School Admissions

1. Admission

The School Standards and Framework Act 1998 assigns functions to Admission Authorities, Appeal Panels and Admission Forums in relation to the admission of pupils to school.

Each of these bodies has a statutory duty to “act” in accordance with the School Admissions Code and the Schools Admission Appeals Code.

 

2. Admission authorities

2.1 For Community and Voluntary Controlled Schools

In the case of Community and Voluntary Controlled schools within Pembrokeshire, the Admission Authority is Pembrokeshire County Council (the LA). The contact details for Pembrokeshire County Council are as follows:-

Admissions Team - Education Directorate

County Hall
Haverfordwest 
Pembrokeshire 
SA61 1TP

Tel: 01437 764551

Email: admissions@pembrokeshire.gov.uk

Applications should be made using the online admission form, accessed via the Pembrokeshire County Council website.

 

2.2 For Voluntary Aided Schools

For Voluntary Aided schools (Church in Wales or Catholic) the Admission Authority is the School Governing Body. Applications are made online in the same way as above, and will be passed from the Local Authority to the relevant school.

 

2.3 For Schools in Neighbouring Authorities

Pembrokeshire shares its borders with Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion local authorities. Should you wish your child to attend a school in either of these authorities, then you should contact that Authority directly.

5. Admission timetable - Normal admission rounds

 

Provision	Age	Starting School	Closing Date for Applying	Offer/ Notification Date	Appeals Closing Date
Nursery place	3rd Birthday 1st Sept 2021 to 31st Aug 2022	January, April, September 2025	30th April 2024	By end of July 2024	No Right of Appeal
Reception place (There is no automatic transfer from the Nursery age provision – a separate application will be required).	4th Birthday 1st Sept 2019 to 31st Aug 2020	Autumn term 2024	31st January 2024	16th April 2024	10 Working Days from Receipt of Refusal Letter
Secondary School transfer (Applications for primary pupils starting Year 7 in secondary schools)	11th Birthday 1st Sept 2012 to 31st Aug 2013	Autumn term Sept 2024	22nd December 2023	1st March 2024	10 Working Days from Receipt of Refusal Letter

 

6. Admission process

6.1 Parental Preference

While most parents send their child to the nearest school, they have a right to state a preference for any Pembrokeshire school.

Parents can express a preference for their chosen school; however, there is no guarantee for admission to the chosen school, even if they are living in the catchment area.

Parents, and in the case of sixth form admissions, young people, may express a preference for a school and subject to exceptions set out in legislation the admission authority must meet that preference. The exceptions include:-

• Where compliance with the preference would prejudice the provision of efficient education or the efficient use of resources, which in essence, means that if there is insufficient capacity and resources available in the school, the place will not be provided. 
• Where arrangements for entry to a school’s sixth form are based wholly on selection by reference to ability or aptitude and compliance with the preference would be incompatible with selection under those arrangements.
• Where a child has been permanently excluded from two or more schools and the latest exclusion took place within the last two years.

Changes to school preferences can be made at any time up to the closing date and parents will need to do this in writing (to the Admission Team) and also submit a new application.

Any change to school preference after the closing date will be treated as a late application. If the Local Authority is unable to offer a place at the first choice then the second choice will be considered.

 

6.2 School selection 

Whichever school parents decide on, it is recommended that they contact, discuss and visit their school(s) of choice so that they are aware of the facilities and opportunities they are able to offer.

 

6.3 Applying for a school place 

All applications for school places should be made online via the Council’s website  (with the exception of applications for places in a secondary school’s sixth form, which are made directly to the school).

All applications will need to be completed and submitted by the closing date as set out in the Admission Timetable in Section 5. After the closing date, all applications received by that date will be considered.

Parents are encouraged to read the Information for Parents Handbook and must confirm parental responsibility for the child they are applying for and that they have the agreement of all other persons with parental responsibility to do so, prior to completing the online form.  It should be noted that schools are encouraged to assist parents in completing the online form in the event of being unable to access a computer at home.  In exceptional circumstances, for example, where parents do not have an email address, hard copy forms are available from the Admissions Team.

