Admissions Policies
Coundon Court's Admissions Policy
(This applies to students who wish to attend Coundon Court from September 2013)
Coundon Court is an inclusive school welcoming children from across the area and beyond. The Governors are committed to ensuring that the admissions to Coundon Court reflect the full range of ability.
Year 7 admissions to Coundon Court will be co-ordinated through Coventry LA’s Co-ordinated Scheme. Applications should be submitted to the Local Authority on the Common Application Form to reflect its timetable.
The admission number for each school year is 270.
The admission arrangements described in this document will apply to admissions for September 2013 and subsequent years.
Oversubscription Criteria:
If there are more requests for a school place than there are places available within the school's admission number, places will be allocated in accordance with the following criteria and in the order shown below:
| 1 | Children who, at the time of admission, are in the care of the local authority or are provided with accommodation by the authority (looked-after children). Also children who were previously looked-after but ceased to be so because they were adopted, or became subject to a Residence Order or a Special Guardianship Order. A looked-after child is defined in Section 22 of the Children Act 1989. |
| 2 | Children who live in the catchment area served by the school, who have a brother or sister attending the school provided that the brother or sister will be of compulsory school age and will continue to attend that school the following year. |
| 3 | Other children who live in the catchment area served by the school. |
| 4 | Children living outside the catchment area with a brother or sister who currently attends the school, provided that the brother or sister will be of compulsory school age and will continue to attend that school the following year. |
| 5 | Children by reference to the distance to the school. |
Brothers and Sisters
The Governors see the benefits of children from the same family attending the same school and give priority to brother and / or sister connections in its policy for allocating places. The definition of brother or sister includes step-brothers, step-sisters, half-brothers, half-sisters and adopted brothers and sisters living at the same permanent address. However, where the school is over-subscribed no guarantee can be given that places will be available for brothers and sisters.
Compulsory School Age
Brothers and sisters are required to be of compulsory school age within the oversubscription criteria. This means they must be attending in Years 7 to 11 at the time that the applicant would be joining the school.
Distance
If it is not possible to meet all of the requests in any one of the categories described above, the Governors will prioritise the requests within that category by reference to distance. A straight-line measurement will be made, using a computerised mapping system, from the centre of the child's residence - to the centre of the school site. The address used must be the child's permanent home address. The shortest measurement will have the highest priority. Where the final place in a year group can be taken by two or more children living an equal distance from the school, the Governors will select by drawing lots.
Confirmation of Address
A pupil's home address is considered to be a residential property that is the child's only or main residence. At the time places are allocated, proof of permanent residence at the property concerned will be confirmed with each child’s primary school. In any case of dispute, parents will be asked to provide appropriate documentary evidence to confirm address and residency. Where documentary evidence can substantiate, to the satisfaction of the Governors, that care is split equally between parents at two homes, parents must name the address to be used for the purpose of allocating a school place.
If a place is offered on the basis of an address that is subsequently found to be false or misleading in order to gain entry to the school, then that place may be withdrawn.
Catchment Area
One of the aims of our school is to serve our neighbourhood and develop links with our local community to strengthen and support both the school and the community. The area served by a school is known as the catchment area and details of our catchment area are available from the Admissions and Benefits team.
Special Educational Needs
All children whose statement of Special Educational Need names the school will be admitted.
Late Applications
The closing date for applications in the normal admissions round is 31 October of the year preceding admission. After that date, the Local Authority will continue to receive applications but these will be considered to be late and may not be processed until after 1 March of the year of admission.
Appeals
Parents who wish to appeal against the fact that their child has not been allocated a place at the school may apply to the Academy Trust who will arrange for appeals to be registered. Appeals will be heard by an independent panel.
Waiting Lists
Where, in any year, the school receives more applications for places than there are places available a waiting list will be maintained from 1 September to 31 December of the year to which the allocation applies. It will be open to any parent to ask for his or her child’s name to be placed on the waiting list, following an unsuccessful application.
Parents who wish for their children to continue to be considered for any places that become available after the end of the autumn term must re - register their interest with the school. Children’s position on the waiting lists will be determined solely in accordance with the oversubscription criteria set out in above. Where places become vacant they will be allocated to children on the waiting list in accordance with the published oversubscription criteria.
Fair Access Protocol
The Academy Trust will support the LA policy for admission of previously excluded or hard to place children.
In Year Admissions
Coundon Court will consider all in year applications for admissions and if the year group applied for has a place available, a place will be offered. Any in-year applications should be made to the school directly. The Academy trust will notify and liaise with the Local Authority to co-ordinate all such applications and inform applicants of decisions. If a place is not available, the parent can ask for his or her child to be added to the waiting list. Applicants who are unsuccessful in securing a place will be offered the right of appeal.
Arrangements for Admission to Post-16 Provision
There is no planned admission number for Year 12 as this is not considered a normal year of entry. However, if applications are excessive priority will be given to students who transfer from Year 11 of the school before additional places are allocated to students from other establishments.
Full details of the minimum entry requirements for all year 12 courses are published in our prospectus. Students are considered for entry based on their academic attainment, individual subject grade criteria at GCSE, the availability and suitability of courses as well as other measures of prior attainment.
Applicants unsuccessful in securing a place in Year 12 are entitled to appeal to an independent appeal panel.
The "InYear Admissions Policy" can be downloaded from here
