LA communications to schools

Title: / The admission into school of children previously in care outside of England
Summary: / To make schools aware of the recent guidance issued by the Minister of School Standards with LA advice.
Target school(s): / All schools
Specific schools / Own Admissions Authority Schools (academies,VA and Foundation schools)
For attention of: / Heads / Governors / Admission Officers
Author: / Wendy Anthony
Contact: / Wendy Anthony
Email: /
Telephone: / 020 7745 6445
Newsletter date: / 18/12/2017
Action required/
due date:

The admission into school of children previously in care outside of England

Schools may have received the attached letter from the Minister of State for School Standards, Nick Gibb.

The service would like to not only bring this letter to your attention in the event you do not receive it directly of via your Diocesan Board or Academy Trust, but to set out the Pan London approach to managing expectations of parents that may be seeking priority at your school who have been adopted from care outside of England.

At this current time, no amendments have been made to the Admissions Code 2014 and the attached letter is issued as ‘Guidance’. You may recall similar concerns raised expectations of parentsof summer born children as result of guidance issued by the Minister. The LA subsequently advised schools to ‘take account’ of the Ministers issued guidance, but to be aware of current legislation that does not give automatic right for a summer born child to apply for a school place outside of their chronological year group.

The Pan London Inter Authority Admissions Group (LIAAG), which has representation of all 33 London boroughs and surrounding counties, have issued advice to take the same approach with this guidance and not to make changes until it becomes a statutory requirement. A common approach is preferable as it will ensure equitable treatment of children in these circumstances and assist admission authorities who are challenged on the issue in advance of the Code being revised.

Concerns in managing the expectation of parents, and the difficulties that may be presented for schools without a statutory change, are increased by the following shortcoming in the Minister’s letter:

  • It does not explain that children adopted from care outside England are included in the education provisions of the Children & Social Work Act 2017;
  • It states these children should be ‘on an equal footing’, but then encourages admission authorities to give them ‘second highest priority’;
  • It implies that creating an additional oversubscription criterion is necessary, rather thanexpanding the existing first criterion, which would avoid increasing the length and complexity of admission arrangements to address what is likely to be a very small number of cases;
  • It implies that the DfE thinks it acceptable that these children may be treated differently depending on where they live and which school they attend (until the Code is changed);
  • It does not address the potentially tricky issue of securing evidence that such children were in state care immediately before adoption (to ensure parity with those adopted in England);
  • It does not address whether such children can be included as permitted exceptions to infant class size prior to a legislative change;
  • It has the same potential for public confusion as the summer born issue (albeit with smaller numbers but with higher stakes).

It will be the case that any formal change to arrangements will require consultation as indicated in the letter. This is too late for the 2019/20 year of entry, but the position can be reviewed for 2020/21 depending on any further advice from the DfE and before the consultation is required.

It is of course open to any admission authority to consider such cases under a discretionary social/medical criterion if there is one. However, it will be important to be able to demonstrate that the specific wording of the criterion has been met, rather than simply make reference to the Minister’s letter.

If you have any queries with this advice, please contact Wendy Anthony.