Your Choice for Secondary Education a Guide for Parents with Children Transferring to Secondary School
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Westminster Your choice for secondary education A guide for parents with children transferring to secondary school APPLY ONLINE FOR YOUR CHILD’S SECONDARY SCHOOL PLACE westminster.gov.uk/admissions Westminster City Council westminster.gov.uk APPLY ONLINE AND SAVE TIME The Pan-London eAdmissions site opens on 1 September 2020. If your child was born between 1 September 2007 and 31 August 2010, you will need to apply for a secondary school place by 31 October 2020. Applying online can be done in five easy steps. Why apply online? • It is quick and easy to do. • It’s more flexible as you can change or delete preferences on your application up until the application deadline of 11.59pm on 31 October 2020. • You’ll receive an email confirmation once you submit the application. • You can receive reminder alerts to your mobile to make sure your application gets in on time. • You will receive your outcome by email during the evening of 1 March 2021 . Paper applicants will not receive their outcome until the following morning. The information provided in this brochure is correct at the time of publication in August 2020. The admissions process and school admission arrangements are set out in accordance with the current Admissions Code (issued December 2014), Section 84 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. Any corrections, updates and additions will be published on our website: westminster.gov.uk/admissions Cover artwork by a pupil at Westminster Academy CONTENTS CONTACTING THE ADMISSIONS TEAM 4 Harris Academy St. John’s Wood 26 Marylebone Boys’ School 28 INTRODUCTION TO WESTMINSTER’S Paddington Academy 30 SECONDARY SCHOOLS 5 Pimlico Academy 32 PAN-LONDON SYSTEM 5 St. Augustine’s CE High School 34 How the system works 5 St. George’s Catholic School 38 The St. Marylebone CE School 40 KEY DATES 6 Westminster Academy 44 Westminster City School 46 GATHERING INFORMATION 7 Considering the facts 7 ALL-THROUGH SCHOOL (4–18) 50 Applying for schools outside Westminster 8 Ark King Solomon Academy 50 THE APPLICATION PROCESS 9 14–19 EDUCATION OPTIONS 52 Closing date for applications 9 University Technical Colleges (UTCs) 52 Proof of address 9 Studio Schools 52 Change of address 9 Sixth form and post-16 education Exceptional Need 10 in Westminster 52 Additional forms to complete 10 Sir Simon Milton Westminster University Technical College 54 Applications for children living abroad 10 Members of the UK Armed Forces ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 56 and Crown Servants 11 In-year admissions 56 Late applications 11 Fair access protocol 56 Change of preferences 11 Assistance with home-to-school travel 56 GUIDANCE ON COMPLETING YOUR Support for school attendance 56 APPLICATION (PAPER OR ONLINE) 12 westminster.gov.uk/admissions Apply online at Educational Psychology Service 56 Step-by-step guide to applying online 14 | Special Educational Needs and Education, Health and Care needs assessments 57 HOW DECISIONS ARE MADE 16 Children with Disabilities Team 57 The process 16 Family Information Service 57 Notifying you of the outcome 17 Free school meals 58 Waiting lists 18 Privacy Notice 58 Appeal arrangements 18 Making final arrangements for starting school 18 INDEPENDENT FEE-PAYING SCHOOLS 60 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 19 CONTACT DETAILS FOR NEIGHBOURING BOROUGHS 61 2021 secondary education choice for Your SCHOOL INFORMATION 21 KEY AND MAP OF WESTMINSTER’S Common definitions 21 EDUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENTS 64 The Grey Coat Hospital 22 Westminster 3 CONTACTING THE ADMISSIONS TEAM Westminster City Council Admissions Team CONTACT DETAILS works in partnership with the Royal Borough [email protected] of Kensington and Chelsea as a joint service. westminster.gov.uk/admissions The Admissions Team is based at Kensington Town Hall, Hornton Street, W8 7NX. 020 7745 6432 / 6433 Lines are open Monday to Friday between 9am–2pm Apply online at westminster.gov.uk/admissions Apply online at Your choice for secondary education 2021 | secondary education choice for Your Westminster Artwork by a pupil from Westminster City School 4 INTRODUCTION TO WESTMINSTER’S SECONDARY SCHOOLS This brochure is for parents of pupils aged between harder it will be to gain a place, so looking at each 11 and 16, focusing on children transferring from school’s criteria becomes even more important. primary to secondary school. It provides information You need to be aware that the outcome can be about how and when to apply for a place, explains different each year depending on the number and how admission decisions are made and gives types of applications (e.g. the number of siblings). information about each school to help parents This information is therefore provided as a decide which schools to apply for. guide to help you to make an informed