Upton Hall School

Admissions Policy

Upton Hall School FCJ Admission Policy for September 2011

 

Upton Hall School FCJ is a Catholic Grammar School for girls aged 11-18.  It is situated in the Diocese of Shrewsbury and is under the Trusteeship of the Society of the Faithful Companions of Jesus.  It is maintained by Wirral Education Authority.  As a Voluntary Aided School, the Governing Body is the Admissions Authority and is responsible for decisions on admissions to the School.  For the school year commencing September 2011, the planned admission number is 135.

 

Admission to the School in Year 7

An Admissions Committee of the Governing Body will determine admission to the school for those girls who have achieved 236 in the Governors’ Entrance Examination consisting of two closed NFER tests in Verbal Reasoning.  Where applications are received from Catholic and non-Catholic children, looked after by a Local Authority, rhose who have reached the required standard will be admitted to the school in advance of the outlined order of criteria stated below.

After allowing for such and If there are more than 135 girls who satisfy the requirements stated, places will be offered strictly in accordance with the order of merit based on the results achieved in the Entrance Examination and according to the following priorities:

 

In the event of oversubscription in any of the above categories, places will be allocated in order of merit based on the score in the Examination.  If there are several candidates at the 135th place with equal marks in the order of merit, priority will be given to those girls whose homes are nearest the School

 

Admission to the School in Year 12 (Sixth Form)

In addition to places available for girls already in the School, the Governing Body will make available a further 20 places for girls from other schools.  The required minimum standard for all girls wishing to obtain a place in the Sixth Form is five GCSE passes at grade C or above, with at least B grades recommended in subjects to be studied at AS or A2 Level.

 

Should the School receive more external applications for the Sixth Form than can be accommodated, then the criteria applied for entry in Year 7 will be used to determine admissions but without reference to the Governors Entrance Examination.

 

Notes:

 

a. If an application for admissions from either internal or external candidates has been turned down by the Governing Body then an appeal can be made to an Independent Appeals Panel. Parents and students are able to appeal jointly or separately against any decision refusing a young person admission and, where they appeal separately the appeals must be heard together. This appeal must be sent in writing to the Clerk to the Governors at the school within 14 days of refusal. Reasons for the appeal must be given in writing and the decision of the Appeals Panel is binding on the Governors.

 

b. The Governing Body expects that all students specifically selecting a Catholic Sixth Form education will wish to be both fully involved in the ethos and spiritual life of the school, and in achieving the aims set out in its Mission Statement.

 

Additional Notes

All applicants will be considered at the same time and after the closing date for admissions which is October 31 2010.

 

A Baptised Catholic girl means a girl who has been baptised into the Roman Catholic Church and who can produce a baptismal certificate as evidence or one who has been baptised a Christian and can demonstrate that she has subsequently been admitted to the Roman Catholic Church

 

Nearest to the School means the shortest available safe walking distance as measured by the Local Authority computer mapping system.

 

 

For occasional applications received outside the normal admissions round and if places are available then girls qualifying under the published criteria will be admitted.  If there are places available but more applicants than places then the published over-subscription criteria will be applied.  Late applications will be treated as indicated in the arrangements published by the Local Authority.

 

The Governing Body reserve the right to withdraw the offer of a school place where false
evidence is received in relation to baptism or place of residence.

Waiting Lists

 

A waiting list for girls who have not been offered a place will be kept and will be ranked according to the Admissions Criteria.  Parents will be informed of their daughter's position on the waiting list which will not be operated for longer than the end of the Autumn Term.

 

Appeals

If an application for admission has been refused by the Governing Body, parents can appeal to an Independent Appeals Panel. This appeal must be sent in writing to the Clerk to the Governors at the school within 14 days of the refusal. The parents must give their reasons for appealing in writing and the decision of the Appeals Panel is binding on the Governors.