POLICY AND NUMBERS
Urmston Grammar is a highly successful co-educational 11-18 Academy with specialist status in Science and Foreign Languages with admission normally taking place at 11 and 16. Accommodation can normally be provided for up to 896 boys and girls, with 128 places available for the Year 7 intake. The school has no religious affiliation.
YEAR 7 ENTRY Application process
• The Governors will apply Urmston Grammar’s own admissions selection policy as the basis of their admissions procedures for Year 7 in September 2014. This means that all parents of children wishing to apply for a place at Urmston Grammar must:
• The entrance examination will take place at Urmston Grammar for both Trafford and non-Trafford residents (the date is on the timetable below).
• Arrangement details for the entrance exam will be sent to all parents who complete Urmston Grammar’s Application Form.
• There will be an additional testing session at Urmston Grammar for candidates unable (usually for medical/religious reasons) to sit the entrance examination. A medical note will need to be provided for any candidate entered for the first date who is unable to attend (see timetable for additional test date).
• Urmston Grammar must be informed by parents, in writing, of any candidates with Special Educational Needs along with copies of the current needs and provision.
• An Open Evening will be held during which advice and assistance will be given to help with the
process. Details of the event will be published on the school website and will also be published in local newspapers as well as in the timetable below.
1. Include Urmston Grammar on their Home Authority’s common application form.
2. Complete your Local Authority’s Common Preference Form which, in Trafford, must be returned to the Local Authority as indicated in the timetable (CPF Date). Urmston Grammar needs to be indicated on this form;
3. Register a request directly with Urmston Grammar for their child to sit the entrance exam and submit to the school, “Urmston Grammar’s Application form”, (this will be available on the school’s web site or may be obtained from the school’s office from May each year). This form must be returned to Urmston Grammar by the deadline on the timetable.
4. The applicant’s date of birth must be between 1 September 2002 and 31 August 2003.
Urmston Grammar Newton Road Urmston M41 5UG Tel: 0161 748 2875 Headteacher: Mr M.G. Spinks
URMSTON GRAMMAR
OUR ALLOCATION PROCESS
• Candidates will be required to sit all three elements of the Urmston Grammar entrance exam;
success in this procedure is a basic requirement for a candidate to be considered for a place at
Urmston Grammar. The three elements comprise of a Mathematics paper, a Non-Verbal paper and an English paper.
• A successful outcome will be achieved by those candidates who score 355 and above in the exam.
• Urmston Grammar will conduct an Automatic Review for all candidates who score up to 20 marks below the indicated pass score. In the review process, the following will be considered: the breakdown of standardised scores in the three papers; an assessment of the continuous prose section of the English paper (the marks of this section are not included in the total score); all documents completed by the invigilator(s) during the testing process and the Special Circumstances form if one was
submitted. A successful review will be deemed as eligible for admission to Urmston Grammar and the candidate’s score will be amended to 355R.
• Outcomes and the scores will be communicated by Urmston Grammar to parents before the due date for the submission of the common preference form.
• Challenges against the “exam outcomes” will be heard at a Local Review, solely by the “Admissions Review Body” of Urmston Grammar, upon receipt of the Local Review Form along with optional supporting documents detailing the challenge. The decision relating to the parental challenge will be notified by post and will be after the date for submission of the Common Preference Form. It is your entitlement to put Urmston Grammar as a preferred school on the Common Preference Form if you are awaiting the results of the Local Review.
• In order to facilitate our allocation of places, the following allocation categories will be applied in the sequential order (A, B and C). In order to allocate places under category B and C, the candidates’
test scores will be arranged in two lists: the first being a rank order of candidates irrespective of the candidate’s residence; the second will be in accordance with the distance between the candidate’s residence and the front door of the school in a straight line, in the order specified below initially by M41 and then by M31 postcode followed by the remaining successful candidates.
Urmston Grammar Newton Road Urmston M41 5UG Tel: 0161 748 2875 Headteacher: Mr M.G. Spinks
PLEASE NOTE
• Parents should note that although Urmston Grammar will inform them of their child’s assessment results by post as stated on the timetable, allocations to this school will not be published until the Local Authority common date (see timetable) on behalf of the Governing Body of the school.