decision. There are currently 10 State maintained secondary When considering your preferences, do not schools and Academies in Westminster, and rely solely on what you may have heard about one All-through school. Five of the schools are a school’s reputation. Visit as many schools as denominational or church schools. This means possible on their open days or evenings. Take they have a religious foundation, usually Catholic your son or daughter with you and, if you can, or Church of England. visit the school when it is at work. Westminster’s University Technical College (UTC) Further details about each school can be found opened in September 2017. The Sir Simon Milton further on in this brochure. Each school also Westminster UTC delivers a new education issues its own prospectus, available directly opportunity to 13–19 year olds. Further from the school. information can be found on pages 54–55. Open days or evenings are one of the best ways to It is important to check the admission criteria find out more about a school. Details of when these for each school to assess whether your child is take place are contained in each school’s section. likely to be offered a place. You can also find information on the number of applications each Many of the questions parents raise are answered school received for admission in September 2019. in this brochure, but if you need further information, The higher the number of applications, the the Admissions Team will be pleased to help. PAN-LONDON SYSTEM All 33 London boroughs, together with councils The local authorities taking part in the PLCAS bordering the capital, use a Pan-London system to then use a secure computerised system to pass coordinate admissions to their secondary schools. on details of the applications for schools in other areas. They will also coordinate the offer of places In 2020, 93,359 secondary school applications to make sure no child is offered more than one were submitted as part of the Pan-London school place. The decision on whether a place coordinated system. there was a 3% increase in can be offered will continue to be made by the westminster.gov.uk/admissions Apply online at applications for London secondary schools. Admission Authority for each school. When a school | This coordinated admissions system is fairer and receives more applications than places available means more parents are offered one of their preferred (also referred to as oversubscribed), its published schools at an earlier stage and fewer parents receive admissions criteria will be used to decide the no initial offer at all. It is also easier for parents to order in which applicants will be offered places. manage, reducing anxiety for you and your children. Schools will not be informed of where they are listed on the application form or other HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS schools that have been applied for. Under the Pan-London Coordinated Admissions Where a child is eligible to be offered a place at more System (PLCAS), all parents must list the schools than one school, the local authority will hold the offer they want to apply for on their local authority’s for the highest preference on the parents’ form and common application form, ranking them in order release all other lower preference offers. These places of preference. This is important, as potentially can then be offered to other applicants. Potential only one offer will be made and this will be for the offers are exchanged between local authorities 2021 secondary education choice for Your highest-ranked school able to make the offer. This until they are in a position to make the single best form (either paper or online) is returned to the local offer to parents using all available places. All offers authority for the area in which the child lives. will be made on the same day, 1 March 2021. Westminster 5 KEY DATES 2020 From 1 September You will be able to apply online at westminster.gov.uk/admissions Paper applications will be available from the Admissions Team on request. This brochure will be available online, from 1 September. Closing date for applications 31 October If you are applying via a paper form you will need to ensure your application is received by the Admissions Team by 5pm on 31 October 2020. If you are applying online, you will have until 11.59pm on 31 October 2020 to submit your application. 2021 1 March National offer day All resident applicants that applied online will receive an email notification during the evening. Resident applicants offered one of their preferences will not be sent a letter in the post unless they submitted their application on a paper form. An outcome letter will be sent on 1 March to all residents not offered any of their preferences. 15 March Deadline for successful applicants to accept or decline their school offer. From 29 March Waiting list positions for schools held by the Apply online at westminster.gov.uk/admissions Apply online at Admissions Team will be made available.