Parents are able to establish the name and location of their local school by entering their home postcode into the “Services in your Area” search facility on the Pembrokeshire County Council website. Upon choosing the actual address on the subsequent screen, a list of “Nearby Services” is displayed; pressing the “Schools” button will display a list of all catchment schools for the address in question.  Information on school catchment areas can also be obtained from the Schools and Learning section of the website and then following the Schools section. Details of all schools, in their clusters, are shown, including catchment maps.

 

6.4 Early applications

Parents may apply for a place for their child in nursery at any time from birth. Applications received in advance of the normal admission rounds (based on the child’s date of birth) will be acknowledged, held on file and processed at the appropriate time. No priority is given to early applications.

 

6.5 Late applications

Applications received after the closing date will be deemed to be late (unless there are exceptional reasons) and only considered after those received by the closing date. An exceptional reason would be any situation that prevented the family from applying on time. In these cases, the family should include supporting documents with the applications e.g. where a family moved into the Local Authority between the closing date and the offer date then evidence of the change of address would be required.

 

6.6 Allocating places

The Local Authority will admit children up to the Admission Number (AN) of the preferred school. Where the final place allocated (up to the admission number) is one of a multiple birth then the Local Authority will also admit the other sibling(s).

The admission number (AN) specifies the number of pupils who can be admitted to each year group in the school

The AN for each school is given in Appendix A: School Admissions Numbers

The number calculated using the Welsh Government Formula - 'Measuring the capacity of schools in Wales'. This document is available on the Welsh Government website

 

6.7 Over subscription criteria

Children with a statement of Special Educational Needs or Individual Development Plan (IDP) naming a particular school will be admitted to that school. Where the number of applications on behalf of other pupils is equal to or less than the number of places remaining, all applications will be agreed.

In cases where the number of applications exceeds the AN then school places will be allocated as per the following oversubscription criteria (listed in priority order):

1. Current and former Looked After Children of authorities in Wales and England in accordance with Section 22 of the Children Act 1989 as amended by the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 (Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2016.
2. Pupils with a statement of Special Educational Needs or Individual Development Plan (IDP) that names the school.
3. Exceptional medical, psychological or additional learning needs (see note a.).
4. Pupils living in the catchment area of the school who will have a sibling of compulsory school age at the school at the time of admission (see note b.).
5. Pupils living in the catchment area of the school who have attended a feeder school (see note c.).
6. Pupils living in the catchment area of the school at the time of admission.
7. Pupils living outside the catchment area of the school who will have a sibling of compulsory school age at the school at the time of admission (see note b.).
8. Pupils living outside of the catchment area of the school who have attended a feeder school (see note c.).
9. Pupils living outside of the catchment area of the school.

Where more than one child meets these criteria and applicants still remain then the child living nearest to the school will be admitted. All distances will be measured by the shortest walking distance (using the Council’s Geographical Information System) between the nearest available school gate and the point where the child’s home meets the public highway.

For the oversubscription categories that include a sibling criteria (categories 4 and 7), if preferences exceed places available priority will be given to those pupils who are closest in age to the younger sibling already at the school (e.g. for a primary school admission, a pupil with a sibling in year 3 would have higher priority than a pupil with a sibling in year 6; for a secondary school admission a pupil with a sibling in year 9 would have higher priority than a pupil with a sibling in year 11).

In the case of a 3-16 or 3-19 school, a pupil with a sibling in a separate phase will not meet the criteria in categories 4 and 7 by virtue of the school having separate admission numbers for primary and secondary phases (e.g. a primary aged pupil with a secondary aged sibling in the same school).

Notes

Medical or Psychological Needs

A medical or psychological need can be for either the child or their parents. To be considered under this criterion parents must provide independent supporting evidence at the time of application which sets out why the preferred school is the most suitable school for the child and the difficulties that would be caused if the child had to attend a different school. 

