Cumbria County Council The closing date to apply for a Year 7 secondary school place is 31 October 2018 31 October 2017 Transfer to secondary school in Cumbria – September 2019 ServingServing the people of CumbriaCumbriaccumbria.gov.ukumbria.gov.uk Cumbria County Council If you need help in understanding this booklet or support in applying for a school place please contact the School Admissions and Appeals Team on: 01228 221582 Please make sure that you apply by: Or by email at: [email protected] 31 October 2018 If you have difficulty in applying online you can ask your child’s current school or your local library to help you, or ring the number above and we will send you a paper copy of the form. If you require this document in another format (e.g. CD, audio cassette, Braille or large type) or in another language, please telephone 01228 221582 2 Remember the deadline: 31 October 2018 Contents About the School Admissions and Information about admission to community Appeals Team and this booklet .......................... 4 and voluntary controlled schools ...................... 12 How do I find out if my preferred school is a community or How to apply for a secondary school place ....... 5 • voluntary controlled school? Information about applying for a secondary • How are places allocated at community and voluntary school place .......................................................... 7 controlled schools? • Does the junior or primary school my child is attending • What is the Coordinated Admissions Scheme? affect how places are allocated? • What are the different types of school? • What do I need to do if my child was previously looked • How are places allocated? after by the Local Authority? • How likely am I to get my first preference? • Will younger brothers and sisters be able to go to the • Is the admissions policy for each school important? same school? • How could this affect me? • Which address will be used in determining my child’s • What are catchment areas? priority for admission? • How do I find out which is my catchment school? • What happens if I am moving house? • Do I need to send anything with my application? • What happens if I provide false information? • What do I need to do if my child was previously looked • Can my child’s name go on a waiting list? after by a Local Authority? • Is school transport something I should consider? Secondary schools in Cumbria .......................... 14 • What happens to applications received after the closing • Finding your way around this section date? • Cumbria Local Authority Admissions Policy • What happens if I move house? • Information about all secondary schools • How do I apply from outside Cumbria? • How do I apply to another Local Authority? Further help and advice ......................................46 • What happens if both parents/carers cannot agree about • Help with Statements of Special Educational Need or where they would like their child to go to school? Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) • What can I do if I am not happy with the school that I am • Cumbria Information, Advice and Support Service offered? (formerly known as Parent Partnership Service) • What happens if my child doesn’t get a place and then • Free school meals and school uniform grants one becomes available? • Home to School Transport 2019/2020 • Can my child’s name go on a waiting list? • How do I apply for a school place at another time? Admission Appeals ..............................................48 Useful contact details .........................................50 • School Admissions and Appeals Team • How do I find out where the specialist services are based? • Local Authorities neighbouring Cumbria • Useful websites • Data Protection 3 Cumbria County Council About the School Admissions and Appeals Team and this booklet Hello!Hello We are theCumbria School County Admissions Council’s and School Appeals Admissions Team in Cumbria and Appeals County Team. Council’s Our job Children’s is to manage Services. all the Ourapplications job is to formanage a school all theplace applications at maintained for a schools school placeand academies at maintained for childrenschools livingand academies in Cumbria, for childrenensuring living that allin parents/carersCumbria, ensuring who that apply all areparents/carers offered a school who applyplace. are This offered booklet a schoolwill tell place.you how This to bookletapply for will a schooltell you place, how to give apply you for information a school place, about givehow youthe informationadmissions aboutprocess how works the admissionsand explain processmore about works admissions and explain to community more about and admissions voluntary to controlled community schools and voluntary where the controlled County Councilschools is the whereadmissions the County authority. Council You willis the find admissions that throughout authority. the Youbooklet will therefind that are throughoutsome sentences the booklet that tell there you are somewhat you sentences must do. that If thetell youlaw sayswhat youyou mustmust dodo. something, If the law says we haveyou must to make do something,sure that you we understand have to make surethat. Wethat haveyou understand tried throughout that. Wethis havebooklet tried to throughoutkeep the information this booklet simple, to keep clear the andinformation easy to understand.simple, clear and easy to understand. We talk about preference rather than choice because you can say on the application form which school youWe talkwould about like preference your child rather to attend, than butchoice this because is not the you same can sayas choosing on the application the school form your which child school will go toyou. It would does, like however, your child encourage to attend, you but to thissay is which not the schools same as you choosing would the prefer. school your child will go to. It does, however, encourage you to say which schools you would prefer. Throughout the booklet we refer to ‘schools’. This always includes academies unless otherwise stated. EveryThroughout year we the receive booklet late we applicationsrefer to schools. and itThis is a always shame includes that some academies children may unless miss otherwise out on their stated. preferredEvery year school we receive just because late applications an application and it form is a shameis late. Thethat somelaw says children that we may must miss not out allow on theirfor late applicationspreferred school unless just there because are exceptional an application reasons. form isSo late. please The dolaw make says surethat weyour must application not allow is foron latetime – whyapplications not start unless thinking there about are it exceptionaland complete reasons. the online So pleaseapplication do make form? sure your application is on time – why not start thinking about it and complete the online application form? If you have any queries regarding the information in this booklet, or need support in applying for a school place,If you can’tplease find contact out what us onyou 01228 need 221582 or need or help by emailin understanding at this booklet, or need support in [email protected] for a school place then please contact us on 01228 221582 or by email at school.admissions@ cumbria.gov.uk Alternatively, you can write to us at: Alternatively, you can write to us at: School Admissions and Appeals Team CumbriaSchool Admissions County Council and Appeals Team CumbriaChildren’s House Services 117Cumbria Botchergate County Council CarlisleLower East Wing CA1Parkhouse 1RD Building Baron Way Carlisle CA6 4SJ 4 Remember the deadline: 31 October 2018 How to apply for a secondary school place If you live in Cumbria and your child is in Year 6 at a primary If you are unable to apply online, you can download a form or junior school, you must apply to Cumbria County Council (SA3) from our website at: cumbria.gov.uk/ (Local Authority) for a secondary school place, under the schooladmissions. If you do not have access to a computer Local Authority’s Co-ordinated Admissions Scheme. you could ask your child’s current school or your local library to help, or ring the number on page 4 and we will send a Read through this booklet carefully before making an paper copy of the form to you. If you are completing a paper application. You can find details about each secondary form, please write in BLOCK CAPITAL LETTERS. school, including individual schools’ admissions policies, and whether you also need to complete a supplementary form. However you decide to apply, you must state the address where your child lives. You must not use a business Please apply online. If your child lives in Cumbria and address, childminder’s address or any address other attends a primary or junior school in the county, the School than your child’s home address. Admissions and Appeals Team will send a letter to you through your child’s school. This letter will arrive in schools We ask you to name three different preferences of school during the first week of the new academic year and it will that you would be happy for your child to attend because we give you information on how to make an online application. cannot guarantee that you will get your first preference. The online application form can be found on Cumbria On the application form you should give your first, second County Council’s website at: and third preferences. If you complete the form in such a way that the ranking of two or more schools is not clear, we www.cumbria.gov.uk/ schooladmissions will rank them for you. The advantages of applying online are: To rank schools for you, we will use the Local Authority’s • You will receive an email confirmation to say your GIS mapping system to measure the distance, using the application has been received. shortest walking route by road between the pupil’s home • You will be able to find out which school your child has address and the nearest entrance on the school site been offered by 9.00am on 1 March 2019, before the available.