Burton Fields School

Consultation 2026/2027

2025/2026 & 2024/2025

Consultation on 2026/2027 admission arrangements

Central Co-operative Learning Trust is consulting on the Burton Fields Academy 2026 – 27 Admissions Policy. The consultation period will run from the 28th of November 2024 until the 9th of January 2025. As a Trust, we hope that parents and other stakeholders will express their views and any concerns about these proposed changes.

We are consulting on:

● A reduction in the academy’s Pupil Admission Number (PAN) from 60 to 30 pupils effective from 1 September 2026.

● This change is to update the admission number held by the Local Authority and the funding agreement provided by the DFE. 

As a Trust we must consult on our admission arrangements in accordance with the DfE’s 2021 statutory ‘School Admissions Code’ guidance when changes are proposed. Aside from the proposed reduction of the Planned Admission Number, there are no other changes proposed.

In accordance with statutory DfE guidance, the consultation will run for at least six weeks and we invite you to participate in the consultation if you have any comments regarding the matter. 

All responses to the consultation should be made in writing and submitted before the 10th of January 2025 to:

• enquiries@centralclt.com
• Central Co-Operative Learning Trust C/O of Outwoods primary school

Harehedge lane

Burton Upon Trent

DE13 0AS 

Please note that written responses should outline your personal details, including your name, address and relationship, if any, to the academy.

At the end of the consultation period, the Admissions Committee of the Trust will meet to consider responses and prepare a final policy for approval and determination. 

For further information regarding the consultation process, please refer to the FAQs below, hard copies can be requested from the school reception. If you wish to further discuss this matter, or anything mentioned in this letter, please contact 01283372745 

Summary:

Applications have been significantly lower than PAN for over 5 years. Projected pupil numbers for future years are predicted to be significantly lower than the PAN of 60 and pupil numbers in the area have dropped by over 20%. 

Schools are funded using a pupil numbers basis. Having a significant number of spare spaces in school places significant pressure on the school’s budget. Staffing and resource costs have to be maintained with less income. This has placed significant pressure on the school’s budget through additional staffing and resource costs. By lowering the PAN resources can be much more effectively directed to children and help to sustain and improve the quality of their education. If the current situation continues, resources will be diluted and this could potentially have a negative impact on the provision of education in school. Whilst the Trust has continued to support the school with the financial challenges it faces, this is not a long term sustainable solution. Particularly when it is understood that pupil numbers are falling and will continue to fall within the local area.

The local environment has limited spaces for future housing developments, this decreases the likelihood of the number of younger children in the area expanding dramatically. 

There will therefore be no detrimental effect to the vast majority of parents and pupils in relation to the reduction to PAN. The vast majority, if not all, parents/guardians will still be able to access their school of choice and they will continue to be provided with a high quality education. 

FAQs:

Why is this a problem for Burton Fields?

State schools are funded on a per pupil basis. As the number of children on roll decreases, so does the school’s income. A decreasing income means there is less money available to pay for staff, overheads and resources. Consequently, we need to reduce the size of the school, at least in the medium term, in order to continue to balance our budget.

How does the school propose to address this issue?

Having considered multiple scenarios and options, Trustees have reluctantly concluded that the best course of action is to reduce the school’s PAN to 30 from September 2025/26. This proposal will now go to consultation for a minimum of 6 weeks, with a final decision being made by Trustees in January 2025.

What are other Primary Schools doing?

We understand that several other Staffordshire schools are also proposing to reduce their PANs as a consequence of falling numbers. County Admissions will be able to assess and advise whether sufficient places are still being offered by Staffordshire schools as a whole.

What would happen if the PAN remained at 60?

If our PAN remained at 60 we would effectively lose control of the number of children entering school and the number of classes we need to operate. This would then affect how we organise subsequent year groups, the number of classes we operate and the level of occupancy in school. The support we offer through adults and resources will fall in line with income if we do not make changes. This will have a negative impact on children. 

Why not reduce the PAN to 45?

Operating a school with 1.5 form entry is a feasible option, but the demand for places is already below 45 and continuing to fall, the school is still not financially viable even if a stable number of 45 children entered school each year. The school has to plan its provision for what is most likely to be sustainable in the longer term, given current projections.

Can we wait and see?

Unfortunately, we can’t. We need to consult two years in advance of any change. By making the decision now we can plan resources accordingly. However, the decision is reversible if the situation changes. We have already waited to be clearer on the picture of pupil number after the pandemic.