Supporting evidence which would be considered appropriate would include:

1. Letter or report from one of the following registered health professionals: Specialist Consultant, Community Paediatrician, Psychologist, Educational Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Physiotherapist, Occupational Therapist.  The letter or report must be based on the professional’s own knowledge of the child / parent’s condition and circumstances.
2. Letter or report from a registered social work professional which must be based on their own knowledge of the child / parent’s condition and circumstances. 

No priority will be given under this criterion if the required evidence is not produced at the time of application.

Additional Learning Needs must be confirmed by the Local Authority’s Inclusion Service.

Sibling

A sibling is a full, half or step brother or sister, or adopted or foster children, living in the same household at the time of admission. 

Feeder School

A feeder school is a primary school within the same ‘cluster of schools’ as a secondary school.

 

6.8 Home address 

A pupil’s home address is a residential property that is the child’s only or main residence. Either:

• 6.8.1 owned by the parent(s) or the person with a defined legal parental responsibility for the child; or
• 6.8.2 is leased to or rented by the child’s parent(s) or the person with parental responsibility under a written rental agreement.

Where there is a shared parental responsibility for a child, and that child lives with both parents or person with a legal parental responsibility, for part of the week, then the main residence will be determined as the address where the child lives for the majority of the school week (i.e. 3 out of 5 days) or the address to which the Child Benefit is paid.

The LA reserves the right to request proof of address at any time during the admission process.

 

6.9 Moving address

Where a family is moving and parents apply for admission to a school based on their new address the Local Authority may take steps to verify the arrangements. The Local Authority will accept either:

• 6.9.1 A solicitors letter stating that the contract has been exchanged and specifying a completion date;
• 6.9.2 A signed and dated tenancy agreement.

If proof of the new address cannot be given then the application will be based on the current address.

 

6.10 Admissions to Portfield Special School and School based learning resource centres (attached units)

Admissions to Portfield Special School and designated Learning Resource Centres attached to mainstream schools are dealt with by the Authority’s Inclusion Service on the basis of pupils’ assessed level of learning difficulties and complex needs. Parents apply in the usual way and the Admissions Service pass on the details to the Inclusion Service in cases where a record is maintained on the Local Authority’s Management Information System.

 

6.11 Families of UK service personnel and other crown servants (including diplomats)

Families of UK Service personnel and other Crown Servants are subject to frequent movement within the UK and from abroad, often at relatively short notice. As a result, applications for school places for the approaching school year will be considered if accompanied by an official Ministry of Defence or Foreign and Commonwealth Office letter declaring a return date. School places will then be allocated if the applicant would meet the criteria when they move to their new destination. Unit postal addresses for applications from service personnel will also be accepted, in the absence of a new postal address.

 

6.12 Gypsy and Traveller children

The Council is obliged, by statute, to ensure that all children of compulsory school age receive education that is appropriate to their age, abilities and any special educational needs, and promotes high standards in the provision of education and the welfare of children. These obligations apply to all children whether or not they are permanent residents in the area. Admission applications made in respect of gypsy and traveller families will be dealt with, with a view to placing these children as quickly as possible at the nearest available and appropriate school.

 

6.13 Twice excluded pupils

If a pupil has already been permanently excluded from two or more schools then, their parent may express a preference for a school at which they wish their child to be educated, the Local Authority does not have to comply with their preference for a period of two years from the date of their latest exclusion.

This does not apply to:-

• Children with statements of SEN/IDP.
• Children who were below compulsory school age when excluded
• Children who were reinstated following a permanent exclusion.
• Children who would have been reinstated following a permanent exclusion had it been practicable to do so.
• Looked After Children and previously Looked After Children, where the application for admission is made by or on behalf of the corporate parent.

