ALBAN C OF E MIDDLE SCHOOL ADMISSIONS POLICY
(with effect from September 2010)

 Admissions Policy September 2011

 Admissions Policy September 2012

Alban Middle School is a 480 place Church of England Middle School catering for pupils between the ages of 9 and 13.  The Governors will admit up to the Admission Number of 120 pupils in any one year.

The Governing Body, as the admission authority, determines the school's admission policy and arrangements and is responsible for taking decisions on applications for admission.  The Governing Body works with the Local Authority in order to ensure admissions are co-ordinated within the Borough.

Method of Allocating Places: - Equal Preference Method

Each preference is treated equally and the priority for a place at the school is worked out using the admissions criteria.  This will mean that some second and third preference applications may be ranked higher than some first preference applications according to the admission criteria for the school.  Pupils with a Statement of Special Education Needs in which the school is named will be admitted. Pupils identified for admission through the In-Year Fair Access Protocol will be admitted even if the school is full.

Should the number of applications for admission exceed 120; the Governors/Local Authority will apply the following criteria (in the rank shown) to decide the order in which places will be allocated.  This will also apply to waiting lists.  The Local Authority will keep a waiting list on behalf of the School for the normal-round of admissions.  This waiting list will be maintained until the end of the Autumn Term (end of December).

1. All 'looked after' children[1].
   
   
2. Children living within the catchment area[2]. (See Note A below)
   
   
3. The Siblings[3] of children attending Alban.
   
   
4. Children with one or more parents/carers who attend a Church of England church on a regular basis.  (See Notes B and C below)
   
   
5. Children that attend one of the feeder lower schools, but who live outside the catchment area.  (See Note D below)
   
   
6. Children whose immediate families are practising Christians, other than the Church of England, who live outside the agreed catchment area.  (See Notes B, C and E below)
   
   
7. Any other children.

[1] Defined by the Children Act 1989 as a child who is accommodated by the local authority (Section 20) or a child who is subject to a full Care Order (Section 31) or interim Care Order (Section 38).

[2] The address of the parent(s) or carer(s) with whom the child normally lives and spends the majority of the school week (Mondays to Fridays) including nights. This will not usually include other relatives and if there is a query this will be checked against official documentation with proof of address. Official documentation will be a council tax bill, a recent utility bill (gas, electricity or water), a rental agreement, child benefit annual statement or family tax credit information.
[3] A sibling is defined as a brother or sister, half brother or half sister, adopted brother or sister, step brother or sister or the child of the parent/carer's partner, and in every case the child should be living at the same address. The sibling must be in the school at the time of application and likely to remain in the school at the proposed date of admission.

Note A		The agreed designated catchment area covers the civil parishes of Blunham, Colmworth, Great Barford, Little Barford, Moggerhanger, Ravensden, Renhold (excluding the developments off Norse Road), Roxton, Staploe, Tempsford, Wilden and Willington.
Note B		For the purposes of this policy a 'practising member/Christian' is one who, for a period of twelve months before the application, has regularly attended the church or religious meeting-place on at least six occasions.
Note C		Applicants applying under Categories 4 and 6 will be required to produce written evidence of attendance from their parish priest/appropriate minister/faith leader.  There is a relevant section on the LA’s application form for this purpose.
Note D		Feeder Lower Schools are defined as those within catchment ie. Great Barford, John Donne Blunham, Moggerhanger, Ravensden, Renhold, Roxton, Wilden and Willington.
Note E		For the purposes of the policy Christians, other than the Church of England' are those members of a church which belongs to Churches Together in Great Britain and Ireland and/or The Evangelical Alliance.

In the event of there being an over subscription in any one of the above categories, the determining factor in that category will be the geographical proximity to the school as defined below:

Geographical proximity will be determined as the shortest distance measured in a straight line from the address point of the pupil's home to the main entrance of the school using the Local Authority's computerised mapping system.  Those living closer to the school as determined by this process will be accorded higher priority. The Local Authority is Bedford Borough Council.

In accordance with the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice 2001 and the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Act 2001 the school will not discriminate unreasonably against disabled applicants.  Pupils with Special Educational Needs but without statements will be treated as fairly as all other applicants for admission.  However, there are no specialisms and there is no unit attached to the school.  Modifications to the school building include: wheelchair access via ramps, some widened doors and toilet facilities for the disabled.

In Year Admissions
Requests for admissions to the school into other year groups should be made on the In-Year application form and in accordance with the Local Authority's coordinated scheme for In-Year admissions. The form is available from the school or Local Authority and can also be downloaded from the Local Authority website.

Admission Appeals
Any parent (except, temporarily, the parent of a child who has been permanently excluded from two schools) who is refused a school place for which they have applied, has the right to appeal to an independent appeal panel. The panel is independent of the Governing Body and the Local Authority Admissions Team. Further details regarding the law on admissions and appeals can be obtained from the Local Authority Admissions Team. Should the appeal panel find in favour of the parent, the decision is binding on the school. The panel will consist of people who have experience in education and acquainted with the area.

Waiting List
In the event of more applications than available places the Governing Body will maintain a waiting list. These and late applications will go onto this list in a osition determined by the criteria. If a place becomes available in the school it will be offered in accordance with the waiting list priority. Parents are requested to inform the Governing Body if they wish their child's name to remain on the waiting list. The Governing Body will maintain the list for one term in the academic year of admission.