Varndean School

When there are more applications than places for 2027-28 (Year 7), places are offered in this order of priority. Meeting a higher criterion beats meeting a lower one.

1. 1Looked after and previously looked after children — Looked after children and all previously looked after children, including those children who appear (to Brighton & Hove City Council) to have been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state care as a result of being adopted
2. 2Compelling medical or other exceptional reasons — Compelling medical or other exceptional reasons to attend the school
3. 3Sibling link — This will apply where a child living in the same household will be attending the school when your child is due to start.
4. 4In catchment + Targeted FSM — Children living within the school's catchment area and eligible for Targeted Free School Meals (FSM) up to the city average
5. 5Other Targeted FSM children up to city average — Other children eligible for Targeted Free School Meals, up to the city average.
6. 6Single-school catchment open admissions (up to 5%) — Children living outside the school's catchment area but within the catchment area for BACA, PACA, Patcham or Longhill up to 5%
7. 7Catchment area — This priority will apply if your child's home address is within the catchment area for the school in question.
8. 8Other children — This applies if your child does not meet any of the criteria listed above. Pupils living outside a school's catchment area and eligible for free school meals who are not offered a place under priority 5 or 6 will also be included in this priority.

If two applications tie: Where a school is oversubscribed with children in any of the above priorities, an electronic random allocation system using a unique 6-digit random number assigned to every preference is used to decide which children within that priority are offered available places.

Local-authority coordinated default oversubscription criteria for Brighton & Hove City Council's community and voluntary-controlled schools (the council is the admission authority). Some community/voluntary-controlled schools in this authority apply catchment-area, feeder-school or priority-area variants — check the individual school for its exact arrangements. Applies to Brighton & Hove community schools (Blatchington Mill, Dorothy Stringer, Hove Park, Longhill High, Patcham High, Varndean). BACA, PACA, Cardinal Newman Catholic School and King's School are own-admission-authority schools with separate arrangements (section 5), not covered here. EHCP children are guaranteed a place at the school named in their plan ahead of the numbered priorities.

Published by the admission authority. Meeting a criterion never guarantees a place — it sets the order places are offered in. Full detail, other entry points and previous years are on the Admissions tab.