Is the decision to reduce the PAN final?

No. The proposed PAN reduction will now go to consultation for 6 weeks, until December. Trustees must then consider all comments in response to the consultation before making a final decision in January 2025. The school Admission Policy for 2026/27 must then be published no later than March 15th 2025.

What does this mean for school staff?

If demand for primary school places in Staffs and particularly Burton central remains depressed and our PAN remains at 30, it will mean an incremental reduction in the number of classes from 8 to 4 between 2026 and 2032. This is the worst case scenario. However, if demand for places does recover before 2029, it will be relatively easy - since we have sufficient physical capacity - to increase our admission number again and retain or increase the number of classes in school. This could happen if, for example, a new housing development attracts more families than currently expected after 2025.

Will this require staff redundancies?

If demand does not increase and the number of classes reduces, then we will require fewer teachers and TAs. We will probably also need to make reductions in non-classroom headcount over time. It is hoped that any such necessary reductions would be achieved by natural turnover, i.e. a strategy of generally not replacing staff when they leave.

Will this affect the quality of education?

No. Our ethos, curriculum and overall approach will remain unchanged. Although change brings challenges, it also brings many opportunities e.g. greater spending per child on educational resources, more flexibility of space to use creatively, predictable resources making it easier to plan for the long term.

How will this affect sibling admissions?

Siblings receive priority over non-siblings under the admissions policy.

What is the vision for the future of Burton Fields?

We now have 8 full sized classrooms as well as a range of other spaces available for interventions and other activities. Trustees reluctantly took the decision to propose a PAN reduction after much discussion and reflection, with the aim of ensuring that the school continues to operate on a sustainable basis. Governors still want the school’s facilities to be fully exploited, so options for alternative services might also be considered in the future, if spaces become unoccupied. It is the Trustees and Governors’ intention that Burton Fields should be a highly effective school that provides an example to other schools of best practice in many areas. The school’s vision and enthusiasm will not change, and Trustees and Governors remain committed to staff development, to developing an innovative curriculum and to achieving the school’s purpose of developing the potential of our wonderful children through engaging curriculum, highly effective teaching by living our strong values. These aims will remain, whether we complete a reduction to a one form school or can return to a larger size. In order to properly support Burton Fields to continue to develop as a highly effective school, it is important that we ensure that the school has the funds available to provide the necessary levels of staff and other resources, and it is to this end that we are proposing this change.

Admission arrangements 2024/2025 & 2025/2026

1. Introduction

It is CCLT’s policy to try and meet parents’ wishes where possible, however in some cases there may be more applications than there are places available. Admission, when oversubscribed, is determined by the oversubscription criteria contained within this Policy.

2. Subscription Criteria

If the total number of preferences for admission to an Academy exceeds the Published Admission Number (PAN), the following order of priority is used to allocate the available places. (N.B., after applying the oversubscription criteria, where an applicant can be offered a place at more than one preferred academy or school then they will be offered a place at the academy/school ranked highest on their application)

1. Children in care and children who ceased to be in care after because they were adopted (or became subject to a child arrangements order or special guardianship order), including those children who appear (to the admission authority) to have been in state care outside England and ceased to be in state care as a result of being adopted
2. Children of staff employed at Burton Fields for two or more years, or who will fill a skills gap in the event of a shortage
3. Children who have an older brother or sister in attendance at Burton Fields and who will still be attending at the time of the proposed admission date. (For admission purposes, a brother or sister is a child who lives at the same address and either: have one or both natural parents in common; are related by a parents marriage; are adopted or fostered by a common parent or are unrelated children who live at the same address, whose parents live as partners)
4. Children living within the defined catchment
5. Children who satisfy both of the following tests:

Test 1: the child is distinguished from the great majority of other applicants either on their own individual medical grounds or by other exceptional circumstances

Medical grounds must be supported by a medical report (obtained by the applicant and provided at the point of application). This report must clearly justify, for health reasons only, why it is better for the child’s health to attend Burton Fields rather than any other school

Exceptional circumstances must relate to the choice of Burton Fields and the individual child, i.e. the circumstances of the child, not the economic or social circumstances of the parent/carer. They should be supported by a professional report (obtained by the applicant and provided at the point of application), e.g. social worker. This report must clearly justify why it is better for the child to attend the Academy rather than any other school

Test 2: the child would suffer hardship if they were unable to attend the Burton Fields School.

