FAQs

Admissions Frequently Asked Questions

If I live outside Hertfordshire, do I need to submit my application to Hertfordshire County Council?

No, you should apply to your own Local Authority who will pass on your information to the Hertfordshire County Council. You should still complete our Supplementary Information Form.

Am I in your catchment area?

A school catchment area is the geographic area from which students are eligible to attend a local school. Our oversubscription criteria does not contain any rule that specifies areas and we therefore do not have a catchment area as such. You can view our statistical information to ascertain the last person that was allocated a place through the distance criteria in the past few years.

Do you need proof of address?

To prevent any fraudulent applications, we may ask you for two forms of proof of address; (a) your most recent council tax statement and (b) an original utility bill not older than 3 months. Documentation should include the name(s) of all adults living at the applicants address; if this is not supplied then the school may ask you to provide further proof. 

How can I work out my home to school distance?

Most local authorities will have an option on their admissions pages for you to work out the distances to your nearest schools. You can work your distances out if you are with Hertfordshire County Council by following this link.

Whose address should I put on my application form?

Give your child's permanent address at the time you apply.

If you move after applying, you must edit your application both with the Local Authority and the school.

The Local Authority can't use your new address for allocation purposes if they receive your change later than December.

Will I know if my child has got a place before allocation day if they sit the test?

No, it is illegal  for any school to give out allocation information before the national allocation day (1^st March). Instead we will let you know your child’s tests score along with statistical information of the lowest test score that was allocated a place in previous years – this should help you in ranking your preference schools.

Does my child have to sit the test?

No, the test is optional. We save 10% of our available places to allocate to those that scored the highest results in the test. The test results are looked at once all other places have been allocated, for example, your child may have sat the test but already been allocated a place on distance, therefore we would not consider their test score meaning that we can move further down the list. We will offer 22 places on the test criteria this year.

I already have a sibling at the school, does my child need to sit the test?

No, siblings do not ordinarily need to sit the test, this is because the sibling rule sits higher than the test rule and will take priority.

Are there any previous test papers that we can see?

No, we are not allowed to release old test papers. Please read through the information on the test on our website.

Where are the application forms?

Application forms for Secondary Transfer (Year 6 into Year 7) can be found on our admissions pages under that heading.

Applications for those children who wish to join a current year group can be made through Hertfordshire County Council.

If my child is offered a place in a current year group, how long will the process take?

The process for an in-year transfer may take up to four weeks. We may need to bring your child in for CATs testing if they have not sat them at their current school or if they are coming from overseas. Once we have these results we can create a timetable and then move forward with a start date for you.

Do you contact their current school?

Yes, we will always contact a prospective student’s current school. We will ask for academic information so that we can place them in the correct teaching groups. We will also ask for behavioural information and whether or not they are at risk of permanent exclusion – this is because they may fall under a different admissions criteria known as “the fair access protocol”.