Government publishes new schools admissions and appeals codes
The government has moved to outlaw school place “lotteries” and allow successful schools to expand under a proposed new school admissions and appeals codes published by the government last week.
The government said that the draft admission code, which is now open for consultation, will
- make it be easier for popular schools to expand by taking more pupils
- ban local authorities from using area-wide “lotteries” for school places
- enable schools to give priority to children of school staff when a school is over-subscribed to make it easier for schools to recruit teachers and other staff
- improve the current in-year applications scheme
- allow the children of armed forces personnel to be admitted to infant classes even if it takes the class over the 30-pupil limit
- allow twins and other multiple-birth children to be admitted to infant classes even if it takes the class over the 30-child limit
- reduce the requirement for admissions authorities to consult on admissions arrangements from every three to every seven if no changes are proposed. Consultation would still be required where changes to admissions arrangements were proposed.
- enable Academies and Free Schools to prioritise children receiving the pupil premium
Changes to the appeals code, the government said, were aimed at making the process cheaper to administer and less cumbersome. The amendments suggested by the draft code, include
- an end to restrictions on the range of people entitled to object to admissions arrangements that they believe are unfair to enable anyone to raise a complaint. Local authorities will retain the power to refer any admissions arrangements they believe are not complying with the code to the Schools Adjudicator.
- an extension of the time parents have to lodge an appeal from 10 to 30 days
- an end to the ban in appeals being heard on school premises
- the abolition of the regulation for admission authorities to advertise for lay appeal members every three years.
More powers for the Schools Adjudicator
The government also confirmed the expansion of the role of the Schools Adjudicator who, subject to the passage of the Education Bill, will be able to consider admissions objections about all maintained schools and Academies. In future, where the Adjudicator finds admissions arrangements are unlawful, they will have to be changed immediately by the admissions authority. At the same time, the government also announced the appointment of Dr Elizabeth Passmore as the new Chief Schools Adjudicator.
One aim of the new codes, the government said, was to simplify the present system and the new draft code is one-third of the size of the existing admissions codes. The government also claimed that the new code was “much clearer” on what admissions authorities would and would not be able to do than the rules it is intended to replace, while reducing the number of mandatory rules in the codes from more than 600 to around 300.
The Education Secretary Michael Gove said: “The school system has rationed good schools. Some families can go private or move house. Many families cannot afford to do either. The system must change. Schools should be run by teachers who know the children’s names and they should be more accountable to parents, not politicians. Good schools should be able to grow and we need more of them.
“The Admissions Code has been bureaucratic and unfair. You shouldn’t have to hire a lawyer to navigate the school system. We are trying to simplify it and make it fairer. We want to cut the red tape that has stopped good schools expanding. We want to make various specific changes to help servicemen and teachers. Together with our other reforms, these changes will help give all children the chance of world-class schools.”
The draft codes and consultation details can be downloaded here: Admissionsandappealscode
