Agenda item

To consider a report by the Director of Children’s Services informing Members of Proposed Changes to the Admissions Framework and seeking views on the draft School Admissions Code and Draft School Admissions Appeals Code, which are the centre of the proposed changes. The consultation period runs from 27^th May to 19^th August 2011.

(Report attached)

Members received a report by the Director of Children’s Services which set out the proposed changes to the Admissions Framework and sought the Members views on the draft School Admissions Code and the Draft School Admissions Appeal Code, which were at the centre of the proposed changes.

In providing background information Mrs Buckland reported that the current Schools Admissions Code had been in force since February 2009.  The draft School Admissions Code and draft School Admission Appeals Code were released for consultation on 27^th May 2011. It was reported that the  consultation period runs for 12 weeks, closing on 19th August 2011. The government’s stated intention was to simplify and slim down the Code and to reduce bureaucracy.

The Education Bill, subject to Royal assent, would enable the Schools Adjudicator to hear objections about all state-funded schools, including academies. It would also see the statutory requirement for an Admissions Forum removed. It was pointed out that there was no reference to Admissions Forums in the new Code.  Enactment of the Education Bill was currently expected to be in early 2012.

Mrs Buckland highlighted the following Key changes within the consultation documents:

• The removal of the requirement on local authorities to coordinate in year admissions.

• Changes to the Published Admission Number (PAN)

• Random Allocation

• Infant Class size exceptions

• Reduction in consultation requirements

• Giving priority to children attracting the Pupil Premium

• Children of school staff

Changes not highlighted in the consultation but worthy of note:

In streamlining the Code the obstacles to creating the sibling link between entry into infant school when the older child had already moved on to junior school had been removed.

The authority must provide full time and part time places for parents wishing to defer entry into primary school.

The prospectus would continue to need to be available online, but only in hard copy for those parents without access to the internet.  There is also no detail as to what must be contained, which would allow admission authorities to produce information for parents in a more flexible way.

There is no requirement for independent Choice Advice to be provided.  The local authority does retain a duty to provide information, advice and guidance for parents but it does not have to provide an independent service. 

Fair Access Protocol

This service remains but must be agreed with the majority of schools. It must include how the local authority will use alternative provision for those not considered ready for mainstream schools.  The Protocol would only be triggered where a parent cannot secure a place.  At present in Leeds the  Protocol is used very proactively, on application, to enable the admission authority to balance the needs of the child with a fair sharing arrangement for schools, that has in recent years ensured that every child in Leeds does receive the offer of an appropriate school place.  With the support and partnership of all of the schools and academies in Leeds, the Fair Access Protocol has been very successful.  To use FAP only when a parent has been unable to secure a place will leave the most vulnerable and difficult to place children out of school for longer.  Under the proposal there would also be no requirement to consider parental preference when using the Protocol.

Key changes to the Admission Appeals Code:

Changes to timescales.  At present parents must be given a minimum of 10 days in which to appeal, although there is no deadline and appeals must be accepted at any time.  The proposal is to give parents a minimum of 30 working days to appeal, for two stated reasons.  The first is that it gives parents longer to consider other options in the belief that fewer parents will go on to appeal.  The second is to allow parents time to submit a more complete appeal.  This leads into a further proposal that parents will have at least two opportunities to submit further evidence, but that there will be no requirement for the panel to accept evidence not submitted in advance of the hearing.

Currently timescales for appeals are in school days.  The new Code changes these to working days.  This will lead to a necessity to hear appeals during school holiday, which may prove difficult for schools that are their own admitting authority.

Admission Authorities presently have until 6 July to hear all on time secondary school appeals, which Leeds does achieve each year.  The new Code will require appeals to be heard with 40 working days of the deadline.  For large authorities such as Leeds, this will be very difficult to achieve.  For example last year 400 secondary appeals were heard during the summer.  We had all of April, May and June within which to hear them.  Under the proposed timescales parents would have six weeks in which to lodge their appeal which would be about 20th April.  The Admission Authority would then have to give 15 days notice of the appeal leaving 25 working days to hear all appeals.  To hear all primary appeals within the timescales would require the offer date to be at least two weeks earlier than it is at present.

Appeals would be able to be heard on school premises and would no longer require a neutral venue.  Training for panel members is currently required every two years with annual updates.  The proposal is that this be relaxed, although panel members will still require training before they can first begin to hear appeals.

Mrs Buckland said in conclusion that the Code was much reduced in size and is now only 29 pages in length.  A great deal of prescriptive detail had been removed.  The role of the local authority would be diminished, and the Education Bill would also see the removal of the statutory role of the Admission Forum.

RESOLVED –

(i)  That the contents of the report be noted

(ii)  That further/ individual comments could be made direct to the online response facility available on the Department for Education website www.education.gov.uk/consultations closing date 19th August 2011