Moving schools during the school year

Currently the School Admission Team processes in-year applications for all community, voluntary aided, voluntary controlled and Academies in Solihull except for WMG Academy for young engineers Solihull.  You should make direct contact with the academy if you are interested in a place.

Before you complete your application form it is important that you refer to the admission arrangements for the school(s) that you wish to apply for. The admission arrangements will tell you how the school offers its places and will include any additional actions you need to take i.e. provide proof of faith. 

If your child is already attending another local school, you should consider whether the move is in the best interests of your child. Your child’s current school will be required to complete a section of your application form. You can download this using the links above if you have applied online. This can often provide a good opportunity for you to discuss any issues with your child’s current school and potentially remove the need for a change of school. 

We will contact your preference schools to find out if there is a place and will provide you with an update within 15 school days of receiving your completed application. In most cases applications cannot be processed during school holidays. If your child is offered a place, you should contact the school immediately to accept the offer and arrange a start date. Your child will be expected to start within six school weeks. You must tell us if you no longer need the place as it is likely the school will have a waiting list. If you do not start at the school within six school weeks, the offer may be withdrawn.

If we are unable to offer your child a place, they will be added to the waiting list. If your child is without education when you apply and you live in Solihull, we will look for an alternative placement at the nearest school with an available place. This may be some considerable distance from your home. We will have checked all closer schools for availability before making this offer.

We no longer process applications for nursery places. You should contact your preferred school directly to enquire about availability.

As many Solihull schools are full you should contact us at admissions@solihull.gov.uk about places. You can send your application at any time before you have moved.

We will process your application six school weeks (half a term) before your requested start date. We will not use your new address until you have moved in and sent us the required proof of your move, this should include proof that you have sold or rented out your previous home. We will not consider a letter of intention to purchase as proof that you are moving.

You can find out about catchment areas and measure your distance from home to a school by using our online maps. If you move into a catchment area for a school there is no guarantee you will be offered a place.

If the school is full they will not be able to offer a place, but living in the catchment area will give you a higher priority on the waiting list.

Before applying for a school place you should first speak to your child’s school about the problem. You can do this by arranging an appointment with the head teacher, head of year or your child’s form tutor/class teacher to discuss your concerns. They should use the school’s behaviour policy to plan how they will provide help and advice.

If you and the school are unable to find a solution, you can apply to move your child schools. We will need the ‘previous school information form' completed by your current or previous school. If your circumstances are complex, this will take us longer to process your application.

Moving children after their GCSE options have been chosen can put them at a disadvantage as not all schools follow the same courses. A move may result in your child changing their GCSE options.  You should include as much information about the subjects that your child is studying and the examining boards that your school uses.

If you are not offered a place at one of your preferred schools we will add your child’s name to the waiting list for the remainder of the half term. To stay on the list you must contact us the week before every school holiday. If you do not contact us your child’s name will be removed from the list. You may be asked to fill in a new form after a year.

Your application will be given a priority and put on the waiting list. Waiting lists are in order of priority against a school’s admission criteria. Your child will move down a waiting list if another child with a higher priority joins the list. If there is a place at the school this will be offered to the top of the waiting list. 

If you are not happy with the result of your application you can appeal against the decision.

If your child has an education, health and care (EHC) plan there is a different process. You should contact our statutory assessment and review team for advice on 0121 704 6690.

The school admissions code requires each local authority to have a fair access protocol.

It is in place to ensure that vulnerable children, and those who are having difficulty in securing a school place, are allocated a place as quickly as possible, minimising the time the child is out of school.  The protocol is only triggered when a place has not been secured during the normal admissions process.

The majority of children will be placed in school through the normal admissions process and will not need to be considered under the fair access protocol.

• Primary Fair Access Protocol
• Secondary Fair Access Protocol

If you are currently living overseas and would like to make an application to join a Solihull school during the school year, you will need to complete the application form. Please complete as much information as possible. If you cannot complete the section regarding the current school information, you can supply a copy of your child’s most recent report. Your child’s educational background will not have any bearing on the outcome to your application, it is used to ensure that the application is processed through in the correct way.

It would be useful to send a copy of your child’s passport with your application to help us ensure that we have the name correct on our database.

On arrival in the UK, we will require the following information:

• proof of arrival (boarding card/flight ticket)
• details of your new address and the date that you moved in if this was not included on your application form
• documents to verify that address (see the information on the proof of address section of our website)