Hardship means severe suffering of any kind, not merely difficulty or inconvenience, which is likely to be experienced as a result of the child attending a different school. Applicants must provide detailed information about both the type and severity of any likely hardship at the time of application.

2.2) Other children arranged in order of priority according to how near their home addresses are to the main gate of the Academy, determined by a straight-line measurement as calculated by the Local Authority’s Geographical Information System.

2.3) Where it is not possible to accommodate all children applying for places within a particular category, then the available places will be allocated in accordance with the remaining criteria. If, for instance, all the catchment area children cannot be accommodated, children who are catchment area children and satisfy category (3) will receive offers of a place, followed by children who live in the catchment area and satisfy category (4), etc.

2.4) Copies of catchment area maps are available from the Local Authority or individual academies/schools. There is no charge or cost related to the admission of a child to the Burton Fields School. Admissions are administered through a coordinated admission scheme and preferences for community, controlled, aided and foundation schools will be processed centrally by the Local Authority. Each child will receive only one offer of a place at a Staffordshire school

2.5) Attendance at a particular infant school or academy will not guarantee admission to Burton Fields School. Parents must make a separate application for admission to the Academy at the appropriate time.

2.6) In accordance with legislation, children who have a statutory statement of Special Educational Need (SEN) or Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) that names Burton Fields School as being the most appropriate to meet the child’s needs must be admitted. This will reduce the amount of places available to other applicants.

2.7) ‘Children in Care’ will mean children who at the time of making the application are in the care of, or provided with accommodation by, a local authority in accordance with section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989

2.8) It is the applicant’s responsibility to provide any supporting information required in order for the application to be assessed against the published admissions criteria, the Academy will not seek to obtain this information on behalf of the applicant.

2.9) The Local Authority uses a Geographical Information System (GIS) to calculate home to school distances in miles. The measurement is calculated using Ordnance Survey (OS) data from an applicant's home address to the main front gate of the Academy. The coordinates of an applicant's home address are determined using the Local Land and Property Gazetteer (LLPG) and OS Address Point data.

2.10) The home address is that considered to be the child’s, along with their parent/carer’s, main and genuine principal place of residence at the time of the allocation of places i.e. where they are normally and regularly living. If a child is resident with friends or relatives (for reasons other than legal guardianship) the friend’s or relative’s address will not be considered for allocation purposes.

2.11) Where parents have shared responsibility for a child, and the child lives with both parents for part of the week, parents will be required to provide documentary evidence to support the address they wish to be considered for allocation purposes.

2.12) If a place is offered on the basis of an address that is subsequently found to be different from a child’s normal and permanent home address then that place is likely to be withdrawn.

2.13) If there are a limited number of spaces available and we cannot distinguish between applicants using the criteria listed, such as in the case of children who live in the same block of flats, then the child or children who will be offered the available spaces will be randomly selected. This process will be independently verified.

3. Waiting Lists

3.1) Unsuccessful applicants will be placed on a waiting list, in accordance with the oversubscription criteria stated above and not based on the date their application was received. If places become available at Burton Fields School after the offer date they will be offered according to the child at the top of the waiting list.

3.2) Inclusion on Burton Fields waiting list does not mean that a place will eventually become available.

3.3) A child’s position on a waiting list is not fixed and is subject to change during the year i.e. they can go up or down the list, since each added child will require the list to be ranked again in-line with the oversubscription criteria listed above.

3.4) Children who are subject of a direction by a local authority to admit or who are allocated to Burton Fields School in accordance with the Fair Access Protocol will take precedence over those on the waiting list.

3.5) The waiting list will be held until the end of the Autumn term of the year of admission to year 3.

4. Late Applications

4.1) Application forms received after the closing date will, wherever possible, be considered alongside those applicants who applied on time. Where it is not practicable because places have already been allocated, or are shortly to be allocated, then late applicants will be considered only after those applicants who applied by the published closing date.

4.2) A late application does not affect the right of appeal or the right to be placed on the Burton Fields School waiting list.

5. Repeat Applications

5.1) Parents do not have the right to a second appeal in respect of Burton Fields School for the same academic year unless, in exceptional circumstances, the Academy has accepted a second application from the appellant because of a significant and material change in the circumstances of the parent, child or Academy but still refused admission.

6. In-Year Transfer Arrangements

6.1) Parents or carers seeking to transfer a child to Burton Fields School may make an application using the appropriate application form. This application will be processed in the normal way but parents and carers must be aware that any date set for joining may be after the next term or half-term holiday, and those parents/carers are responsible for ensuring that their child continues to receive appropriate education in the interim.

