Cannock Chase High School
2025/2026 and 2024/2025
2022/2023 & 2023/2024
This Policy ensures there is a fair admissions procedure for all applicants and helps guide parents through the application process.
The first priority for admission will normally be given to students resident within the catchment area of the school. Only when those students have been accommodated and places still remain vacant, will consideration be given to other students.
If the number of students seeking admission to the school exceeds the school's PAN of 220 per year group, the following order of priority is used to allocate the available places.
a) Relevant Looked After Children (LAC) and Previously Looked After Children (PLAC) 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 (IAPLAC);
b) Students living within the catchment area of the school;
c) Students who have an elder sibling in attendance at the school and who will still be attending at the proposed admission date; (for admission purposes, a sibling is a child who lives at the same address and who is the brother/sister, half-brother/sister (children who share one common parent), or stepbrother/sister where two children are related by marriage. This definition also includes adopted or fostered children living at the same address.)
d) Students who satisfy both of the following criteria:
1: They are distinguished from the great majority of applicants either on medical grounds or by other exceptional circumstances.
Medical grounds must be supported by a medical report (obtained by the parents). It must clearly justify, for health reasons only, why it is better for the child to attend Cannock Chase High School rather than any other school.
Exceptional circumstances must relate to the choice of school, i.e. the circumstances of the child, not the economic or social circumstances of the parent. They should be supported by a professional report, e.g. social worker, justifying why it is better for the child to attend the Cannock Chase High School rather than any other school.
2: They would suffer hardship if they were unable to attend the Cannock Chase High 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. Parents must provide detailed information about both the type and severity of any likely hardship.
e) Other students arranged in order of priority according to how near their home addresses are to the main gate of the school by the straight line distance as measured by the Local Authority’s Geographical Information Systems.
Where it is not possible to accommodate all students within a particular group, the Governing Body will allocate the available places in accordance with the remaining criteria, e.g. if there are insufficient places for all catchment area students, places will be offered to those who live in the catchment area and also satisfy criteria (c) and so on.
All applications are considered against these published criteria, with no priority awarded for early applications.
In accordance with legislation, children who have a statutory Education Health and Care Plan that names the school as being the most appropriate to meet the child's needs, will be admitted. This may reduce the amount of places available to other applicants.
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 school. The co-ordinates of an applicant's home address is determined and provided by the Local Land and Property Gazetteer (LLPG) and OS Address Point data
Where a student lives at two different addresses, the ‘home’ address will be determined as the address the child lives at for the majority of the school week (Sunday to Thursday evening inclusive).
If a child’s home address changes during the admissions process it is the responsibility of the parent/carer to inform the Local Authority immediately. Where there is a proposed house move taking place during the admissions process the Academy will only accept the revised address for purposes of allocation where parents/carers can provide documentary evidence of the move by 27 January 2024. It will be necessary for sufficient evidence of a permanent move to be provided by the applicant by this date before it will be taken into account for allocation purposes at the national offer date.
Waiting Lists
A Waiting List will be operated in admission criteria order and will remain open to the end of December each year and will then be discarded. Parents may apply to remain on the Waiting List if they so wish.
Late Applications
Application forms received after the closing date will be considered alongside those applicants who applied on time when there were exceptional reasons which prevented the applicant from applying by the closing date, eg a family changes its address and was unable to apply within the deadline, or needs to make new school preferences. A late application does not affect the right of appeal or to be placed on a school’s Waiting List.
Requests for places outside curriculum year
Occasionally, parents may request a place for their child outside their normal age group. The decision whether a child is admitted outside their normal age group will be made on a case by case basis. In order to support decision-making, parents will be asked to provide any evidence to demonstrate that the admission into a different year group is in the best interests of the child and would not be to the detriment of any other students’ learning in that year group.
Appeals
The Governors’ Admissions Appeals Panel will meet, if required, to make formal decisions once the school’s numbers have been filled to capacity. You do have the right to appeal against this decision to an Independent Appeals Panel. Further details and appeal forms can be found on our website. If you decide to appeal a completed appeal form should be returned to the Independent Appeal Panel, Administrative Support Team, County Buildings, Martin Street, Stafford, ST16 2LH as soon as possible.
Repeat Applications
The Governors will not consider repeat applications in the same academic year unless there have been significant and material changes in the circumstances of the applicant.