 

6.14 Looked after children

In the case of a child looked after by a Local Authority in Wales or England (as defined by Section 22 of the Children Act 1989 and Section 74 of the Social Services and Wellbeing [Wales] Act 2014), the relevant Local Authority (corporate parent) must apply and supporting evidence (a Care Order or Interim Care Order) must be provided with the application. Following consultation on the appropriateness of the named school in light of the child’s background and needs, the Council has a duty to admit the child to the school and give highest priority in the oversubscription criteria.

In the case of a child previously looked after by a Local Authority in England or Wales (as defined by the Welsh Government School Admissions Code document no. 005/2013), supporting evidence (a letter from the relevant Local Authority [former corporate parent]) must be provided with the application. Following consultation on the appropriateness of the named school in light of the child’s background and needs, the Council has a duty to give highest priority in the oversubscription criteria.

Following a consultation with the Pembrokeshire County Council Looked After Child / Care Leavers forum and subsequent endorsement by the Corporate Parenting Board, the term ‘LAC’ / ‘Looked After Child’, will be referred to locally as ‘YPLA’ or ‘Young Person Looked After’.

 

7. Offering a school place (notification of an offer)

Parents will be sent an email which will confirm, or not, that a place is available at the school and offering them the opportunity of accepting the place.

Decision emails in respect of Secondary School applications will be sent on the 1st March 2024 and for Primary School applications on the 16th April 2024.

All offers will need to be accepted or rejected by parents. The email sent to parents will contain a link that will allow parents to accept or reject the offer within 21 days.

If the offer is not accepted then the place may be withdrawn and the place offered to another pupil.

 

7.1 Multi school site

Offers to a school operating on more than one site will be to the school and not to a particular site. The site that children attend is a matter for the internal organisation of the school. Appeals cannot be made against the site allocated.

 

7.2 Admission outside normal age group

Although most children will be admitted to a school with their own chronological age group, from time to time parents seek places outside their normal age group for gifted and talented children, or those who have experienced problems or missed part of a year, often due to ill health. While it would not normally be appropriate for a child to be placed in a year group that is not concurrent with their chronological age, admission authorities should consider these requests carefully and make decisions on the basis of the circumstances of each case and in consultation with the parents and the school, and specifically in relation to what is most beneficial to the child. Due regard should also be given to the Educational Psychologist’s report where available, and clear reasons ascertainable for such a decision to be made.

If it is decided that there are grounds to consider an ‘out of year’ application, parents refused an application for a place at a school have a statutory right of appeal. However, there is no right of appeal if a place has been offered but not in the desired year group.

 

7.3 Starting school

Unless there are exceptional reasons, a child will be expected to start school on the date as specified in the offer. Delays in starting will need to be discussed with the School, as it will not be possible to hold the place indefinitely. Decisions on how long the place will be held will be made on a case by case basis and in consultation with all the parties concerned. However, it is not anticipated that a place will be held for longer than one term.

Applications received more than a term in advance of when the place is required will be acknowledged and parents advised that the application will be processed at the appropriate time.

 

7.4 Withdrawing the offer of a place

The offer of a school place will be withdrawn on the basis that:

• 7.4.1 It is subsequently discovered that a fraudulent or intentionally misleading application was made (such a false address nearer to the School).
• 7.4.2 An acceptance of the place is not returned to the Local Authority by the date stated in the offer.
• 7.4.3 In deciding whether to withdraw the place, the length of time that the child had been at the school must be taken into account.  Where a place is withdrawn on the basis of misleading information, the application must be consider afresh and a right of appeal offered if a place is refused.

 

8. Unsuccessful applications

8.1 Appeals

Letters requesting an appeal will need to be sent by the parents to the Director for Education within 10 days of the date of notification that an application for a place was unsuccessful. Appeals against admissions decisions will be heard by an independent appeals panel.  Appeal forms and information for parents are available online. Arrangements for the appeals panel to meet are made through the Legal Services department of Pembrokeshire County Council, and will be heard within 30 school days of the specified closing date for the receipt of appeals.  During the summer holidays, appeals will be heard within 30 working days of the appeal being received in writing.

