This is the 2008/2009 admissions policy for City of York Council Community and volundary controlled primary schools.

1. The City of York Council policy for allocating primary school places is designed to be as fair as possible while ensuring that resources are used sensibly. Pupils will normally be admitted into the year group relevant to the pupils age. 
2. Pupils will start full time in the school year they turn five. There will be two formal points of full time entry to school. These are dependent on the child’s birth date. This means that: 

   > Children born between 1 September and the 31 December can be admitted full time to school in September in the school year that they turn five.

   > Children born between 1 January and the 31 August can be admitted full time to school in January in the school year they turn five.

   > The policy includes an option of ‘deferred entry’. This means that parents may secure a place at a school under the normal admission arrangements but choose to postpone their child’s admission to the school until the term after a child turns five. It is a legal requirement that all children must enter formal full time education the term after their fifth birthday. 

3. Under the primary school admission arrangements the allocation of places is based on where the child/parent lives and the preferences of parents.
4. Any school’s resources, such as teachers and classrooms, have to be used carefully to ensure the best possible standards for education and a safe environment. If no limit were set on the number of pupils that can go to a school each year these standards could not be maintained. Some schools will be oversubscribed. If that is the case, priority is given to certain categories of pupil. The criteria set out in paragraph 5 will be used to prioritise all applicants who have applied for a place at a school. 
5. First priority: Pupils looked after by the authority – This applies to all pupils living in the City of York area who are in the care of the local authority or are provided with accommodation by the authority (see section 22 of the Children Act 1989);
   Second priority: Pupils who live within the catchment area normally served by the school – The catchment areas are designated by the City of York Local Authority and are made available to parents via the annual Guide for Parents, or from the Education Access Team;
   Third priority: Pupils considered by the Local Authority to have exceptional social or medical needs which relate to the preferred school – The Local Authority may consult with other medical/educational professionals for a further opinion as to whether a pupil should be allocated a place to an individual school due to a particular medical condition or social need;
   Fourth priority: Pupils with siblings at the school in September 2008 – Siblings are defined as brothers or sisters living in the same house, as their primary place of residence, including half- and step-brothers or sisters;
   Fifth priority: Pupils who live closest to the school using the nearest available safe walking route- The Local Authority is constantly reviewing the nearest available safe walking routes, working closely with the Road Safety Team.
   Important note: The admission of pupils with a statement of special educational needs is covered by different admission regulations, however where a school is named in a pupils statement of special educational needs, the Local Authority and the school have a duty to admit the child and will therefore be allocated a place at the named school;
6. If a school is oversubscribed a waiting list will be held from when allocations have been made on the 30 March 2008 until 30 September 2008. A pupils position on the list will be determined by the criteria set out in paragraph 5. If a place is to be allocated to a pupil and there is more than one pupil from the same over subscription criteria (i.e. two pupils who have an elder sibling already in the school), a place would be offered to the pupil who fulfils a place in the next higher criterion.
7. Applicants refused a place at a school have the right of appeal. Appeals are heard by an independent appeals panel. Applicants will be able to appeal once for a place at a given school in any one school year unless any significant new information comes available which was not available at the original hearing.