Mid-Year Applications
At Cannock Chase High School, we operate an open door policy where we welcome interested applicants to visit our school before applying for a place. To arrange a visit please email t.white@cannockchase-high.staffs.sch.uk
The Governors will adopt the current Staffordshire County Council Co-ordinated Mid-Year Admission Scheme; the Governing Body remains as the relevant admission authority for the school.
Where there is insufficient space within teaching groups appropriate to the level of ability of an individual student in a specific Year group, this will be a consideration in accepting or refusing an in-year application, even if there are spaces within the year group as a whole. The educational needs of each individual student and the school’s ability to meet those needs will be the prime considerations in making this decision.
Mid-Year Application Forms are on the Staffordshire County Council website.
Sixth Form Admissions
For more information regarding the process of applications to Cannock Chase High School Sixth Form please contact the Assistant Headteacher (Post 16).
Sixth Form applications should be made through the school website.
Applications are welcomed from young people of academic age 16 or 17, both from those who currently study at Cannock Chase High School and those who study at external providers in Key Stage 4.
Following the submission of an online application, Sixth Form applicants are invited to interview with members of the school’s Leadership Team, which involves the discussion of post 16 pathways informed by the student’s most recent Key Stage 4 report/progress check. Following this interview, conditional offers are published based on the entry criteria for Level 3 and/or Level 2 courses.
Students are invited to the Sixth Form Taster Week, providing the opportunity for all students to get information and guidance regarding life as a Cannock Chase High School Sixth Form student.
On GCSE Results Day, students should bring their conditional offer along with confirmation of their results in order to formally enrol.
All conditional offers are provisional and the school withholds the right to withdraw an offer for post 16 study should a student demonstrate behaviours that are not in-keeping with the values and expectations of Cannock Chase High School.
Removal from School Roll
The local authority will be informed when a student will be removed from the school admission register for the following reasons:
- The school has received written notification from a parent that their child is being educated outside the school system;
- When a student has ceased to attend school and no longer lives within reasonable distance of the school;
- When a student has been in custody for a period of more than 4 months or we believe they will not be returning to school;
- When a student has been permanently excluded.
If you require this policy in another format please contact office@cannockchase-high.staffs.sch.uk.
This Policy ensures there is a fair admissions procedure for all applicants and helps guide parents through the application process.
The first priority for admission will normally be given to students resident within the catchment area of the school. Only when those students have been accommodated and places still remain vacant, will consideration be given to other students.
If the number of students seeking admission to the school exceeds the school's PAN of 220 per year group, the following order of priority is used to allocate the available places.
a) Relevant Looked After Children (LAC) and Previously Looked After Children (PLAC) 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 (IAPLAC);
b) Students living within the catchment area of the school;
c) Students who have an elder sibling in attendance at the school and who will still be attending at the proposed admission date; (for admission purposes, a sibling is a child who lives at the same address and who is the brother/sister, half-brother/sister (children who share one common parent), or step-brother /stepsister where two children are related by marriage. This definition also includes adopted or fostered children living at the same address.)
d) Students who satisfy both of the following criteria:
1: They are distinguished from the great majority of applicants either on medical grounds or by other exceptional circumstances.
Medical grounds must be supported by a medical report (obtained by the parents). It must clearly justify, for health reasons only, why it is better for the child to attend Cannock Chase High School rather than any other school.
Exceptional circumstances must relate to the choice of school, i.e. the circumstances of the child, not the economic or social circumstances of the parent. They should be supported by a professional report, e.g. social worker, justifying why it is better for the child to attend the Cannock Chase High School rather than any other school.
2: They would suffer hardship if they were unable to attend the Cannock Chase High 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. Parents must provide detailed information about both the type and severity of any likely hardship.
e) Other students arranged in order of priority according to how near their home addresses are to the main gate of the school by the straight line distance as measured by the Local Authority’s Geographical Information Systems.
Where it is not possible to accommodate all students within a particular group, the Governing Body will allocate the available places in accordance with the remaining criteria, e.g. if there are insufficient places for all catchment area students, places will be offered to those who live in the catchment area and also satisfy criteria (c) and so on.
All applications are considered against these published criteria, with no priority awarded for early applications.
In accordance with legislation, children who have a statutory Education Health and Care Plan or Statement of special educational need that names the school as being the most appropriate to meet the child's needs, will be admitted. This may reduce the amount of places available to other applicants.
