Admissions Policy
| 
| Hits: 1240The Admissions Policy and information below relates to admissions up to July 2013. For information relating to the 2013 / 2014 academic year (including the relevant Oversubscription Criteria), please click here.
For information relating to the 2014 / 2015 academic year please click here.
St Sidwell’s is a Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary school located in the Diocese of Exeter. It is a thriving, multicultural school and welcomes children from all faiths and ethnic backgrounds. Typically up to a third of our children have English as an additional language and this diversity gives a rich learning experience for all children.
We ask all parents applying for a place here to respect our Christian ethos and its importance to the school community. This does not affect the right of parents who are not of the Christian faith to apply for and be considered for a place at our school.
The governing body of a Voluntary Aided school is the admission authority and has responsibility for the admission policy. Please read the full policy when considering applying for a place. (N.B. This policy is reviewed annually and may change, so please check at the time of application.)
The policy details the admission arrangements for our school, which are reviewed annually by the Governing Body. They apply to children of school age only.
(We also welcome applications to the Nursery for children from the age of 3: please contact the school office for information on nursery admissions or see the next page of this website.)
This policy should be read in conjunction with the Primary and In-Year Co-ordinated Admissions Schemes and other agreed policies of Devon County Council, the Local Authority (LA), available at www.devon.gov.uk/cypspolicyunit. All policies and procedures seek to comply with the requirements of the School Admissions Code of Practice, available at www.dscf.gov.uk/sacode.
Our normal year of admission is Reception year (Foundation 2). This is the year a child turns 5. However, we admit children into any other year group if there are places available.
The school has a Planned Admission Number of 30. This means that 30 children can be admitted into any one year group. Governors do not intend to exceed this number. The planned organisation of the Reception intake is subject to Key Stage One legislation which means that no more than 30 children can be taught by one teacher.
The school has a Supplementary Information Form (available from the school or LA) to be completed by a priest or minister to be used to provide evidence of religious grounds.
Our school has a school uniform which all children must wear. The uniform bears the school badge which represents our Christian foundation and our inclusive ethos. We believe that our uniform helps children to feel a sense of belonging as well as a pride in being a member of our school community.
THE NEED TO APPLY
All parents must make an application for their child to be admitted to a maintained primary or infant school, using a Common Application Form from the LA. Places are not allocated to a child automatically, even where:
- there is an older sibling attending here;
- a child attends a particular pre-school or nursery (including St Sidwell's nursery);
- a parent has expressed an interest at any time in the school;
- a child is a member of any religious community; or
- the child has always lived close to the school.
No places will be held in reserve for a child who applies late; the governing body cannot hold empty places if another child applies for admission.
We will share information with the LA and will publicise the need to apply but the responsibility for making an application will be with the parent.
VISITING OUR SCHOOL
We welcome visits from parents and children considering applying for a place here. This is an opportunity for parents to meet our Headteacher, Mrs. Hood, and to see what we have to offer. Visits are not a compulsory part of the admissions process and will not affect decisions on whether a place can be offered at our school. If you would like to visit our school, you should contact the school to make an appointment.
HOW TO APPLY FOR A PLACE
The full admissions policy, over-subscription criteria for admissions and all other essential information can be downloaded here.
Form to download- Supplementary Form for VA Schools