There is no right of appeal against non-statutory nursery provision.

Refusals are not lightly made decisions and will only be taken where the admission number has been reached and/or where an infant class (i.e. reception, year 1 and year 2) will exceed 30 children per class. The Welsh Government Regulations require Authorities to limit infant class sizes to no more than 30 pupils. Admitting further pupils would create class size prejudice, that is to say, prejudice to efficient education or efficient use of resources. Infant class size prejudice would not be found in cases where the school admission number had not been reached.

There are however exceptions to these regulations (called “excepted pupils”) which may allow the 30 pupil class limit to be exceeded. A full list of these ‘excepted pupils’ can be found in Appendix B.

 

8.2 Waiting lists

Any child not offered a place at their first choice of school will be kept on a waiting list until the 30th of September of the relevant academic year.

Should places become available then they will be awarded in accordance of the published oversubscription criteria rather than the amount of time since the applications was submitted.

For applications received outside the normal admission round, waiting lists are held until the end of the half-term for which the application was made.

 

9. Applying outside of the normal admission round

9.1 Moving into the area

Parents planning to move into the area should apply no earlier than a term in advance of their children’s anticipated start date.

e.g. if a place is required in the spring term then the application should be submitted no earlier than the start of the preceding autumn term.

Applications received more than a term in advance will be held until the appropriate time. Delays in moving into the area may result in offers being withdrawn, unless good reason is given.

 

9.2 School transfers during the year

Changing schools requires serious consideration and should, in the first instance, be fully discussed with the Headteacher of your child’s present school.

Should parents still need to transfer their child from one school to another then they must apply through submitting an online application which will be treated in the same way as any other application for admission.

Parents may request a transfer at any time.  However, unless the transfer is due to a change of address, the Local Authority will normally only allow transfer from one Pembrokeshire school to another at the beginning of a half term. All transfer requests are subject to normal admission procedures and places being available in the requested school.

If an immediate transfer is requested and is not due to a change of address, a protocol involving the Education Welfare Service is applied.  Parents will be invited to discuss the transfer request with an Education Welfare Officer, who will determine if an immediate transfer should be granted.  If an immediate transfer is not approved by the Education Welfare Officer then the transfer may only take place at the start of the following half term.

In order to allow sufficient time to process applications and greater time for schools to plan for the arrival of new pupils, it is advised that applications for transfer at the beginning of a half term are received at least one month prior to the beginning of that half term.

Upon agreeing to a school transfer request and parents being informed in writing, parents will need to respond to the offer email to accept the place within 21 days. 

 

9.3 Sixth form places

Pembrokeshire Secondary Schools are responsible for administering their sixth form admissions and all applications should be made direct to the school of your choice.

Admissions to secondary schools’ sixth forms sits within the umbrella of the county council by virtue of the fact that it is the Admissions Authority for all community and voluntary controlled schools. However the day to day arrangements for administering such applications rest with the relevant secondary school. Arrangements for admission to Sixth Form Education should be discussed with the individual school prior to submitting an application for admission to the individual school. All secondary schools with sixth forms must publish their sixth form admissions arrangements on their websites, normally as part of their prospectus, and these must include the following:

• The GCSE and/or other qualifications required for entry;
• The means by which applications should be made, including the closing date for receipt of applications;
• Information on how learners will be advised if a sixth form place is awarded or refused;
• Information on how learners or their parents may appeal the school’s decision.