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 school. The co-ordinates of an applicant's home address is determined and provided by the Local Land and Property Gazetteer (LLPG) and OS Address Point data
Where a student lives at two different addresses, the ‘home’ address will be determined as the address the child lives at for the majority of the school week (Sunday to Thursday evening inclusive).
If a child’s home address changes during the admissions process it is the responsibility of the parent/carer to inform the Local Authority immediately. Where there is a proposed house move taking place during the admissions process the Academy will only accept the revised address for purposes of allocation where parents/carers can provide documentary evidence of the move by 12 March. It will be necessary for sufficient evidence of a permanent move to be provided by the applicant by this date before it will be taken into account for allocation purposes at the national offer date.
Waiting Lists
A Waiting List will be operated in admission criteria order and will remain open to the end of December each year and will then be discarded. Parents may apply to remain on the Waiting List if they so wish.
Late Applications
Application forms received after the closing date will be considered alongside those applicants who applied on time where there were exceptional reasons which prevented the applicant from applying by the closing date, eg a family changes its address and was unable to apply within the deadline, or needs to make new school preferences. A late application does not affect the right of appeal or to be placed on a school’s Waiting List.
Requests for places outside curriculum year
Occasionally, parents may request a place for their child outside their normal age group. The decision whether a child is admitted outside their normal age group will be made on a case by case basis. In order to support decision-making, parents will be asked to provide any evidence to demonstrate that the admission into a different year group is in the best interests of the child and would not be to the detriment of any other students’ learning in that year group.
Appeals
The Governors’ Admissions Appeals Panel will meet, if required, to make formal decisions once the school’s numbers have been filled to capacity. You do have the right to appeal against this decision to an Independent Appeals Panel. Further details and appeal forms can be found on our website. If you decide to appeal a completed appeal form should be returned to the Independent Appeal Panel, Administrative Support Team, County Buildings, Martin Street, Stafford, ST16 2LH as soon as possible.
Repeat Applications
The Governors will not consider repeat applications in the same academic year unless there have been significant and material changes in the circumstances of the applicant.
Mid-Year Applications
At Cannock Chase High School, we operate an open door policy where we welcome interested applicants to visit our school before applying for a place. To arrange a visit please email t.white@cannockchase-high.staffs.sch.uk
The Governors will adopt the current Staffordshire County Council Co-ordinated Mid-Year Admission Scheme; the Governing Body remains as the relevant admission authority for the school.
Where there is insufficient space within teaching groups appropriate to the level of ability of an individual student in a specific Year group, this will be a consideration in accepting or refusing an in-year application, even if there are spaces within the year group as a whole. The educational needs of each individual student and the school’s ability to meet those needs will be the prime considerations in making this decision.
Mid-Year Application Forms are on the Staffordshire County Council website.
Sixth Form Admissions
For more information regarding the process of applications to Cannock Chase High School Sixth Form please contact the Assistant Headteacher (Post 16).
Sixth Form applications should be made through the school website
Applications are welcomed from young people of academic age 16 or 17, both from those who currently study at Cannock Chase High School and those who study at external providers in Key Stage 4.
Following the submission of an online application, Sixth Form applicants are invited to interview with members of the school’s Leadership Team, which involves the discussion of post 16 pathways informed by the student’s most recent Key Stage 4 report/progress check. Following this interview, conditional offers are published based on the entry criteria for Level 3 and/or Level 2 courses.
Students are invited to the Sixth Form Taster Week, providing the opportunity for all students to get information and guidance regarding life as a Cannock Chase High School Sixth Form student.
On GCSE Results Day, students should bring their conditional offer along with confirmation of their results in order to formally enrol.
All conditional offers are provisional and the school withholds the right to withdraw an offer for post 16 study should a student demonstrate behaviours that are not in-keeping with the values and expectations of Cannock Chase High School.
Removal from School Roll
The local authority will be informed when a student will be removed from the school admission register for the following reasons:
- The school has received written notification from a parent that their child is being educated outside the school system;
- When a student has ceased to attend school and no longer lives within reasonable distance of the school;
- When a student has been in custody for a period of more than 4 months or we believe they will not be returning to school;
- When a student has been permanently excluded.
If you require this policy in another format please contact office@cannockchase-high.staffs.sch.uk.