ADMISSIONS ARRANGEMENTS – September 2023

Icknield High School is a mixed comprehensive school in Luton for children aged 11-16.

General Principles

Students will be admitted at age 11 without reference to ability or aptitude. The Published Admissions Number (the number of intended admissions) will be 295, and applications close on a determined date each year as per the co-ordinated admission scheme.

The school operates an equal preference system which means applications will be considered according to the following criteria regardless of any indicated preference ranking. Parents/Carers will need to complete and return Luton Local Authority’s common application form for transfer to High School before the published closing date.

Ethos Statement

The ethos of the school is one whereby we uphold traditional values such as uniform, good behaviour, courtesy, hard work and respect for self, others and the school. This is coupled with a commitment to ‘Raising the Achievement of All’, aiming to fulfil the potential of every student through an innovative approach to learning and teaching blending the best of old and new within a supportive partnership with parents. We ask all parents applying for a place here to respect and commit to this ethos and its importance to our school community.

Admissions

In accordance with the Education Act 1996, children with a Statement of SEN or an Education, Health or Care Plan are required to be admitted to the school named in the Statement/Plan. Thereafter, the following priorities will apply:

Oversubscription:

Should there be more applications than places available, the following criteria will apply, in the order set out below, to decide which children to admit:-

Children in public care/looked after children - children who are looked after by a local authority or a child who was previously looked after but immediately after being looked after became subject an adoption, child arrangements, or special guardianship order, (see (vi) below) where the person with parental responsibility completed the application form expressing a written preference for the school.
Children of staff who work at the school
Students having their current home address within the present LA designated catchment area.
Siblings of students attending the school at the time of proposed admission.
Medical grounds, supported by an appropriate medical certificate, which confirms that Icknield is the only school that can meet the child’s needs.
Any other applicant.

The school will make every effort to accommodate all students living in the catchment area, if necessary the school will admit a small number of students over the 295 admission number in agreement with the Local Authority (as set out in paragraph 1.18 of the Admission Code). If this is done, it does not alter the published admissions number and the waiting list will only be activated once the roll for that year drops below 295 through natural wastage. This arrangement applies only to oversubscription criteria 3.

For the new school intake year 7 names will be held on a waiting list until 31^st July 2022, however applications received in the summer term 2022 will remain on the waiting list until July 2023. Parents will need to reapply for a place at their preferred school after this date if they wish their child’s name to be carried forward on the waiting list.

For all other year groups, unsuccessful applications received from the start of the autumn term 2021 until the end of the spring term 2022 will be placed on the waiting list until 31^st July 2022. Applications received from the start of the summer term 2022 to the end of the academic year will be placed on a waiting list until 31^st July 2023

Waiting lists are not based on the date the application was added to the list. In negotiation with the Local Authority the school accepts Students in line with the In Year Fair Access Protocol for Luton Secondary Schools.

Admission of children outside the normal age group

Parents seeking a place for their child outside of the chronological age group should submit their written case to the Admission Committee. Parents should include information regarding the child’s academic, social and emotional development and whether they have previously been educated outside of their normal age group. If the child has been born prematurely, parents should include these details in their application. Applications relating to the Year 7 admissions round will also be discussed with relevant local authority professionals. Decisions will be made based on the circumstances of each case and parents will be informed of the reason for the decision in writing.

Appeals:

The School will establish arrangements for appeals against non-admission which will be entirely independent of the Governing Body. Details of the admissions and appeals arrangements will be published each year.

Please Note:

(i) This policy does not guarantee a place at Icknield High school to children living in or moving into the catchment area.

(ii) Applications received after the closing date will not be considered in the initial allocation of places, except in very exceptional circumstances. Late applications will be offered a place at the school should one exist but will otherwise be placed on waiting list with places allocated as per the oversubscription criteria above.

(iii) In Year admissions will be filled as places become available from the waiting list held by the Local

Authority. In-Year admissions for Years 7-11 are applications to enter a year group that has already started at the school. Parents seeking a place at Icknield High School should complete the Council’s In-Year Application Form and return this form directly to the Council. The Council will then liaise with all the schools listed as a preference to ascertain which (if any) preferences can be met. If a pupil qualifies for a place at more than one school the parent’s highest ranked preference will be offered and any lower ranking offers will be disregarded.

(iv) The School defines terms such as sibling, home address and medical grounds for example according to the published Local Authority definitions.

(v) The distance criterion will also be used as the "tie-breaker" for situations where the number of places allocated within any of criteria (2) to (6) above reaches the published Admissions Number. The distance criterion is measured on the shortest straight line distance from the central school quadrangle to the student’s home address*, with those living closer to the school being accorded the higher priority.

(vi) 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 (section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989). An adoption order is an order under the Adoption Act 1976 (see section 12 adoption orders) and children who were adopted under the Adoption and Children’s Act 2002 (see section 46 adoption orders. A ‘child arrangements order’ is an order settling the arrangements to be made as to the person with whom the child is to live under Section 8 of the Children Act 1989 as amended by s.14 of the Children and Families Act 2014. Section 14A of the Children Act 1989 defines a ‘special guardianship order’ as an order appointing one or more individuals to be a child’s special guardian (or special guardians).

(vii) Details of the schools catchment area can be found at:www.luton.gov.uk/admissions.

*the home address is measured from a point at the address identified in the local Land and Property