Admissions at Wales High School
Wales High School is the admissions authority and as such set the admission arrangements each year for entry to Wales High School. Working closely with Rotherham Local Authority, places are allocated into Year 7 in accordance with the Local Authority’s coordinated admissions scheme.
Choosing the right school for your child is one of the most important decisions that you will ever make.
If your child is in Year 6, moving to secondary school is an important and exciting step in the life of any child, and we are delighted that you are considering Wales High School for your child. To find out how we support children from Year 6 into Year 7 please visit our Transition Page.
We care about each of our pupils as individuals and strive, with their parents’ help, to support them in achieving their full potential, both inside the classroom and through the wide range of extra-curricular clubs, activities and trips that we offer each year.
Our school is a happy, caring community built on mutual respect, tolerance and hard work where everyone feels a sense of belonging, loyalty and pride which will remain with them long after they leave.
You can find out more about each stage of our admissions journey below:
Admission Appeals Code 2022 (2.2)
As all schools and Academies in Rotherham presently use the Admissions Appeals service provided by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, who also co-ordinate the convening of Independent Panels and provide a clerking service. The timetable for Admission appeals is outlined below.
| Statutory Requirement | Timetable |
| deadline for lodging appeals
|
20 school days from the date of notification that the application was unsuccessful. |
| notice of their appeal hearing | 10 school days in advance |
| reasonable deadlines for appellants to submit additional evidence, for admission authorities to submit their evidence, and for the clerk to send appeal papers to the panel and parties
|
Three days in advance of the evidence by admission authorities being submitted (as below) to enable this to be circulated and printed.
Seven days prior to the hearing. Posted/circulated seven days prior to the hearing (sent as soon as papers received). |
| Appeal decision letters sent by the clerk | within five school days of the hearing wherever possible |
| Admission authorities must ensure that appeals lodged by the appropriate deadlines are heard within the following timescales | For Statutory School age entry (Reception, Year 3 for separate Junior School and Year 7 entry to Secondary school)
for applications made in the normal admissions round (notified on National Offer day – 1st March for Secondary and 16th April for Primary), appeals must be heard within 40 school days of the deadline for lodging appeals for late applications (notified after the national offer days), appeals should be heard within 40 school days from the deadline for lodging appeals where possible, or within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged; for applications for in-year admissions, appeals must be heard within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged for applications to sixth forms: i) where the offer of a place would have been conditional upon exam results, appeals must be heard within 30 school days of confirmation of those results and subsequent appeal submission; ii) where the offer of a place would not have been conditional upon exam results, appeals must be heard within 40 school days of the deadline for lodging appeals; |
| Any appeals submitted after the appropriate deadline must still be heard, in accordance with whatever timescale is set out in the table published by the admission authority. | Within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged.
or 40 school days from the deadline for lodging an appeal in the normal round of appeals. |
Admission decision letters give the details of how to appeal the decision to refuse a school place and completed appeal forms should be emailed to:
or by post to:
The Appeal Clerk,
Democratic Services,
Town Hall,
The Crofts,
Moorgate Street,
Rotherham,
S60 2TH.
We receive many in-year applications and these are generally where families are moving into our catchment area and their previous school is not within reasonable travel distance/time from the new address.
If you are thinking about changing schools for reasons other than a house move we strongly advise that you discuss the proposed transfer with your current school. Please note, if your child is currently in Years 10 or 11 and studying for their GCSE exams at secondary school, we discourage any disruption to the child’s education unless there are exceptional circumstances (for example, a change of address). Performance and level of achievement/attainment are adversely affected each time a child experiences a transfer to a new school. Avoidable and unnecessary changes should be carefully considered and parents need to be aware of the consequence of moving schools in key groups such as Year 10 and Year 11.
It may be difficult to find schools that can offer courses compatible with the previous school. However, schools are not able to refuse to admit children because they followed a different curriculum at their previous school.
Applications for school places are considered within agreed timeframes with all admission authorities to ensure that every child of school age accesses an appropriate school place. Notification of the outcome of the application will be sent to parents/ carers in writing.
Admissions will normally be agreed up to the published admission number which applied for the normal year of intake. If an application is refused at any school applied for, parents are notified of their right to appeal.
When a place can be offered at more than one of the schools listed on an application, an offer to a place at the highest preferred school where a place is available will be made. Wales High School, as the admissions authority will write to parents detailing the outcome of the application.
What is an in-year application?
An in-year application is for children requiring a school place during the academic year, rather than at the usual transfer time to school (for example starting primary school, moving to junior school or moving to secondary school). This is also known as a mid phase transition.
Wales High School’s admission arrangements is applies to all in-year applications.
Wales High School, as the admissions authority, work closely with Rotherham Local Authority to manage and process applications in-year.
The School Admissions Code requires that the local authority and admissions authority must, on receipt of an in-year application, work in partnership to ensure all parties are notified of the outcome, so that figures on the availability of places in the area can be kept up to date. The admission authority must also inform parents of their right to appeal against the refusal of a place.
