions of s.12 of the Children and Families Act 2014, which amend section 8 of the Children Act 1989, residence orders have now been replaced by child arrangements orders

(4) See Section 14A of the Children Act 1989 which defines a ‘special guardianship order’ as an order appointing one or more individuals to be a child’s special guardian (or special guardians)

This includes children who are legally adopted from overseas Relevant, legal documents must be provided to evidence the adoption

For criterion 1 above, where there is a claim that any child was previously looked after then the parent

or guardian must provide the necessary evidence or contacts for this to be verified

The Authority has a duty to co-ordinate admission arrangements for all Lancashire maintained schools The Authority will ensure that all Lancashire parents whose children are transferring to Year 7 classes receive the offer of one secondary school place on the agreed date