Allocation of secondary school places

WQ.246/2025

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION AND LIFELONG LEARNING

BY DEPUTY J. RENOUF OF ST. BRELADE

QUESTION SUBMITTED ON TUESDAY 27th MAY 2025

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 3rd JUNE 2025

Question

"Further to Written Question 184/2025, will the Minister state how many out-of-catchment' requests were accepted for secondary schools in each of the last 5 years; and will he provide further details regarding the policy around the allocation of secondary school places with particular reference to –

1. the weightings applied to the different criteria (such as residence in the catchment area) that are used to determine the allocation of places; and
2. whether residence in a catchment area is weighted in favour of those living closer to a school within a catchment?"

Answer

*All after appeals

1. The criteria for allocating places at secondary schools is published in the Admissions to Non Fee Paying Secondary Schools Policy

If a school is oversubscribed, places will be allocated in the following priority:

1. children looked after and children who were previously looked after
2. have a special educational need and must attend a specific school
3. live in the school catchment area
4. have siblings in Years 7 to 10
5. attended a feeder primary school in the secondary school catchment area
6. have parents who live or work in the catchment area
7. have siblings in Year 11
8. have a good educational reason for attending a specific school

If a school is oversubscribed by pupils living in the catchment area during the annual Year 7 admissions, criteria 1 - 5 will be applied for in-catchment pupils and any remaining in catchment places will be allocated based on distance from home to the closest school with available space.

In practice this means that a child that lives in catchment and has a sibling in Y7 to 10 will have priority over a child who does not have a sibling at the school.

Similarly, a child that lives in catchment and attended a feeder school will have priority over a child that did not attend a feeder school.

2. Distance from the school is only considered when a school is oversubscribed by children living in the catchment area and after placement of children that have a sibling (Y7 to 10) and/or that attended a feeder school. If any places remain then each family will be mapped and the distance to school will be recorded. Priority is then given to those families based on the distance to the next closest school with available space, compared to the distance to the catchment school.