Admissions Policy

The school will admit boys and girls:

• To Year 7, having been successful in the Kent Test.

• To Years 8-11 if there is a vacant place, having been successful in a school-administered Cognitive Ability Test.

• To Year 12 if there is a vacant place, having obtained the Sixth Form entry requirement of eight GCSE passes at grade 5 or above, including English, Mathematics and a Modern Language with at least six at grade 6 or above for entry to the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. Five GCSEs at grade 5 or above with three at grade 6 or above for entry to the International Baccalaureate Career Related Programme.

• To Year 13 if there is a vacant place and the specification studied in Year 12 is consistent with the school’s Year 13 provision.

Where applications for admission for eligible children exceed the pupil admission number of 165, the following criteria will be applied in the order laid out below. Before the application of these oversubscription criteria, children with a statement of special educational need or with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) which names Dane Court Grammar School will be admitted. As a result of this, the published admissions number will be reduced accordingly.

1. 1. Children in Local Authority Care or Previously in Local Authority Care: a 'looked after child' or a child who was previously looked after but immediately after being looked after became subject to an adoption, child arrangements, or special guardianship order. A looked after child is a child who is (a) in the care of a local authority, or (b) being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social services functions (see the definition in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989).

   2. Medical/health and special access reasons: this will be applied in accordance with the school’s legal obligations in particular those under the Equality Act 2010. Priority will be given to children under this criterion whose health or physical impairment means they have a demonstrable and significant need to attend Dane Court Grammar School. Equally this priority will apply to children whose parents’/guardians’ physical or mental health or social needs mean that they have a demonstrable and significant need to attend Dane Court Grammar School. Medical/health and special access reasons must be supported with written evidence from an appropriately qualified medical practitioner who can demonstrate a special connection between these needs and Dane Court Grammar School.

   3. Children with a sibling, currently on roll who will be in school at the time of entry: in this context brother or sister means children who live as brother or sister in the same house, including natural brothers and sisters, adopted siblings, stepbrothers or sisters and foster brothers and sisters.

   4. On the basis of distance/nearness of the children’s home to the school, with those living nearer to the school receiving priority. We use the distance between the child’s permanent home address and the school, measured in a straight line using the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG) address point. Distances are measured from a point defined as within the child’s home to a point defined as within the school as specified by NLPG. The same address point on the school site is used for everybody. When we apply the distance criterion for the school, these straight line measurements are used to determine how close each applicant’s address is to the school.

In the event of a tie between applications which cannot otherwise be separated, the names will be put into a hat and one name drawn to decide in a fair and clear manner which application will be successful.

Where the number of eligible applicants exceeds the number of places available, unsuccessful applicants can be put on a waiting list. This waiting list will be ranked in accordance with the school’s published oversubscription criteria. The school’s waiting list will be re-ranked, according to the published oversubscription criteria, every time a child’s name is added.

Students will be admitted to the Sixth Form if their preferences match the course available, if their qualifications are sufficient to meet the entry requirements and if there is a space after the needs of students continuing on roll have been met. Students at Dane Court transferring from Year 11 will have priority for places on courses available in Year 12. The minimum published admission number (PAN) for new students in the Sixth Form is 30.

Where learners have achieved better results than the predicted grades, they will be considered based on the grades achieved and ranked accordingly for any places that become available as a result of other learners failing to meet the required entry levels.

In the case of over subscription the following criteria will apply in the order laid out below:

1. Students who are presently or were previously in Local Authority Care (see definition for 2a)

2. Students with medical/health and special access reasons (see definition for 2b)

3. Students with a sibling, currently on roll who will be in school at the time of entry (see definition for 2c)

4. On the basis of distance/nearness of the student’s home to the school, with those living nearer the school, as the crow flies, receiving priority (see definition for 2d)

These criteria will only come into play if the school is oversubscribed in the relevant year group.

APPEALS

As an Academy, Dane Court is its own admissions’ authority. If a child is refused admission, parents will have the right to make an appeal to an Independent Appeals Panel. Appeals fall into two categories:

1. Appeals against selection: the school’s criteria state that admission is open to those who are successful in the Kent selection procedure. There is no facility to appeal the selection decision; however, if a child is refused a school place as a result of not receiving a grammar assessment, parents are still able to appeal to an independent appeal panel on the basis that a place has been refused, setting out their grounds for appeal in the letter.

2. Appeals against allocation: in the eventuality that a place is refused because the school is oversubscribed, an appeal may be made directly to the Independent Appeal Panel including the grounds for the appeal in the letter.

Appeals may be lodged by writing to the Clerk of the Governors, c/o Dane Court Grammar School.