The Grove 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 — A CYP who is 'looked after' or who was previously looked after but immediately after being looked after became subject to an adoption, child arrangements, or special guardianship order including those who appear [to the admission authority] to have been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state care as a result of being adopted. A looked after child is a child who is (a) in the care of a local authority, or (b) being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social services functions (see the definition in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989).
2. 2Medical or social exceptionality — Priority will be given to a CYP where medical or social exceptionalities are accommodated, if responsible adults can provide written evidence from a medical professional that attending the school is essential to the medical well-being of the CYP.
3. 3Within catchment area, siblings first then Nearest School Test then others — Priority will be given to CYP living within the designated catchment area. If there are not enough places for all the CYP in the catchment area, then the following criteria for admission will apply: 1) Priority will be given to CYP living within the catchment area who will have another sibling at the school (including sixth form if applicable) on the day they are due to start there. 2) Shrewsbury Academy only: After that, priority will be given to other CYP who live within the Shrewsbury catchment area for whom the school is the nearest Shrewsbury secondary school. For this 'Nearest School Test', a straight-line computerised mapping system is used, to determine the distance between home and the nearest appropriate official entrance gate to the school site. 3) After that, any other CYP who live within the catchment area.
4. 4Children of staff members — CYP who have a responsible adult who is a member of staff, who has been employed at the school for two or more years at the time at which the application for admission to the school is made, and/or the member of staff is recruited to fill a vacant post for which there is a demonstrable skill shortage by the school.
5. 5Outside catchment: siblings, then primary feeder attendance, then others — After that any places that are left will be offered to CYP who live outside the catchment area according to the following criteria: 1) CYP who have another sibling at the school (including sixth form if applicable) on the day they are due to start and whose homes are nearest to the school. 2) (Does not apply to Shrewsbury Academy) Secondly, priority will be given to CYP living outside the catchment area without an older sibling at the school, but who have attended a state-funded primary school that lies within the secondary school's catchment area, for more than a whole academic year immediately prior to transfer. 3) After that, priority will be given to other CYP who live outside the catchment area.

If two applications tie: In the event that two individual applications are exactly the same, after all other criteria have been taken into account, a tie breaker will be used. This will be by random allocation, and overseen by an independent party not connected with the admissions process.

CYP with an EHCP naming the school are offered places before other CYP (statutory duty, not ranked). This entry covers the pre-16 (Year 7) intake; The Grove School also has a Sixth Form with a separate PAN of 35 (external intake) and its own oversubscription criteria at Post 16. CATCHMENT: Priority will be given to CYP living within the designated catchment area. Transcribed from the school's own determined admission arrangements as published by Shropshire Council. Children with an EHCP naming the school are admitted first; that is a statutory duty, not an oversubscription criterion. This document is a single trust/diocesan policy covering 3 schools; the criteria above are the ones it prints for this school.

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.