7. Arrangements for appeals panels

Parents will have the right of appeal to an independent appeal panel if they are dissatisfied with an admission decision. The appeal panel will be independent of the Academy. The arrangements for appeals will be in line with the Code of Practice on School Admission Appeals published by the Department for Education as it applies to Foundation and Voluntary Aided schools. The decision of the appeal panel will be made in accordance with the Code of Practice on School Admission Appeals and is binding on all parties. Parents who want to appeal against the governors’ decision not to offer their child a place at the Academy must appeal directly to the Academy. The appeal should be addressed in writing to the Academy.

8. Admission Outside the Normal Age Group

Parents may seek to apply for their child’s admission to Burton Fields School outside their normal age group, for example if the child is exceptionally gifted and talented or has experienced problems such as ill health.

These parents will need to make an application alongside children applying at the normal age which should explain why it is in the child’s best interest to be admitted outside their normal age which may include information such as professional evidence as to why this is the case and why an exception should be made in the case of the child. A decision whether this is an appropriate course of action will be made by the Local Governing Body who will take into account the circumstances of the case and views of the Principal. Parents do not have the right to insist that their child is admitted to a particular year group.

Appendix A - In-Year Fair Access Protocol

Why is a Fair Access Protocol Required?

All admission authorities must have Fair Access Protocols in place and all schools must participate in the protocol in order to ensure that unplaced children are offered a place at a suitable school as quickly as possible. This includes admitting children to schools that are already full. The Fair Access Protocol is triggered when an eligible child has not secured a place under in-year admission procedures.

Admission authorities are asked to ensure that no school, including those with places available, is asked to take a disproportionate number of children who have been excluded from other schools or have challenging behaviour. They must also ensure that all children who arrive outside the normal admission round who may have difficulty securing a place are covered by a protocol.

Agreement was reached with the Secondary Head Teachers’ Forum during November 2005 that the way forward was to develop the role of the Head Teachers' Panels (District Inclusion Partnerships) to take overall charge of the placement of children where a school place could not be found quickly. These partnerships deal successfully with a significant number of difficult issues, particularly with regard to excluded or children who are close to permanent exclusion.

Along with devolved funding and responsibility for alternative provision, an agreed protocol can encourage schools to work together in partnership to improve behaviour and tackle persistent absence.

Aims of the Fair Access Protocol

The Fair Access Protocol is designed to:

• Be fair and transparent.
• Acknowledge the need of young people who are not on the roll of any school to be dealt with quickly and sympathetically.
• Recognise the success of proactive work already being undertaken cooperatively between schools to prevent exclusion, and to support children, e.g. through managed moves.
• Reduce the time that these children spend out of school.
• Ensure that schools admit children with challenging educational needs in a manner which takes account of the proportion of children they have already admitted through the District Inclusion Partnership (DIP) process.

Who is covered by the Fair Access Protocol?

It is a legal requirement that “looked after children and previously looked after children” be given first priority for admission to all schools within their oversubscription criteria.

Looked After Children, previously looked after children, children with statements of Special Educational Need are not covered by this Protocol as their needs are considered separately.

Although there is some evidence that at times other children not listed below experience difficulties in attaining a school place, there is already an agreed procedure for dealing with their applications that should be adhered to in all cases including an independent admission appeals system. This process is administered by the School Admissions and Transport Service.

The children covered by the Protocol will be the ones who are vulnerable and for whom it is even more important that they be admitted to a school quickly.

The Fair Access Protocol in Staffordshire covers children who fall into one of the following categories:

• they have been permanently excluded from their previous school
• they are ‘children in care’ or were previously in care
• they are returning to maintained education from secure units or
• they are deemed vulnerable due to their circumstances, e.g. history of poor attendance or fixed term exclusions, new arrivals to the UK
• they are attending PRUs and need to be reintegrated back into mainstream education
• they have been out of education for longer than two months
• they are children whose parents have been unable to find them a place after moving to the area, because of a shortage of places
• they have been withdrawn from schools by their family, following fixed term exclusions and unable to find another place
• they are children of refugees and asylum seekers
• they are homeless children
• they have unsupportive family backgrounds, where a place has not been sought;
• they are known to the police or other agencies
• they are without a school place and with a history of serious attendance problems
• they are Gypsies, Roma or traveller children
• they are carers
• they have special educational needs (but without a statement)
• they have disabilities or medical conditions
• they are returning from the criminal justice system and
• they are children of UK Service personnel and other Crown Servants

