Admission Policy 2024-2025

Our Principles

This is our school’s policy for Year 7 admissions in September 2025, our school’s number intended to admit is 248.  All September 2025 applications must be made in accordance with the coordinated admission scheme operated by the child’s home Local Authority. 

For children residing in Essex, this is published by Essex County Council in the Secondary Education in Essex booklet.  Applications for admission to Year 7 in September 2024 must be received by the National Closing Date: 31st October 2024.

All Mid-term Applications should be made directly to Roding Valley High School; a copy of our Mid-Year Application Form is available on our school website:  https://rodingvalley.net/admissions/applying-for-a-place-at-our-school/. 

Admission Criteria

All applications for our Year 7 admission in September 2023 will be reviewed in the order of the following criteria:

1. Looked After Children and previously Looked After Children

2. Siblings

3. Children of Roding Valley High School staff

4. Where the child attends one of the following schools, irrespective of place of residence:

-          Buckhurst Hill Community Primary School

-          Chigwell Primary School

-          High Beech C of E Primary School

-          Ivy Chimneys Primary School

-          Lambourne Primary School

-          Limes Farm Junior School

-          Staples Road Primary School

-          St. John’s C of E School, Buckhurst Hill

-          The Alderton Junior School

-          Theydon Bois Primary School

-          White Bridge Primary School

By the closing date for applications

5. All remaining applications by distance

 Criterion Explained

• Looked After Children and previously Looked After Children: 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 (as defined in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989). A previously looked after child is a child that immediately after being looked after became subject to an adoption, residence or special guardianship order will be given first priority in oversubscription criteria, in accordance with the School Admissions Code (Dec 2014).

• Children with an EHCP naming Roding Valley High School as their school of choice: Children with special educational needs that have an EHCP naming us as their chosen place of education will be admitted regardless of all other criteria, as long as the needs of the child can be met by the school.

• Siblings: A relevant sibling is a child who has a brother, sister, adopted brother or sister or stepbrother or stepsister living in the same family unit in the same family household and address who attends Roding Valley High School in any year group, irrespective of place of residence. A sibling link to a child in Year 11, or Year 12, will only be taken to exist at the time of application and determination where the brother or sister has completed their statutory education at Roding Valley High School and where there is an intention that the Year 11 child will be returning to the school for a post 16 course of study.

Children residing in the same household as part of an extended family, such as cousins, will not be treated as siblings. In the case of twins or triplets etc., both or all will be offered places.

• Children of Roding Valley High School staff:

-       Where the member of staff has been employed at the school for two or more years at the time at which the application for admission to the school is made, and/or

-       The member of staff is recruited to fill a vacant post for which there is a demonstrable skill shortage

• Where the child attends one of our priority primary schools, irrespective of place of residence: All children attending one of the named priority primary schools at the closing date of the application process applying for a place at our school, irrespective of place of residence.

In the event of over-subscription, priority will be determined by straight line distance from the home to school, with those living nearest having highest priority.

• All remaining applications: Priority for all remaining applicants will be determined by straight line distance from the home to school, with those living nearest having highest priority.

For all criterions; children will be ranked in distance order for admission by straight line distance. Those living nearer will have a higher priority, starting with the nearest first. All straight-line distances are calculated electronically by the local authority using data provided jointly by the Post Office and Ordnance Survey. The data is used to plot the co-ordinates of each individual property and the school. Distances are reported in miles to three decimal places.

In the unlikely event of applicants with an identical distance competing for a single place at a school, the place will be offered to one applicant on the basis of lots drawn by a member of school staff not involved in admissions, with the exception of twins, triplets etc.

In the event of over-subscription within any of the above criteria, priority will be determined by straight line distance from the home to school, with those living nearest having highest priority.

If under-subscription occurs priority will be determined by those living nearest to the school given the highest priority using straight line distance.  All straight-line distances are calculated electronically by the local authority using data provided jointly by the Post Office and Ordnance Survey. The data is used to plot the co-ordinates of each individual property and the school. Distances are reported in miles to three decimal places.

Waiting List

A waiting list will be kept by the Local Authority for the first week of the autumn term only and the school will maintain this waiting list for the remainder of the school year.

Right of Appeal

Applicants who cannot be offered a place will be offered the right of appeal to an Independent Appeals Panel.

Mid-Phase Admissions

Mid-Year admissions are those that fall outside the normal admission round for a Year 7 place.

When making a Mid-year admission application for a secondary school place at Roding Valley High School, parents/carers will need to apply using the agreed Mid-Year Admission Application form, which is available on our school website.  Parents will also need to ensure that their application form is completed in its entirety, this includes our Fair Access Protocol Form on page three of our Mid-Year Admission Application Form.

The Fair Access Protocol Form must be completed by the child’s current/most recent place of education.

A Mid-Year Admission Application will only be considered once the school receives a fully completed application; which must include the completed Fair Access Protocol Form.

Admissions to Sixth Form

Roding Valley High School Sixth Form is available for all existing students and applications from external students are most welcome. 

All applicants must meet the minimum entry requirements for their chosen course of study.  In addition, students must meet subject specific requirements.

Full details are published in the Roding Valley High School Sixth Form Prospectus, which is available from the school or can be downloaded from our website: https://rodingvalley.net/sixth-form/applying-for-sixth-form/

Transition from Primary to Secondary School

At Roding Valley High School, we believe that the process of transition from Primary to Secondary should be as comfortable and smooth as possible for both the parents and the children. To aid this transition, we will provide the following events:

• The school will liaise with our priority primary schools in coordinating various events for both Year 5 and 6 students, giving them the opportunity to visit and feel comfortable with the secondary environment.

• The school will open its doors to all prospective parents for our Open Morning event, which will be held at the end of September.

• Morning Tours will be available for all prospective parents during the week after our Open Morning, providing parents an opportunity to gain an insight into the day to day life at our school.

• All parents of students allocated a place in our September 2025 Intake will be invited to attend our Year 7 Transition Evening, where they will be provided with information on our expectations, routines and given the opportunity to meet with the child’s teachers in an informal setting.

• All students allocated a place in our September 2025 intake will be invited to attend our Transition day on the last Friday of June and have the opportunity to meet their fellow class mates and their teachers.