Admissions

To whom it may concern,

We wish to make you aware that Barnsley Academy is undertaking a routine consultation of the proposed admissions policy for September 2026. This is a standard 7-year consultation and no changes have been made of substance to the admissions policy. The school still plans to take 180 students into Year 7 for September 2026.

The consultation runs from 20th December until 31st January 2025.

Comments on the admission arrangements should arrive no later than 5pm on Friday 31^st January and emailed to admin@barnsley-academy.org 

Our normal admission year is Year 7, when we admit students from a wide range of primary schools. Applications for admission are made via the Barnsley Council Co-ordinated Admissions scheme.

Applications for September 2025 intake (Year 7) will close on 30th November 2024.  The Local Authority will advise of notification of places by post or online, if you applied online, on 1st March 2025 (National Secondary School Allocation Day). This will tell you if you have been successful in obtaining a place. 

For further information regarding school admission please click here 

What happens next 

Barnsley Council will be in touch with you on Monday 1st March to tell you the name of the school at which they can offer your child a secondary school place. If you applied online, they will email you; if you submitted a paper application, they will write to you.

If a place is available at your first preference school: they will offer your child a place there

If there are only places available at your second or third preference schools: they will offer your child a place at one of these schools, but place your child’s name on the waiting lists of any schools you’ve ranked higher

If places are available at more than one of the schools you prefer: Barnsley Council will offer your child a place at the school you’ve ranked highest on your form.

If places aren’t available at any of the schools you prefer: they will offer your child a place at the school or academy nearest your address that has places available.

If you don’t want to accept the place we offer, you must tell School Admissions in writing within 10 working days of receiving your offer, and confirm the alternative arrangements you have made for your child's education.

If you don’t get a place for your child at the school of your choice you can complete a Notice of Appeal form and return it to School Admissions by 31 March. Appeals will be held normally between April and June.

Where there are more applications than the number of places available, a waiting list will operate until 31st December. The list will be kept in strict order according to the oversubscription admissions criteria. If a place becomes available and there is no one on the waiting list, the place will be offered to the next applicant. The waiting list will be open to any parent/carer to ask for his/her child’s name to be placed on the waiting list, following an unsuccessful application to the Academy and to parents/carers who have not previously applied for a place during the academic year but have been refused. 

If you can avoid transferring your child to another school mid-year it’s best to do so, as transferring schools can be very disruptive to their education.

What to do if you want to transfer your child from one school to another school

If you're moving house, fill in a school transfer form and return it to School Admissions, PO Box 634, Barnsley S70 9GG.

If you're not moving house, but your child is having difficulties at school and you’re thinking about transferring them to another school, please talk to someone at your child's school first to see if you can resolve the problem another way.

If, having spoken to your child’s school, you still want to transfer your child, fill in a transfer form, which you can get from your child's school, and return it to School Admissions, PO Box 634, Barnsley S70 9GG.

If you want to apply for a transfer to a school outside Barnsley, contact the council where the school is located. 

When we receive your application to transfer

We’ll write to you, usually within three school weeks, to let you know whether or not your transfer request has been successful.

We can refuse your application if transferring your child would have a detrimental impact on the education of children already at the school where you'd like your child to go.  For example, if admission numbers for your child's year group have  already reached their limit, adding another child would have a negative impact on the education provided.

If we refuse your transfer request, you can submit a Notice of Appeal.

If you don’t want to accept the place we offer, you must tell School Admissions in writing within 10 working days of receiving your offer.

1. Looked After Children – children in public care (looked after children) and previously looked after children, including those children 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. Previously looked after children are children who were looked after but ceased to be so because they were adopted (or became subject to a child arrangements order or special guardianship order). This includes children 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 child is regarded as having been in state care outside of England if they were in the care of or were accommodated by a public authority, a religious organisation, or any other provider of care whose sole or main purpose is to benefit society. (see full definition in Appendix 1);

2. Sibling link – children who, at the time of their admission, will have an older sibling attending the Academy in Years 7 to 10 on National Secondary Offer Day. A sibling includes step siblings, foster siblings, adopted siblings and other children living permanently at the same address. A sibling link does not apply to cousins or other more distant relations or to any sibling living at a different address. A twin or children from a ‘multiple birth’ will be given a sibling link as soon as the first child is allocated a place. This is to avoid the situation where only one sibling of a multiple birth is successful in obtaining a place;

3. Medical Conditions – children who, at the time of their admission have a diagnosed medical condition which could be supported by attending Barnsley Academy.

4. Children living nearest to the school, as measured by straight line distance - distances are measured on a straight-line basis from the address point of the child’s permanent address to the address point of Barnsley Academy, using a geographical information system. In the event of two or more distances being the same, random allocation will be used to decide the priority given to each application. 

The child’s permanent address is where he or she normally lives and sleeps and goes to school from on the majority of school nights (Sunday – Thursday). Proof of residence can be requested at any time throughout the admissions process. If false or misleading information is used to gain entry to the Academy, the offer of a place may be withdrawn, and the application cancelled. 

Parents/carers have a right of appeal to an Independent Admission Appeals Panel if they are
dissatisfied with an admission decision of the Academy. The arrangements for the appeal will be in line with the School Admission Appeals Code as published by the Department for Education. The determination of the appeal panel will be binding on all parties.

We participate in the Local Authority Co-Ordinated Scheme for In Year admissions. Please find the link for the appeals process via the Local Authority: https://www.barnsley.gov.uk/services/childrenfamilies-and-education/schools-and-learning/school-admissions-and-transfers/appeals/

The Academy will follow the Fair Access Protocol as determined by the local authority to ensure that Permanently Excluded students will receive a school place, in-line with Barnsley FAP protocols. There is no managed moves process within Barnsley