Agenda item

4. School admissions is a standing item which is taken annually within the work programme.  The aim of this item is for the Commission to maintain oversight of school admissions processes, to ensure that there are satisfactory arrangements for those children entering primary (reception) and secondary school in September 2020 and that there is sufficient school capacity in years going forward, for which the Council has a specific duty.

4.2 Hackney Learning Trust highlighted key points from the submitted report about the 2020 school admissions process:

·  For reception and secondary entry, virtually all (99%) parents applied via the on-line tool;

·  A high proportion of parents expressed a first preference for a Hackney school: 96% for primary entry and 87% for secondary applications;

·  In terms of meeting parents preferred choice of school, local results were on par with regional averages - 95.2% of primary and 88.3% of secondary school preferences ranked 1-3 were met in Hackney;

·  144 of reception admissions and 303 secondary admissions were out of borough, which reflects the cross-border flow with neighbouring boroughs;

·  Children with an EHCP have a separate admissions process; this demonstrated that a majority obtained placements in mainstream settings in Hackney for September 2020.

4.3 In respect of school place planning, there had been a decline in reception class places since 2016.  There were however, 37 more children in this year’s reception class compared to the previous year. GLA projections suggest that there will be a gradual growth in places with an additional 70+ projected places in 2024 compared to 2019. In terms of secondary place planning, there was sufficient capacity to meet local needs.  In future years however, there will be a surplus unless additional pupils from out of borough take up secondary school places in Hackney.

Questions

4.4 How many children with SEND did not get their first school preference at primary and secondary?  How many children whose first preference was for a special school were not able to attend?

- Officers did not have data to hand on the first preference choices of children with SEND as this was managed by a different team.  This would be provided to the Commission for the next meeting.

Action: To provide data on the first preference choices of children with SEND at primary and secondary together with their final placement (including how many children who had a local special school as their first option).

4.5 Why have a large number of parents in E5 not been successful in obtaining a place in any preferred school?

- 39 parents in E5 were not offered a place in a preferred school at National School Placement day.  This in part was because this postcode covered a large geographic area, but in many cases, children did not reach the criteria for admission in local non-denominational schools (e.g. if a sibling did not attend). 

4.6 What strategic analysis does HLT undertake in respect of oversubscribed and under-subscribed schools?  What are the characteristics of under-subscribed schools and what support is available to schools that are struggling to attract sufficient numbers of children?

- Strategic analysis of oversubscribed and under-subscribed schools is undertaken each year.  There is a consistent pattern in those schools which are oversubscribed which tended to repeat year on year.  For example, Mossbourne Community Academy is greatly oversubscribed each year, and this year it received over 1500 applications for 216 places, continuing the previous trend.  In general, whilst most secondary schools in Hackney are full, most parents get their 1^st, 2^nd or 3^rd preference school and are content.  A number of transition events are held in year 5 where parents have the opportunity to meet local secondary heads.  This process can help to increase local applications; for example, a rise in applications at Our Lady’s was attributed to increased parental awareness that the school accepted applications from children from a wide range of faiths other than practicing Catholics.

4.7 What support is offered to parents whose children were not allocated a place in any of their preferred schools?

- All children were offered a school place on National Offer Day, including those where none of the preferred choices were available.  Where no spaces were available at preferred school, children were offered a place at their nearest school where there was a vacancy.  If parents were not happy with this place, they could contact the department to be placed in another school where there was a vacancy.  It was noted that children may remain on the waiting list for higher preference schools which they may take up should a vacancy become available. 

4.8 Children with SEND have particular concerns around transition where there may be considerable anxiety for both the child and the parent. How are such parents and children supported?  What work is undertaken with local parents of children with SEND who may find it difficult to navigate and assess local opportunities? 

- Transition for young people with SEND has been managed by the school improvement team which is in regular contact with secondary schools to ascertain what is offered to children to support the transition process. A range of support is generally available which can include virtual tours, telephone and video calls with the school and other on-line resources.  The SEND team liaises with the school to ensure that secondary schools are aware of the young people entering the school and to facilitate engagement with the young people concerned.  There is also significant transfer of data to accompany a child’s move from primary to secondary school which includes primary CAT assessments and other pupil data. 

- Induction was very important and whilst schools would prefer if this was done face to face, in many instances this was now done virtually.  Group sessions with parents are now generally being replaced by on-line sessions.  Particular attention is given to vulnerable students who may experience transition difficulties, and HLT has issued guidance to local schools to this effect.

4.9 How does the banding operate in relation to school places?

- Banding takes place to support schools which are oversubscribed to admit pupils with a range of abilities, bands A through to D or E.   Local data shows that children who did not get their first preference schools were more likely to be in lower bands (C, D, and E).  It was also the case that some schools who were oversubscribed sometimes exhaust their Band A and B waiting list before their Band C and D waiting list.  Similarly, when the distance from where the child lives from the school is analysed, band A children will often live further away than band C and D children. As a whole however, schools aim to accept applications in equal proportions from 4 or 5 bands as they apply their subscription criteria (as seen in appendix B of the attached report).

- There have been particular concerns about the preferred school choices for boys resident in E5 and E8.  Parents have been engaged in these areas to ensure that they are aware of all the school options for their child and to make sure that they indicate the full range of preferences within the application process.  It was important that parents were aware of the admissions criteria for a number of local secondary schools where these were very specific or were restricted to a very localised geographic area.

4.10 What is the impact of a temporary PAN for school numbers?

- As schools are funded on a per pupil basis, it is not financially viable for a two-form entry school to run within an intake of pupils (1 class full and another 1/3 full).  It is better financially for a school to operate with one full class than operate with two classes.  The decision to CAP entries is undertaken with the agreement of the school and often at the request of schools to help assist in staff planning and effective school budgeting.

4.11 To what extent will Covid 19 impact on the school admissions for September 2020?

- At this time, it was difficult to determine what the impact of Covid 19 would be for school admissions for September 2020.  It was acknowledged that school attendance numbers were currently low, but would hopefully increase as the health situation improves and parental confidence grows.  It was acknowledged that there would be a number of families who may not feel confident about returning, particularly those that are shielding (parent or child), and that additional support would be required.

4.12 Is it right to assume every child has been given a place in primary or secondary school? What support is available for those children who do not have a place?

- Every child has been offered a school place for September 2020, including those who have applied late.  Although a few late applications were still being received, it was expected that all late applications would be offered a place irrespective of whether this was for reception entry or secondary transfer.

The Chair thanked officers for the report and for responding to questions from the Commission.