Wath Church of England Primary School
Introduction
Wath C of E Primary School is an academy within the James Montgomery Academy Trust, which is also within the Diocese of Sheffield and Rotherham Local Authority.
The school provides a distinctively Christian education for children aged 3 to 11 years.
Historically, Anglican schools were parish schools providing education for the community in accordance with the principles of the Church of England. Thus the majority of Sheffield Diocesan schools were established to provide education for the children of the parish within a Christian context. The two aims of being ‘distinctively Christian’ and ‘serving the local community’ are reflected in the school’s admission criteria.
Wath C of E is an academy in which the Governing Body is the Admission Authority and responsible for admissions. It is guided in that responsibility by the requirements of the law, the school trust deed, by advice from the Sheffield Diocesan Board of Education and its duty to the community.
This policy should be read in conjunction with the rest of this booklet.
The admission number for 2024/2025 is 60 and children will be admitted during the autumn term following their 4th birthday. Where parents wish to defer entry or request that the child attends part-time, the request will be considered where it appears to be in the best interest of the child. All children will be admitted by the term following their 5th birthday – compulsory school age
Please contact the school if you need help in completing the Common Application Form or Supplementary Information Form\
Making an application
- Applications are made on the Common Application Form
- To support your application to Wath C of E Primary School, please complete the Supplementary Information Form. This is not an application form for admission to school but will be used by school when applying the admissions criteria.
- The Common Application Form should be submitted by 15/01/25 along with the Supplementary Information Form (if applicable)
Criteria for admission
Children who have a statement of special educational need and the school is named as the most appropriate education setting for the child will be admitted
Oversubscription Criteria
Where there are more applications for admission than the published admission number, the Governing Body/Admissions Committee will apply the following criteria in strict order of priority:
- Children in Care/Looked After Children and Children who were previously in Care/Looked After (see definition 5 – Looked after children)
- Children with special medical or social circumstances where these needs can only be met at this school. This is not about educational needs. Professional supporting evidence must be provided if admission is to be made under this criterion. A professionally qualified person such as a medical doctor,
psychologist or social worker must set out the particular reasons why the school is the suitable one for the child and the difficulties which would be caused if the child had to attend another school - Children who have an elder brother/sister (see definition 1) attending the school at the time at the time of anticipated admission
- Children of parents/carers (see definition 2) who reside in the parish of Wath and regularly (see definition 3) attend the parish church of All Saints.
- Children who reside outside the parish of Wath and regularly attend the parish church of All Saints
- Children of parents /carers who reside in the parish of Wath and regularly attend a Christian denomination participating in ‘Churches Together in England’(see definition 4 )
- Children who are resident in the parish of Wath.
- Children who reside outside the parish of Wath and regularly attend a Christian denomination participating in ‘Churches Together in England’
- Children of staff of the school (see definition 6)
- All other children
Should the admission number be reached mid-category, applications in that category will be prioritised on the shortest distance measured in a straight line from the front door of the child’s home address (including flats) to the main entrance of the school, using the Local Authority’s computerised measuring system, with those living closer to the school receiving higher priority.
Tie Break
In the event of two or more children living equidistant from the school, the place will be decided by drawing lots. The first name drawn will be offered the place.
In Year Transfers
The Local Authority of Rotherham will co-ordinate in year transfers for our school in 2024-2025.
A waiting list will be held by the LA until January 2026 and then a new school waiting list will commence in school for the remainder of the academic year. The waiting list will recommence afresh in the following academic year and continue to refresh each academic year. It will record family details if they have requested to be placed onto the waiting list in the order the request has been made. The F2 list will commence in the January and the other year groups in September.
Definitions Definition 1 -Brother/Sister
Sibling refers to brother or sister, half brother or 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 in the same family unit at the same address
Definition 2- Parent/Carer
A parent/carer is any person who has parental responsibility or care of the child. Where admission arrangements refer to ‘parent’s attendance at church’ it is sufficient for just one parent to attend. ‘Family members’ include only parents and siblings
Definition 3 – Regular Church Attendance
Regular attendance by parents/carers is defined as attendance at a Church of England church or another Christian denomination participating in ‘Churches Together in England’ for at least once a month over the last 12 months.
Regular attendance by children is defined as attendance at a Church of England church or another Christian
denomination participating in Churches Together in England’ at least once a month over the past 6 months. Parents/carers whose application is based on attendance at a church of Christian denomination should submit the Minister of Religion Reference Form available with the Common Application Form
Definition 4 – Churches Together in England
Ref: www.churches-together.org.uk
Please refer to the website for an up to date list.
Definition 5 – Looked after children
A looked after child is a child that is in the care of a local authority, or being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social services functions (see the definition in section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989) at the time an application for admission to the school is made and who the local authority has confirmed will still be looked after at the time when he/she is admitted to the school. A previously looked after child is a child who was adopted or became subject to a residence or special guardianship order immediately following having been looked after.
Definition- 6-Children of Staff at School
Children of staff
- where the member of staff has been employed at the school for two or more years at the time at which the application for admission to the school is made and / or
- the member of staff is recruited to fill a vacant post for which there is a demonstrable skill shortage
Place of residence
The child’s ordinary place of residence will normally be a residential property at which the parent or person or persons with parental responsibility for the child resides at the closing date for receiving applications for admission to the school.
Where parental responsibility is held by more than one person and those persons reside in separate properties, the child’s ordinary place of residence will normally be the property at which the child resides with the parent or person or persons with parental responsibility, for the greater part of the week.
Where residency is split equally between two people with parental responsibility the child’s ordinary place of residence will be deemed to be with the person who received Child Benefit on the 15th January 2024.
Late Applications
Late applications will be dealt with in accordance with the Local Authority scheme.
Waiting List
- Names of children will automatically be placed on the waiting list for this school when the child has been refused admission.
- A vacancy only arises when the number of offers to the school falls below the admission number.
- The waiting list will be established on the offer day.
- The waiting list is determined according to the Governing Body’s priority of admission oversubscription criteria.
- Following the offer day, should an application be received for the school where the pupil has a higher priority as determined by the admissions criteria for a place at the school, it will be placed on the list, above those with a lower priority.
False Information
- Where the Governing Body has made an offer of a place at this school on the basis of a fraudulent or intentionally misleading application from a parent /carer which has effectively denied a place to a child with a stronger claim to a place at the school, the offer of a place will be withdrawn.
- Where a child starts attending the school on the basis of fraudulent and intentionally misleading information the place may be withdrawn depending on the length of time that the child has been at the school.
- Where a place or an offer has been withdrawn, the application will be re-considered and a right of independent appeal offered if the place is refused.
Applications outside the normal admissions round
Applications outside the normal admissions round will be considered in accordance with the Local Authority scheme.
Appeals against the Governing Body’s decision to refuse admission
- If a place is not offered at the school parents have the right of appeal to an Independent Appeal Panel formed in accordance with the legislation. Details of the appeals procedure will be sent to parents by the local authority.
- Parents who intend to make an appeal against the Governing Body’s decision to refuse admission must submit a notice of appeal by the date set out in the decision letter. Appeals will be held within the timescales set out in the Admission Appeal Code.
Governing Body, Wath C of E Primary, Barnsley Rd, Wath Upon Dearne, Rotherham. S63 6PY.