Admission and Application

Admissions Arrangements: Year 7, September 2024

• The St Paul’s Academy plan to admit 240 students in Year 7 for the year 2024-2025

Consideration of applications

• The St Paul’s Academy will consider all applications for places. Where fewer applications are received than the agreed admissions number, the Academy will offer places to all those who have applied.
• Notwithstanding paragraph 2 above, the St Paul’s Academy may refuse admission to particular applicants in cases where fewer than the Published Admission Number have applied. These are applicants who have been excluded from two or more other schools and the ability to refuse admissions runs for a period of two years from the last exclusion. Exclusions, which took place before the child concerned reached compulsory school age, do not count for this purpose.

Procedures where the Academy is oversubscribed

• Where the number of applications for admission is greater than the published admissions number, applications will be considered against the criteria set out below. After the admission of pupils with statements of Special Educational Needs where the St Paul’s Academy is named on the statement, applicants will be considered as set out in clauses 5, and 6 below.
• When the number of applications for admission is greater than the published admissions number, the oversubscription criteria set out in clause 6 will be applied.
• There will be two categories of entrant to the Academy:

a. Catholic and other Faith Entrants

Applicants applying for a place under this category should complete a Supplementary Information Form. Applications made without a completed SIF will be considered as an application for a community place.

Up to 160 of the remaining places, subject to the number of Catholic Entrants admitted with statements of Special Educational Need (SSEN) or an education, health and care plan (ECHP) naming the school, will be available to Catholic Entrants, who will be considered according to the following criteria, in order of priority:

• Looked after children and previously looked after children who have been adopted or become subject to a residence or special guardianship order, immediately following having been looked after who are baptised Catholics or looked after by Catholic families. This includes those children who appear (to the admission authority) to have been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state care as a result of being adopted.
• Baptised Catholic children from families where at least one parent/guardian/carer or the child is a practising Catholic and, who at the time of their application, resides (+) in the following local parishes:

(Parish boundaries are available upon request from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark)

Practising Catholic is defined by frequency of Mass attendance as shown on the SIF. Applicants will be ranked weekly, fortnightly, monthly, occasionally, with those ranked weekly being given the highest priority.

The reinstatement of the obligation to attend Mass – 5th June 2022

As of 5th June 2022, Pentecost, the Bishops of England and Wales reinstated the obligation to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days. Parents applying for a place at St Paul’s Academy, under a faith based criteria will need to complete a Supplementary Information Form. Evidence of practice will be measured by frequency of attendance at Mass as validated by either a priest or minister, as was the case prior to 18th March 2020. These arrangements apply to the admissions round for 2023 and subsequent rounds.

• Baptised Catholic children from families where at least one parent/guardian/carer or the child is a practising Catholic and, who at the time of their application, live in parishes other than those named in 2 above. If there is oversubscription in this category, priority will be given on levels of mass attendance as indicated by the Parish Priest or his named representative;
• Other Baptised Catholic children;
• Children enrolled in the Catechumenate where there is support from a Parish Priest or his named representative;
• Baptised Eastern Orthodox children;
• Children of other Christian denominations which are members of *Churches Together in England and whose applications are supported by a Minister of Religion of a designated place of worship;

*A copy of this list is available from the school on request.

• Children of other faiths whose applications are supported by a statement from the religious leader of a designated place of worship.

Notes:

1] Under each of the above criteria, priority will be given in order to applicants who:

• have a sibling living at the same address attending the Academy at the time of the applicant’s admission. The term ‘sibling’ refers to a full, half or step brother or sister living at the same address.
• have a professionally supported medical, social or special educational need which makes it essential for them to be admitted to the Academy as determined under arrangements agreed from time to time and published by the Governing Body.
• Proximity to the school, measured by the shortest distance (ie straight line as determined by Royal Greenwich’s computerised mapping system) from a single point in the centre of the child’s home address to the centre of the school. If your child lives equally between both parents, we consider the principal home address as being the address at which your child is registered whilst attending primary school, with a GP and, if applicable, the address of the parents who is in receipt of Child Benefit or Child Tax Credits for your child.

b. Community Entrants

Up to 80 of the remaining places, subject to the number of Community Entrants admitted with statements of Special Educational Need (SSEN) or an education, health and care plan (EHCP) naming the school, will be available to Community Entrants, who will be considered according to the following criteria, in order of priority:

• Looked after children and previously looked after children who have been adopted or become subject to a residence or special guardianship order, immediately following having been looked after.
• Children who have a professionally supported medical, social or special educational need which makes it essential for them to be admitted to the Academy as determined under arrangements agreed from time to time and published by the Governing Body;
• Children who have a sibling living at the same address attending the Academy at the time of the applicant’s admission. The term ‘sibling’ refers to a full, half or step brother or sister living at the same address.
• Proximity to the school, measured by the shortest distance (ie straight line as determined by Royal Greenwich’s computerised mapping system) from a single point in the centre of the child’s home address to the centre of the school. If your child lives equally between both parents, we consider the principal home address as being the address at which your child is registered whilst attending primary school, with a GP and, if applicable, the address of the parent who is in receipt of Child Benefit or Child Tax Credits for your child.

Notwithstanding the provisions of Clause 5, the Secretary of State may direct the Academy to admit a named pupil on application from a Local Authority. The Secretary of State shall, in such circumstances, consult the Academy before making such a direction.

Additional Information:

Under both categories, where the last remaining place is to be allocated and two or more children are deemed to live at the same distance from the Academy, the place will be decided by the drawing of lots.

Twins/Children of multiple birth

Additional children may be admitted under very exceptional circumstances. This will be in instances where children are twins and children from multiple births when one of the children is the 180th child admitted.

Children educated outside the chronological year group

The Academy follows the Royal Greenwich procedures, as stated in the booklet ‘Secondary Schools in Royal Greenwich. www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/admissions

Appeals

Parents/Carers of children who are not offered a place have the right to appeal to an Independent Appeal Committee under the 1998 School Standards and Framework Act. Parents/Carers wishing to appeal should contact St Paul’s Academy to request an appeal form. Parents/Carers have 20 school days from the date of notification that their application was unsuccessful to prepare and lodge their written appeal.

Waiting List

Unsuccessful applicants can request for their child to be placed on the waiting list. Should a vacancy occur, the Governing Body will apply the above Admissions Criteria to determine who should be offered a place. Names will remain on the waiting list until the end of the academic year. After this time, parents will be required to re-apply to

St Paul’s Academy via the in-year applications process.

In Year Admissions

Applications for places can be made at any time. The above Admissions Criteria will apply to determine the prioritisation of such applications.

St Paul’s Academy participates in the Local Authority’s Fair Access Protocol. Children admitted via the Fair Access Protocol take priority over those children on the school’s waiting list and those pending appeal. Admitting students under the protocol may require the Academy to admit above the planned admission number for the relevant year group.

Closing date for applications: 31 October 2023

National Offer Day: 1 March 2024

Appeal Hearings: May and June 2024