Transfer to Secondary School September 2021

You are reminded that it is your responsibility to notify the Admissions team of any change in your circumstances which occur before September that may affect your school place offer. This includes a change to your child’s permanent address.

Your questions answered

About the offers

I have not been offered any school place. Why is this the case and what will happen next?

The offer process starts on 1 March and continues during the spring and summer until children start school in September 2021. This means that some parents will not be offered a place for their child on 1 March and we realise how disappointing and upsetting that is. However, experience shows us that places become available from movement on waiting lists, as families move out of the area or make alternative arrangements for their child’s education.

We will be monitoring your situation closely and while we may not be able to contact you as regularly as we would like, please be assured that we will be keeping a close eye on your child’s progress on waiting lists and looking at alternative options which you may not have considered.

We plan the number of school places required according to the number that will be needed for children to start school in September, rather than at the time offers are sent out initially in March. In previous years all initially unplaced children have been placed within a reasonable period of time and we expect the same to be the case this year. We hope that your wait for a school place for your child will be minimal, and we recognise that it is an anxious time.

I have been offered a school place that I did not apply for. What can I do?

Please make arrangements to visit the allocated school before you make a decision about the place offered. You should also find out where your child is on the waiting list of your preferred school(s) (see information about waiting lists below). You can also make an application to schools you have not applied to, which may have spaces available, or only a small waiting list.

I have been offered a school place for my child but not at the school I want most. What can I do?

We advise you to accept the school place offered to ensure your child has a school place as you can always refuse this at a later date if you are offered a school you prefer. Please be assured that this will not affect your child’s position on any waiting lists of your higher preference schools.

How do I apply to any other schools that I have not previously applied to?

You should email Kingston School Admissions to let us know and we will pass any applications on to the admission authority concerned. This applies whether the school is in this borough or in another local authority.

My circumstances have changed and I now prefer a lower preference school to the school I have been offered. What should I do?

If your circumstances have changed and you wish to apply to schools you had not applied to previously, or if you want your child’s name to be added on to the waiting list of a lower preference school you will need to request this in writing by emailing Kingston School Admissions. Your child’s name will be added to the waiting list in accordance with the school’s published admission arrangements. If there are vacancies you will be offered a place when we make further offers. In the meantime, we advise you to accept the place you have been offered to ensure your child has a school place. This will not affect your child’s place on any waiting lists.

Can I hold more than one school place at a time?

No. You should not hold more than one school place at any time, whether it is an academy, community, foundation, free, voluntary aided or independent (i.e. private) school. If, at a later stage, you are offered a place at a school you prefer you must inform Kingston School Admissions immediately that you no longer require the place you had been offered previously.

I applied under the exceptional circumstances criterion for Kingston schools but my child has not been offered a place at my preferred school.

If you applied under the exceptional circumstances criterion for any Kingston school but have not been offered a place, please be assured that the documentary evidence you submitted in support of your preferences was carefully considered. However, it was not considered to be the only school that could meet your child’s needs and therefore your application was not given additional priority ahead of children living nearer to the school. You should expect to receive a letter from the school shortly explaining why your child’s application was not prioritised under the exceptional reasons criterion. If you do not receive this letter by 10 March 2021 please contact the school.

About the waiting list

Is my child’s name automatically put onto waiting lists?

Your child’s name is automatically on the waiting list of any higher preference school that you were not offered.

How can I find out my child’s waiting list position?

For all Kingston schools, please contact Kingston School Admissions. For schools outside of Kingston borough you should contact the admission authority for the school(s) concerned. The School Admissions Code 2014 requires waiting lists to be held in oversubscription criteria order so you child’s position on the list can go down if an application is received for a child with a higher priority.

Can I keep my child’s name on more than one waiting list?

Yes, if you wish. It will not affect your chances of being offered a school that you prefer. You will need to look at the school’s admission criteria and consider the likelihood of being offered a place, e.g. if your child’s name comes a long way down the waiting list because you live further away from the school than other applicants.

About the appeals procedure

How can I appeal for a school place?

You can appeal against a decision not to offer a place at any school to which you have applied. The appeal is heard by an independent appeal panel who will consider the grounds you give for appealing, together with the reasons given by the admissions authority for refusing to offer a place. The appeal panel is independent of the school and the school is obliged to act upon their decision.

Appeal panels follow a two-stage process in reaching decisions. The panel must first decide whether the admissions arrangements comply with admissions law, that they were correctly applied and whether there will be prejudice to efficient education and efficient use of resources if more children are admitted to the school. This means that it would have a harmful effect on the education of other pupils and/or would not be an efficient use of the school’s staff and accommodation. If the panel decides that the admission arrangements were correctly applied and that prejudice would be caused by the admission of further children, it will balance this against the reasons you give for your appeal. This is the second stage of the appeal process.

Can I appeal if I have accepted an alternative school place?

Yes. Holding an alternative school place does not affect your right to submit an appeal.

Can I submit a second appeal for the same school if my first appeal is unsuccessful?

A further appeal in the same academic year will only be allowed if there are exceptional changes in your circumstances.

How to make an appeal for a Kingston school

Please contact the individual school direct to request a Notice of Appeal form and the date by which the completed form should be returned.

You may attach additional documents in support of your case and you may also request that previous correspondence is brought to the attention of the panel. You have the right to attend the hearing to present your case and you have the right to be accompanied at the hearing or to be represented by someone else.

How to make an appeal for schools in another local authority area

If you wish to appeal for a place at a community school in another local authority area, please contact the local authority direct for further information.

If the school is an academy, foundation, free or voluntary aided school you will need to contact the school direct for appeal information.

Allocation of places at 1st March 2021 for schools in the Royal Borough of Kingston Upon Thames

School Name	Current Situation	Furthest distance offered
Chessington School	All preferences met	-
Coombe Boys’ School	Waiting list	2.078 km
Coombe Girls’ School	Waiting list	1.821 km
The Hollyfield School	Waiting list	1.402 km
The Holy Cross School	Waiting list	-
The Kingston Academy	Waiting list	1.156 km
Richard Challoner School	Waiting list	-
Southborough High School	Waiting list	2.079 km
Tolworth Girls’ School	Waiting list	2.815 km
Tiffin School	Waiting list	-
The Tiffin Girls’ School	Waiting list	-