ADMISSIONS SEPTEMBER 2025

ADMISSION NUMBER

Southfields Academy is an academy school for pupils ages 11-18. The academy trustees of the school are responsible for the arrangements for admitting children. The school will admit 180 pupils to Year 7 in September 2025.

OVERSUBSCRIPTION CRITERIA

Places will first be offered to children with a Statement of Special Educational Needs or Education Health and Care Plan which names the academy.  These children will be included in the overall admission number for the academy.  In the event of oversubscription, the remaining places will then be allocated in the following order of priority as follows:

1. Children in public care (children looked after) and those who ceased to be children looked after because they were adopted, or because they became subject to a residence order, child arrangements order or a special guardianship order. (See Note 1).

2. Children with a known special medical or social need, who in the opinion of the Governing Body would be suitably provided for in the Academy. (See Note 2)

3. Children who have a sibling on the roll of the school at the time of admission.  (See Note 3)

4. Children who live nearest to the school, using a straight line measurement from home to school as calculated by Wandsworth Council's Geographical Information System (See Note 4).

5. If there are more applications than places within any category, applications will be considered in order of straight line distance from home to school as measured by Wandsworth Council’s Geographical Information System (note 4)

NOTES:

1. A child looked after is a child in the care of a local authority or provided with accommodation by that authority in accordance with Section 22 of the Children Act 1989. An adopted child is defined by section 46 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002 or section 12 of the Adoption Act 1976. A residence order is defined by section 8 of the Children Act 1989. A child arrangement order is defined by section 8 of the Children Act 1989 as amended by section 14 of the Children and families Act 2014. A special guardianship order is defined by section 14A of the Children Act 1989.

2. Applications made on exceptional medical grounds must be supported by a current letter from a specialist health professional. Applications made on exceptional social grounds must be supported by a current letter from a social worker or other care professional working with the family. The letters must give reasons why the child’s condition or circumstances make it necessary for the child to attend the school, and the difficulties that would be caused if the child had to attend an alternative school. If this information is not provided by the application closing date, the application will not be considered under this criterion.

3. A sibling is a full brother or sister, a step/half brother or sister living at the same address, a child who is living as part of the family by reason of a court order, or a child who has been placed with foster carers as a result of being looked after by a local authority.

4. The straight-line measurement used to prioritise applicants for admission to schools in Wandsworth commences in all cases at the location of the property and terminates at the central point of the school site as determined by Wandsworth Council’s Geographical Information System.  Measurements by alternative systems and/or to other points will not be taken into account in any circumstances. Where applicants have identical distance measurements, priority amongst them will be determined at random.

5. The permanent address of the parent/guardian with whom the child is living on the closing date for applications will be used for this purpose and this must be the address where the family normally lives.  Parents are not permitted to use a temporary address to secure a school place for the child.  A business address, a childminder’s address, or any address including a family member’s address other than the child’s permanent home will not be accepted.  Proof of address will be sought and if there is any doubt about the validity of the address given it may be the subject of further investigation.  Please see the “Choose a Wandsworth Secondary School” admissions brochure for further information.

6. Where a child lives with parents with shared custody/responsibility, the address where the child spends the majority of the week should be used by parents for the school application. If there is a genuine 50/50 shared arrangement in place, the address where the child lives is determined using a joint declaration from the parents stating the pattern of residence. In cases where an agreement cannot be reached between the parents and Child Benefit is claimed, the address that is registered for this claim will be used.  Additional proof may be requested, eg court order or a solicitor’s letter to confirm the arrangements.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Method of Application for Year 7

Parents/carers must apply on the Common Application Form of the local authority where they live. This can be completed online via www.wandsworth.gov.uk/admissions or on a paper form available from the school or their local council’s School Admissions Team.  The closing date for Year 7 applications will be 31 October 2024.  Notification letters will be sent out on 3 March 2025.  Applications received after the set closing date will be accepted but will not normally be considered for a place at the school until after the initial offer date.

Waiting List

Unsuccessful applicants (including any applications received after the closing date) will be included on the school’s waiting list ranked in order of priority under the published oversubscription criteria, without regard to the date that the application was received. Please note a child’s position on the waiting list can go down as well as up. For example, if a new application is received or if a child on the list moves nearer to the school, the waiting list may need to be revised. The offer of a place does not depend on the length of time your child’s name has been on the waiting list. 

Appeals

Parents who are not offered a place for their child have the right to appeal to an independent appeal panel.  Further information will be provided in the notification letter.  The school will publish an appeals timetable annually on its website showing the relevant deadlines.

 

 

Admission of children outside their normal age group

Any request for admission outside of the child’s chronological year of entry will be considered in accordance with paragraphs 2.17-2.17B of the Admissions Code. 

The academy trustees, as the admission authority for the school will consider requests on the circumstances of each case and in the best interests of the child concerned.  This will include taking account of the parent’s views; information about the child’s academic, social and emotional development; where relevant, their medical history and the views of a medical professional; whether they have previously been educated out of their normal age group; and whether they may naturally have fallen into a lower age group if it were not for being born prematurely. The headteacher’s views will also be taken into account.  Each case should be supported by a letter from a professional (e.g. GP, Hospital Consultant, Social Worker) that provides the reasons for admission outside of the chronological year group.  If the request is approved, the application will then be considered in accordance with the school’s oversubscription criteria in the event of oversubscription.

Parents have a statutory right to appeal against the refusal of a place at the school but this right does not apply if they are offered a place at the school but it is not in their preferred age group.

In Year Admissions

For in year admissions, parents/carers must apply to the school on the Wandsworth In Year Common Application Form. Applications will be considered in accordance with the above oversubscription criteria. In the event that it is not possible to offer a place the waiting list and appeals procedures described above will apply.

Fair Access Protocol

The school participates in the local authority’s In Year Admission Fair Access Protocol to allocate places exceptionally to vulnerable and other children in accordance with the School Admission Code 2014.  Where required, the admission of such pupils under the protocol takes precedence over pupils on a school’s waiting list and may require the school to admit above the planned admission number for the relevant year group.