Decision

To approve the proposed
admission arrangements for all maintained community and voluntary
controlled primary and secondary schools in the Borough, during the
2026/2027 school year.

Reasons for the decision

1.   
The Council is the Admissions Authority for all
maintained community and voluntary controlled schools in Barnsley.
These authorities determine the admission arrangements for the
schools for which they have responsibility. Local authorities must
determine the admission arrangements each year even if no
consultation has been required. 
 

2.   
This accords with the requirement in Section 89 of
the School Standards and Framework Act (1998) The determination of
the admission arrangements for the 2026/2027 school year must be
finalised no later than 28th February in the
determination year, namely by 28th February
2025.  
 

3.   
A copy of the proposed admission arrangements for
community and voluntary primary and secondary schools in the
Borough is attached as Appendix 1 to this report. This draft policy
is fully compliant with the requirements of the school admissions
legislation which sets out the statutory duties of the Local
Authority. 
 

4.   
The proposed admission arrangements for this period
have been updated to include Penistone Grammar School’s
Post-16 admission arrangements.  This was previously delegated
to the governing body of the school in 2002, however, the Local
Authority is the admissions authority for the school and should
perform all duties in relation to admissions, including
consultation and determining admission arrangements. This has been
confirmed by the Department for Education as the required practice
going forward. 
 

5.   
Late applications for secondary schools received
after the national closing date of 31st October will be
processed after all on time applications. This is an update to the
practice during previous years and will ensure the arrangements are
in line with the legislation and to support co-ordination with
other local authorities.  Previously, late applications
received between 1st and 30th November were
considered with all applications that were submitted on
time.  
 

6.   
Formal consultation on the proposed arrangements has
been undertaken in accordance with legislation and Codes of
Practice. The updates and changes to previous arrangements have
been highlighted to consultees.   
 

7.   
In accordance with the Admissions Code’s
requirements, consultation was carried out with the parents of
children between the ages of 2 and 18, all neighbouring local
authorities, and all other admissions authorities within Barnsley
including Dioceses where applicable.  The consultation was
displayed on the Council’s Web site and social media
channels. The period of consultation was for six weeks between
17th December 2024 and 28th January 2025 and
no comments were yielded by consultees 
 

Alternative options considered

The exclusive purpose of this
report is to ensure the implementation of admission arrangements
for this group of schools for the proposed school year.