For applications for school places outside of Rotherham, parents should contact the relevant local authority for details of the relevant Admissions Policy. Contact details for neighbouring local authorities can be found in the Admissions to Primary/Secondary school booklets for parents available at www.rotherham.gov.uk
Wales High School is the admissions authority, working closely with RMBC to try and facilitate all families who express an interest in their children attending Wales High School. If the number of preferences received for Wales High School does not exceed the admission limit, all preferences will be met. However, if there are more applications for admission to the school than there are places available, preference will be given to children in the following order:
- Looked after children and previously looked after children (see note 3 below).
- Children who on the closing date have a specific medical reason confirmed by a medical practitioner which the Wales High School is satisfied makes attendance at this particular school essential.
- Children who on the closing date have a compelling social reason which the Wales High School is satisfied make attendance at this particular school essential. The kind of overriding social reasons which could be accepted are where there is evidence that the pupil’s education would be seriously impaired if he or she did not attend the preferred school.
- Children who on the closing date live in the catchment area of the school as defined by Wales High School whose older brother or sister will be on the roll of the preferred school in Years 8-11 at the start of the academic year.
- Children who on the closing date live in the catchment area of the school as defined by Wales High School.
- Children who on the closing date live outside the catchment area of the school as defined by Wales High School whose older brother or sister will be on the roll of the preferred school in Years 8-11 at the start of the academic year.
- Children who on the closing date are on the roll of one of the associated Primary/ Junior/Junior and Infant schools as identified by Wales High School.
- Children who on the closing date live nearest to the school measured by a straight line on a horizontal plane, (commonly known as measurement, “as the crow flies”).
Notes
- Where the admission number is likely to be reached mid category, places will be prioritised within that category by reference to the distance between the home address and the school. Highest priority will be given to those living closest to the school measured in a straight line on a horizontal plane (commonly known as measurement, “as the crow flies”).
- Where any final placei s available and two or more pupils are judged to be living equidistant from the school (e.g. in flats), the final place will be allocated by the drawing of lots by an appropriately qualified person independent of Wales High School.
- A ‘relevant looked after child’ is a child that is looked after by a local authority in accordance with Section 22 of the Children Act 1989 at the time an application for admission to a school is made, and who the local authority has confirmed will still be looked after at the time when he/she is admitted to the school. Previously looked after children are children who were looked after, but ceased to be so because they were adopted (or became subject to a residence order or special guardianship order). For further information please refer to the Admissions Code of Practice which can be downloaded from www.gov.uk
- Places will be allocated in accordance with the local authority’s co-ordinated admissions schemes for Primary and Secondary schools. In assessing preferences, the local authority will operate an ‘equal preference’ system, which means that no priority will be given according to the ranking of the preference, except where a potential offer can be made in respect of more than one school. In that situation, the final offer of a place will be made at the highest ranked of the potential offer schools.
- Children issued with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC) or Statement of Special Educational Needs will gain a place at the school named in the statement as part of that process.
The published admission number for entry into Year 7 at Wales High School is 310.
The national deadline for applying for a place for entry into Year 7 is 31 October.
The admission arrangements for each application into Year 7 are considered with places allocated against the admission criteria as at 30 November.
National offer day is 1 March. A waiting list is then created where the number of applications have exceeded the available places in Year 7.
The waiting list operates until 31 December when it will cease.
What should I do before submitting an application?
If your child is having difficulties at school, speak to relevant staff at the current school. Most issues can be resolved this way but the school can only provide additional support if the right people are made aware of the problem.
Research your preferences. Schools have different strengths and children react differently to particular learning environments. Only you know what you’re looking for, so speak to the staff at a school before applying for it. Check the school’s admissions policies to see if any priority can be given to your situation.
Apply for the schools you want, not where you think might have a place. The Admissions Team can tell you which schools may have places, but availability changes daily and cannot guarantee a child will qualify for a vacancy until an application has been assessed.
Inform your child’s current school that you are making an application. If you are moving house, you must make the school aware of the situation before you move.
How long will my application take and how will I be informed of the outcome?
All applications are processed as quickly as possible but the length of time it takes varies depending on the situation. You will receive a written outcome of your application and the decision letter will be sent within 20 school days. Please do not contact the school to chase an application – the decision will be sent to you in writing.
If your child has complex needs this process may take longer.
When is the best time to apply?
Applications are accepted all year round so the best time to apply will depend on your personal circumstances.
If you are moving house, you should apply as early as possible. Your child must continue to attend their current school until a new school place has been secured.
How do you decide who is given a place?
Wales High School assess every application in line with our admissions arrangements.
What happens if there are no places in the year group I have applied for?
Wales High School is a heavily oversubscribed school and almost every year group is full. As a result, you may not be offered a place, but your decision letter will confirm what options are available to you.
Can I appeal the schools decision not to offer a place to my child?
Where a parent(s)/carer(s) is not offered a place for their child at a secondary school for which they have expressed a preference, they have a legal right of appeal to an independent appeals panel who has the power to give further consideration to the application.
Please note that the above does not apply in instances where a child has been permanently excluded from two schools. This applies to a twice excluded pupil for a period of two years beginning with the date the last exclusion took place.
