Report of the Head of Education & Learning (EL/17/1) on the proposed admission arrangements for community and voluntary schools and co-ordinated admissions schemes for state funded schools for 2018/2019, including in-year arrangements for 2017/18 and Education Travel Policy 2018/19, attached.
The proposed admission arrangements were considered and accepted by the School Organisation, Capital and Admissions Group (Devon Local Admissions Forum) on 10 January 2017.
[NB: The Co-ordinated In-Year Admissions Scheme, the Normal Round Co-ordinated Admissions Scheme have been circulated to Cabinet Members and can be viewed on the Council’s website at: www.devon.gov.uk/admissionarrangements]
Minutes:
(Councillors Connett, Hook and Westlake attended in accordance with Standing Order 25(2) and spoke to this item).
The Cabinet considered the Report of the Head of Education & Learning (EL/17/1) on the proposed admission arrangements for community and voluntary schools and co-ordinated admissions schemes for state funded schools for 2018/19 and in-year arrangements for 2017/18 and the Education Travel Policy for 2018/19.
Statutory guidance issued in the School Admissions Code required admission authorities, including Councils, to consult annually upon admission arrangements and determine those by 28 February in each year. As the admissions authority for community and voluntary controlled schools and the administrator of the co-ordinated admission scheme the County Council had consulted with schools on all aspects of the admission arrangements relevant to community and voluntary controlled schools.
Any school which was an admission authority in its own right was responsible for its consultations. However the Council had once again, in the interests of streamlining the process, offered to host consultations for all such schools including those which had subscribed to the Council’s Admissions Service or who had indicated their wish to participate in this exercise.
The list of consultees, means of consultation and issues raised or comments received during that consultation were summarised in the Head of Service’s Report (Appendix 5) together with responses and recommendations. The number of responses received was again low - a number of which related to specific local admissions rather than the overall policy. That situation was consistent with neighbouring authorities. No substantial or significant changes were proposed to the current arrangements which were compliant with the statutory requirements of the School Admissions Code.
The Head of Service’s Report recognised the complexity of the issues involved in devising polices to meet the needs of all categories of schools, satisfy parental preferences and comply with legislative requirements and contained some 10 detailed recommendations relating not only to the adoption of the admission criteria and countywide policies generally but also to a number of specific matters relating to individual schools affecting, inter alia, forms of entry and designated areas.
The proposed admission arrangements had been considered and endorsed by the School Organisation, Capital and Admissions Group (Devon Local Admissions Forum) on 10 January 2017.
An Equality Impact Assessment had been completed as part of this decision making process which was referred to in the Head of Service’s Report and available to all Members at www.devon.gov.uk/admissionarrangements,for the attention of Cabinet at this meeting. It recognised that the proposed admissions policy supported the principle of providing local places for children for local schools.
The matter having been debated and the options and/or alternatives and other relevant factors (e.g. financial, sustainable, equality, risk management and legal considerations) and public health impact set out in the Head of Service’s Report and/or referred to above having been considered:
It was MOVED by Councillor McInnes, SECONDED by Councillor Hart, and
RESOLVED
(a) that the consultations undertaken on the proposed admission arrangements for 2018/19 and the outcome thereof be noted;
(b) that the proposed admission arrangements for Community and Voluntary Controlled Schools for September 2018 and the Planned Admission Numbers for Community and Voluntary Controlled Schools be now approved, in line with the recommendations referred to above and detailed in Report EL/17/1, and more particularly in Appendices 1-6, in respect of the:
· normal round co-ordinated admissions scheme for Primary and Secondary Schools;
· in-year co-ordinated admissions scheme for all Schools for 2017/18;
· admissions oversubscription criteria for Community and Voluntary Controlled (VC) schools (Appendix 1);
· the Education Transport Policy for 2018/19;
· Published Admission Numbers (PANs) for Community and VC Schools (Appendix 2);
· amendments to the catchment areas of Hazeldown, Bishopsteignton, Payhembury, Starcross, Cockwood and Kenn and Chudleigh CofE Primary Schools (Appendix 3);
· a further review of catchment areas with schools during 2017 using the existing network (Appendix 6);
(c) that approval be also given to the Fair Access Protocol (which provides for vulnerable children who would otherwise be out of school) being reviewed in consultation with Devon Schools during the summer term;
(d) that the timetable for the following year’s admissions arrangements cycle set out at Appendix 4 to Report EL/17/1 be approved;
(e) that Cabinet agree not to introduce an admissions oversubscription priority for children attending a school-run nursery; and
(f) that delayed admission requests be dealt with in line with the existing Admissions Code, on case by case basis, and that all Admission Authority Schools be encouraged to adopt this approach (Appendix 6).
[NB: The Co-ordinated In-Year Admissions Scheme, the Normal Round Co-ordinated Admissions Scheme circulated to Cabinet Members and can be viewed on the Council’s website at: www.devon.gov.uk/admissionarrangements]