• Parents should also be aware that success in the Urmston Grammar selection procedure will not mean their child automatically receives a place at Urmston Grammar.
• Sample questions for the Entrance Exam will be available for interested parents from the beginning of May each year. They will be obtainable from the school office. These sample sheets will be for exemplar purposes only, indicating the nature of the set tasks, and will not form any part of the papers sat by candidates.
OVER-SUBSCRIPTION CRITERIA
Where the number of eligible applicants for admissions exceeds the number of places available, the following criteria will be applied, in the order set out below, to decide which children to admit:
FIRST ALLOCATION (ENTRY CATEGORY A)
• Places are initially allocated to candidates who are “Looked after” children or who were previously looked after but immediately after being looked after became subject to an adoption, residence, or special guardianship order (as defined in the Education Act 2002 - Admissions) who meet the published academic requirements. This selection procedure is classed as Entry Category A.
SECOND ALLOCATION (ENTRY CATEGORY B - APPROXIMATELY 20 PLACES)
• Using the first list (rank score order) of candidates, the (20) top scoring candidates, irrespective of home residence, will be allocated a place under Category B. Candidates with equal scores to the lowest candidate in this second allocation will also be offered places.
THIRD ALLOCATION (ENTRY CATEGORY C)
• Upon removing the candidates who are allocated places via Entry Category B, the remaining places (approximately 108) will be allocated in accordance with their distance from the school to their
residence as per a straight line firstly by M41 and M31 postcodes followed by the remaining candidates.
This arrangement is listed as Category C. The address used will be the permanent address of where the child resides. Proof of residency will be requested.
URMSTON GRAMMAR
Urmston Grammar Newton Road Urmston M41 5UG Tel: 0161 748 2875 Headteacher: Mr M.G. Spinks
YEAR 7 ADMISSIONS PROCESS
Admission arrangements for pupils who will be 11 years of age by September 2014.
KEY DATE STAGE OF PROCESS ADDITIONAL NOTES
Beginning of
May 2013 Sample questions will be available. These will be available to purchase from the school office or at the Open Evening.
Wednesday 26th
June 2013 Urmston Grammar Open Evening
6.30pm-8.30pm Opportunity to look around the school, meet staff and pupils plus hear about the admissions process.
By Friday 30th
August 2013 Completed application form must be returned to Urmston Grammar by this date. All applications will receive an acknowledgement when the application has been processed.
At the beginning of May the form is available from the following sources:
can be completed on line from the website; downloaded from the website and posted; available from the school office at Urmston Grammar; available from the Open Evening.
By Friday 30th
August 2013 If applicable, a completed Special Educational Needs form must be returned to Urmston Grammar by this date.
If you submit a Special Education Needs form, you will be contacted separately.
By Friday 13th
September 2013 You will receive a pack detailing the specific arrangements for the forthcoming tests - equipment requirements; examination group number; times and instructions for arrival/departure; regulations relating to the sitting of the test papers;
Special Considerations Form;
clothing requirements; suggested refreshments that could be sent
Please note that every effort will be made to place together children from the same junior school. (Please notify Urmston Grammar immediately if your child changes primary school). It will not be considered appropriate to make a request for any reason to have this grouping arrangement changed.
Saturday 21st
September 2013 ENTRANCE EXAM DAY We need to be informed of any reasons that may affect your child’s performance in the examinations. Complete the Special Circumstances Form and hand it in on the day of the test. If your child is ill or unable to attend on the testing date, please contact Urmston Grammar on 0161 748 2875 by 9.00am (answer phone facility).
A Doctor’s Note must then be sent into school by Friday 27th September in order to sit the test at another time.
Thursday 3rd
October 2013 ENTRANCE EXAM DAY (Medical & Religious)
You are not permitted to choose this date as an alternative to Saturday 21st September 2013. It is purely for children who for medical, religious or other extreme circumstances (as notified to Urmston Grammar) were unable to sit the examinations on the main testing date.
By Saturday 19th October 2013
RESULTS DAY
Urmston Grammar will conduct automatic reviews of the results of those candidates who score between 334 and 354. (A successful review will be allocated a 355R score). Outcomes of the Entrance Examination will be posted to parents/guardians of all candidates.