Secondary schools are required to report to the authority’s Admissions Forum annually on the effectiveness of its sixth form admission arrangements

 

Appendix A School admission numbers

Community Primary Schools

 

Est Non:	Name of School	Age Range	Language Category	AN / Reception and above
2203	Sageston CP School	3-11	EM	17
2209	Ysgol Gynradd Gymunedol Eglwyswrw	4-11	WM	20
2212	Ysgol Gymunedol Wdig/Goodwick	3-11	WM	19
2214	Fenton CP School	3-11	EM	50
2220	Johnston CP School	3-11	EM	30
2222	Lamphey Primary School	3-11	EM	29
2223	Ysgol Gymunedol Brynconin	3-11	WM	12
2228	Hook CP School	3-11	EM	15
2231	Ysgol Llanychllwydog	3-11	WM	4
2233	Ysgol Gymunedol Maenclochog	3-11	WM	16
2242	Narberth CP School	3-11	DS	47
2243	Ysgol Bro Ingli	3-11	WM	15
2250	Puncheston CP School	4-11	WM	10
2253	Ysgol Llandudoch	3-11	WM	20
2254	Wolfscastle CP School / Ysgol Casblaidd	3-11	WM	5
2258	Saundersfoot CP School	3-11	EM	42
2260	Stepaside CP School	3-11	EM	28
2261	Templeton CP School	3-11	EM	18
2266	Tavernspite CP School	3-11	EM	29
2270	Ysgol Gymunedol Croesgoch	3-11	TR	17
2271	Broad Haven Primary School	3-11	EM	17
2273	Roch Community School	3-11	EM	25
2384	Coastlands School/ Ysgol y Glannau	3-11	EM	15
2385	Ysgol Clydau	4-11	WM	10
2386	Pembroke Dock Community School	3-11	EM	90
2387	Monkton Priory CP School	3-11	EM	30
2388	Ysgol Gelli Aur/ Golden Grove Community School	3-11	DS	57
2389	Ysgol Glannau Gwaun	3-11	DS	E12, W21
2391	Prendergast CP School	3-11	EM	64
2392	Pennar Community School	3-11	EM	38
2393	Neyland Community School	3-11	EM	47
2395	Ysgol Hafan y Mor	3-11	WM	30
2396	Milford Haven CP School	3-11	EM	96
2397	Waldo Williams Primary School	3-11	EM	37
2398	Ysgol Bro Penfro (Opening Sept 2024 subject to successful completion of new build school)	3-11	WM	30

 

Voluntary Controlled Primary Schools

 

Est Non:	Name of School	Age Range	Language Category	AN / Reception and above
3035	Cilgerran Church in Wales VC School	3-11	WM	19
3036	Cosheston VC School	3-11	EM	8
3040	Cleddau Reach VC Primary School	3-11	EM	34
3042	Manorbier Church in Wales VC School	3-11	EM	12
3050	Spittal Church in Wales VC School	3-11	EM	20
3055	St Florence Church in Wales VC School	3-11	EM	13
3058	Ysgol Ger y Llan	3-11	WM	21
3059	Tenby Church in Wales VCP School	3-11	EM	45
3060	Penrhyn Church in Wales VC School	3-11	EM	17
3061	Gelliswick Church in Wales VC School	3-11	EM	68

 

3-16/3-19

 

Est non.	Name of school	Age range	Language category	AN / Reception and above
5500	Ysgol Caer Elen	3-16	WM (Prim) AB(2A) (Sec)	Prim 60 (90 Rec), Sec 119
5501	Ysgol Bro Preseli	3-19	WM (Prim) AB(2A) (Sec)	Prim 30, Sec 164 (Y7-11), 104 (Y12)

 

Secondary Schools

 

Est Non:	Name of School	Age Range	Language Category	AN / Y7-11
4031	Ysgol Bro Gwaun	11-16	EW	105
4035	The Greenhill School	11-19	EM	207 (Y7-11) 79 (Y12)
4038	Ysgol Harri Tudur/Henry Tudor	11-19	EM	237 (Y7-11) 80 (Y12)
4063	Milford Haven School	11-16	EM	252
4512	Haverfordwest High VC School	11-19	EM	310 (Y7-11) 99 (Y12)

 

Notes:

• the above does not include details of Voluntary Aided schools; such schools undertake their own admissions arrangements
• The language categories will change by the time these arrangements are approved by Cabinet in March 2023. The new categories will need to be reflected in PLASC 2024.