Oakbank School

When there are more applications than places for 2024-25 (Year 7), places are offered in this order of priority. Meeting a higher criterion beats meeting a lower one.

1. 1Priority 1: Looked After Children — Priority for Looked After Children or children who were Previously Looked After. A 'looked after child' or a child 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 function (see the definition in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989).
2. 2Priority 2: Siblings — Children with a sibling attending the school in Years 7, 8, 9 or 10 at the time of application. Siblings are defined in these arrangements as half, full, step, adoptive or foster brother or sister living predominantly in the same home as the child at the time of application and/or at the time of admission.
3. 3Priority 3: Nearest School — Children where Oakbank School is the closest state funded, non-selective, mainstream school admitting children to the relevant year group to the child's home address. Distance will be measured in a straight line from the Post Office Address Point of the home to the Post Office Address Point of the school, calculated electronically to three figures after the decimal point (e.g. 1.543 miles).
4. 4Priority 4: All other children — Other children by distance from Oakbank School with priority for admission given to children who live nearest to the School. Distances will be measured and home address will be defined as above.

If two applications tie: In the case of 2 or more applications that cannot be separated by the oversubscription criteria outlined above, Oakbank School will use random allocation as a tie breaker to decide between applicants. This process will be independently verified by someone who does not work at the school or the local authority.

Students with an Education Health Care Plan that names the school will be allocated a place before other applicants are considered, reducing the number of places available under the oversubscription criteria. For siblings where siblings in the same year group are split by the oversubscription criteria, the school will go above its PAN to accommodate all children unless this would make the class too large and prejudice the education of other children. Where siblings exceed remaining places in a year group, places will be allocated by the drawing of lots.

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.