Subscription Service for Schools
The Local Authority offers a School Admissions and Admission Appeals Service to support schools in meeting their statutory responsibilities. This service is available through an annual subscription agreement.
By subscribing, schools can access coordinated support with key admissions processes and appeal administration, ensuring compliance with relevant legislation and national codes.
Admissions
The service provides end-to-end coordination of admissions processes, including:
- Processing and validating applications
- Applying oversubscription criteria and ranking applications
- Determining factors such as:
- Catchment area
- Looked After / previously Looked After status
- Sibling links
- Distance measurements
- Coordinating in-year applications and school transfer requests
- Liaising with parents and schools throughout the process
These activities support schools in delivering fair, transparent and compliant admissions arrangements
Admission Appeals
The service includes full administrative support for admission appeals, including:
- Managing communication with parents and schools
- Preparing and collating appeal documentation
- Arranging and scheduling appeal hearings
- Providing clerk support at hearings (including legal advice)
- Supporting the appeals process in line with the School Admission Appeals Code
For maintained schools, a presenting officer may also be provided
Benefits of Subscribing
By subscribing to the service, schools can:
- Ensure compliance with the School Admissions Code and Appeals Code
- Reduce administrative burden on school staff
- Benefit from consistent, specialist expertise
- Receive coordinated support across admissions and appeals processes
The service is designed to provide efficient and legally compliant administration on behalf of schools.
Expectations of Schools
Schools that subscribe to the service are required to:
- Provide accurate and up-to-date information in a timely manner
- Respond to requests for information (including appeal case preparation) within required timescales
- Provide a presenting officer to attend the meeting on the schools behalf
- Adhere to the School Admissions Code, Appeals Code and GDPR requirements
- Respond promptly to placement requests (typically within two school days)
- Ensure timely admission of pupils once a place is offered
These expectations ensure that the Local Authority can effectively deliver the service on the school’s behalf.
If You Do Not Subscribe
Schools that do not subscribe will be responsible for:
- Managing their own admissions processes
- Coordinating and administering admission appeals
- Handling applications received directly
Where the Local Authority receives applications for non-subscribing schools, these will be forwarded to the school for processing.