A successful result in the examination is not a guarantee that a place at Urmston Grammar will be offered. If more candidates pass than there are places available then the over-subscription criteria will be applied.
31st October
2013 The ‘Common Preference Form’
(CPF) must be returned to the home Local Authority
Urmston Grammar must be specified as a preference.
Week beginning 11th November 2013
Challenges against the exam outcomes will be heard at a local review, solely by the ‘Admissions Review Body’ of Urmston Grammar.
The decision relating to the parental challenge will be notified by post within 10 working days.
Friday 1st
March 2014 All candidates will be informed by their Home Authority which secondary school they have
Information regarding the induction process will be sent to parents upon confirmation of the acceptance of the offered place at
URMSTON
WAITING LIST FOR YEAR 7-11
All candidates who do not succeed in gaining a place, having successfully met the school’s admission requirements, will be entitled to have their name entered on Urmston Grammar’s waiting list.
When a vacancy arises, parents of the eligible pupils will be contacted by Urmston Grammar; recently produced academic work, as specified, will be assessed by the Admissions Review Panel with the place being offered to the candidate with the highest outcome from the internal assessment. The place will be offered by the Home Local Education Authority.
APPEAL PROCESS FOR ADMISSION IN SEPTEMBER 2014
Under the terms of the 1998 Education Act parents have the right to appeal to an Independent Appeals Panel. If you wish to exercise your right to appeal and request an Appeal Form please contact the school directly.
The appeal hearings timetable will be published on the website by the end of February each year.
IN-YEAR ADMISSIONS FOR YEAR 7-11
All In-Year applications should be made direct to the school.
Only one In-Year assessment process can be undertaken each academic year.
Urmston Grammar will continue to operate a waiting list for each full year group detailing the names of those who have successfully met our admission requirements.
Should your child have sat the Urmston Grammar entrance examination then the process will not be initiated until the summer term of year 7.
Please note that In-Year transfers after the start of external examination courses may result in significant disruption to academic progress.
APPEAL PROCESS FOR YEARS 7-11
Parents of children, who wish to enter the school after Year 7, may be informed that there are no places.
Under the terms of the 1998 Education Act, parents have the right to appeal against this decision to an
URMSTON GRAMMAR
Urmston Grammar Newton Road Urmston M41 5UG Tel: 0161 748 2875 Headteacher: Mr M.G. Spinks
ENTRY TO THE SIXTH FORM
The school has a large Sixth Form. There are approximately 310 students, a result of the very high continuation rate from Year 11 and a very welcome and confident group of newcomers.
Over 90% of Sixth Formers continue into Higher Education. For Urmston Grammar applicants to the Sixth Form talks and advice are given throughout the year by the Head of Sixth Form, the Assistant Head of Sixth Form and Form Tutors. Every student is offered individual guidance and there is an evening for parents of intending Sixth Formers which is held in December.
Our Sixth Form is incredibly popular with external students, a prospectus and application form is issued in the autumn term (available on the website all year www.urmstongrammar.org.uk) and the Head of Sixth Form visits local High Schools.
The Sixth Form prospectus gives details of courses, entry requirements and life in the Sixth Form. At present, our entry requirement is 3 grade A’s and 3 grade B’s at G.C.S.E. along with confirmation of the predicted grades from the student’s school. Applications for the Sixth Form are invited all year, however we close applications mid-January, after which places may not be available on all courses.
The admission number for Year 12 external applicants is approximately 50 with approximately 155 internal and external applicants expected to be admitted.
Sixth Form places are in demand. For new applicants to the school an induction afternoon is offered in June when applicants can meet, enjoy a free buffet and remind themselves of the challenges and tremendous opportunities that lie ahead. On GCSE results day we would ask that you register for Sixth Form providing you have had an offer of a place, and you have gained the necessary 3 grade A’s and 3 grade B’s. Each student is given guidance again to give the best possible advice on ‘A’ level choices and future careers in the light of their G.C.S.E. results. Students unable to attend must accept their place and confirm their final subject choices by email or telephone.
Email questions may be sent to [email protected] and may be added to our FAQ’s.
URMSTON GRAMMAR
Urmston Grammar Newton Road Urmston M41 5UG Tel: 0161 748 2875 Headteacher: Mr M.G. Spinks