Main Principles of the Fair Access Protocol

• All schools take part in the Fair Access Protocol
• There is a general expectation that if a child moves into an area, he/she is admitted to the local catchment area school unless there are very exceptional reasons as to why this should not be the case. Having reached the admission number is not usually considered to be very exceptional unless other circumstances apply
• Schools cannot cite oversubscription as a reason for not admitting pupils under the protocol
• Children considered under this protocol have priority for admission over others on a waiting list or awaiting an appeal
• Schools cannot refuse to admit a child who has been denied a place at that school at appeal, if the protocol identifies that school as the one to admit the child
• It is essential that all children are found places quickly. All parts of the Local
• Authority should be prepared to deal with school admission requests as a matter of urgency

The majority of pupils are already admitted through routine admission procedures. If parents approach the Local Authority for a school place and there appear to be issues that could make the school reluctant to admit, then the procedure is set out in the action table included within this document.

Each case will be considered on an individual basis and, where appropriate, may be referred to the District Inclusion Partnership (DIP), which will make a recommendation. In exceptional circumstances, District Inclusion Partnership’s may consider that particular pupils would be better placed in an alternative to a school placement, such as a short-stay school (PRU), a local FE College, or a place provided by a voluntary organisation.

Where Partnership’s work well, shared ownership at local level means all services share information and take joint responsibility for placing children in the District. There are now eight District Inclusion Partnerships operating across the county whose function is the prevention of permanent exclusions, managed moves and other strategies to support fair access for young people. These Partnerships also play a strategic role in developing and supporting ways of working in each district regarding Inclusion. It is not necessary for all the areas to have identical practice however, there does need to be common outcomes for the children involved. It is expected that schools will organise a meeting with District Support Staff to discuss the arrangements for the child’s admission if necessary.

What happens where no panel exists?

Where there is no DIP then a procedure exists for ensuring admission of children within a reasonably short time scale as follows:

Voluntary Aided, Foundation and Trust Schools

Where a foundation, voluntary aided or trust school has been approached by the Local Authority and has refused to admit the child concerned, parents must be advised of their decision and provided with a right of appeal to an independent appeals panel. Details of the appeal hearing and the outcome afterwards must be provided to the School Admissions and Transport Service. An officer of the School Admissions and Transport Service will then liaise with the designated officer over the appropriate course of action. This will either be the issuing of a direction letter or an alternative placement found.

Community and Voluntary Controlled Schools

In all cases the decision whether a child can be admitted to a community or voluntary controlled school will be made by the Local Authority who is the admitting authority. If a school feels unable to admit a child, the school will need to provide full reasons for this refusal to the School Admissions and Transport Service. An officer of the School Admissions and Transport Service will then liaise with the designated officer over the appropriate course of action. This will either be the issuing of an instruction to admit letter or a refusal letter to parent advising them of their statutory right of appeal. Where the local authority refuses to admit the child an alternative placement must be found.

Academies

Where an academy has been approached by the Local Authority and has refused to admit the child concerned, parents must be advised of their decision and provided with a right of appeal to an independent appeals panel. Details must be provided to the School Admissions and Transport Service of the appeal hearing and the outcome afterwards. An officer of the School Admissions and Transport Service will then liaise with the designated officer over the appropriate course of action. This will either be a referral to the Secretary of State for the issuing of a direction letter or an alternative placement found.

Fair access protocol - actions

1. Actions:
   If parents approach a school requesting a place, they should be given an application form to complete.
   
   The school must: admit the child, or community and voluntary controlled schools: indicate in writing, detailed reasons why they feel unable to accommodate the child academies, trust, foundation and aided schools: refuse in writing and provide a right of appeal with copy to School Admissions and Transport Service, or refer the child to the DIP (where available)
   
   Notes:
   An application form for use by parents is available from the School Admissions and Transport Service or via the intranet / internet.
   
   If a school considers that they have admitted a vulnerable child outside this protocol they should inform the District Inclusion Partnership (DIP) / Inclusion Officer so that this may be recorded.
   
   On arrival of the application form/letter of notification to refuse, the number of days for the admission of the child begins to be counted.
   
   
2. Actions:
   An officer of the School Admissions and Transport Service consults the designated officer to determine if the case should be covered under the protocol.
   
   Notes:
   It may be decided that a referral should be made to the DIP through the Fair Access Protocol or to the Chair of DIP for power to act between meetings.
   
   
3. Actions:
   The DIP should decide which school is to admit, a meeting should then be arranged between school, parent and others to agree an admission plan. If the child cannot be placed within 10 days, go to step 4.
   
   Notes:
   If case is referred to the DIP a decision should be reached within 10 school days.
   
   The DIP may recommend that alternative provision is required (this would usually be in a short-stay school (PRU) but this will usually require entry onto a school roll with a reintegration planned in most cases.
   
   
4. Actions:
   If the school does not admit following the recommendation of the DIP, the school will be asked to make a detailed written case for not admitting if they have not already done so.
   
   Notes:
   Officers will consider the case, including the reasons for the schools refusal and make a recommendation.
   
   A decision will then be taken whether it is appropriate to direct admission or refer back to the District Inclusion Partnership for an alternative placement.
   
   
5. Actions:
   If it becomes clear within the operation of the procedure at any stage that a place is not to be offered at a school requested by the parents, parents must be notified and given a right of appeal to an independent admission appeal panel.
   
   Notes:
   Officers will consider the case, including the reasons for the school’s refusal and make a recommendation.
   
   A decision will then be taken whether it is appropriate to direct admission.
   
   
6. Actions:
   If no DIP exists.
   
   Notes:
   Officers will consider the case, including the reasons for the schools refusal and make recommendations.
   
   A decision will then be taken whether it is appropriate to direct admission or identify an alternative placement.

Rules Governing Directions

Children in care

Power: In relation to a Child in their care, a Local Authority may direct the child's admission into the school of another Admission Authority, provided the child was not permanently excluded from the school.

Legal Authority: Section 97A of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 (SSAFA 1998).

NB: If their circumstances comply with the Education (Infant Class Size) (England) Regulations 1998, a child in care can be admitted to an infant class, above the class size limit.

Procedure: Before deciding to give a direction, the Local Authority must:

• consult with Admission Authority of the school that it is proposing to specify and
• consider representations from the Admission Authority, supplied within seven (7)
• days of consultation

If the Local Authority wishes to proceed with the direction, it must:

• give written notice of its intention on the school's
• Admission Authority
• Local Education Authority, if it is not also the school's Admission Authority
• Head Teacher and
• governing body, if it is a community or voluntary controlled school
• wait seven (7) days from day on which the written notice was served, to enable any of the above to refer the matter to the Schools Adjudicator and
• only issue the direction to those listed above:
  • at the end of that period
  • once the referral to the Schools Adjudicator has been resolved

Legal Authority: Section 97A to 97C of the SSAFA 1998 and Section 25(3A) of the SSAFA1998.

Other children

Power: In relation to any child within their area, a Local Authority may direct that the child is admitted into the school of another Admission Authority, where:

• the child has been refused admission to the school
• the child was not permanently excluded from the school
• their admission would not cause class size prejudice
• the school is a reasonable distance from the child's home and
• the school provides a suitable education

Legal Authority: Sections 96 and 86(3) of the SSAFA 1998.

Procedure: Before deciding to give a direction, the Local Authority must consult with:

• the parent of the child and
• the governing body of the school that it is proposing to specify

If the Local Authority wishes to proceed with the direction, it must:

• give written notice of its intention on the school's:
  • head Teacher and
  • governing body

Wait fifteen (15) days from the day on which the written notice was served, to enable either of the above to refer the matter to the Schools Adjudicator and

• only issue the direction to those listed above
• at the end of that period or
• once the referral to the Schools Adjudicator has been resolved

Legal Authority: Section 97 of the SSAFA 1998.

Community and voluntary controlled schools

Duty: The governing body of a community or voluntary controlled school must implement any decision relating to the admission of pupils to their school, taken by or on behalf of the school's Admission Authority; this includes a decision to admit in order to comply with parental preference.

Legal Authority: Sections 86(2) and 88(1) (A) of the SSAFA 1998.

Complaints: If the governing body of a community or voluntary controlled school does not wish to implement the decision of the Admission Authority, a complaint about the matter can be referred to the Secretary of State by either the Admission Authority or the governing body.

Legal Authority: Sections 495 and 496 of the Education Act 1996.

Academies

The Secretary of State has the power under an Academy’s Funding Agreement to direct an Academy to admit a child, and can seek advice from the Adjudicator in reaching a decision.