Admissions

Introduction

St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Nympsfield is its own admissions authority. We welcome applications for all children at St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School whether Catholic, of other faiths or none. Our Admissions policy is available below, which includes our oversubscription criteria (common to all Catholic primary schools in the Clifton Diocese), used when we have more applicants for available spaces at any one time, in any year group.

The following table provides details of our Reception Class intake in recent years, together with a breakdown of the number of Catholic and non-Catholic children:

Applying for a place in our school

Reception Admissions

Our current Published Admission Number (PAN) for the normal admission round (children starting in Reception) is 30.

The majority of applications for the Reception class are made between October and January for the following September. 

Pupils are normally admitted in the September of the school year in which they reach their fifth birthday. However they are not required to attend school until the beginning of the term after their fifth birthday and so in appropriate cases admission may be deferred until the beginning of the Spring and Summer Terms. If parents wish a deferment they should indicate this when accepting the offer of a place.

Applications for a reception place at the school should be made to the Local Authority online at: http://www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/schooladmissions Otherwise the LA’s common admissions form is available on request, and once completed should be sent to:

Admissions and Transfer Team (0-16),
Shire Hall,
Westgate Street,
Gloucester,
GL1 2TP

All applications for the Reception class for September 2025 should be received by 15th January 2025. The LA will then process applications in accordance with the school's admissions policy and apply the criteria listed in this policy in the event of over subscription. Once the school receives notification that your child  has been given a place, we will contact you and ask you to complete our school registration form. We do ask you to bring your child’s birth certificate and baptismal certificate (if appropriate) in to school, so that we can keep this for our records.

If you are applying for a Reception place outside the normal admissions round, please follow the procedure for In-year admissions.

In-Year Admissions

Governors have agreed that for 2025-2026 the maximum number of pupils who can be admitted in Years 1 to 6 is 30.

You can apply for a place for your child at any time outside the normal admissions round. In the first instance, please contact the school directly. A formal application should be made to the school by completing the in-year admissions application (below) and returning it by email: admin@st-josephs.gloucs.sch.uk or by post: The Headteacher, St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Front St, Nympsfield. GL10 3TY along with, where appropriate, any supporting evidence. All applications will be considered by the governing body and a place offered if one is available. Where there are places available but there are more applications than places, the published oversubscription criteria, as set out in the admission arrangements for 2022-23, will be applied (see our policy below). Parents are advised to read the admission arrangements carefully before making their application.

If your application is unsuccessful, you will be given the opportunity to join a waiting list and you have the right to appeal to an independent appeal panel. You will be advised of the outcome of your application as soon as possible. Whilst applicants must be informed of the outcome of their application within 15 school days of receipt, we aim to notify you within 10 days of receipt. If you have any questions in relation to in-year admissions, please contact the school office: admin@st-josephs.gloucs.sch.uk or telephone 01453 860311.

Admission Appeals

Appeals for school places are heard by a panel of independent, admissions trained individuals assembled by Gloucestershire County Council.

If you wish to appeal a decision you will need to lodge an appeal within 20 school days from the date of notification that your application was unsuccessful. 

For advice on school admission appeals, please click on the link below:

Advice for parents and guardians on school admission appeals - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

For further information regarding the school's appeals process, and to request appeals paperwork, please contact the school administrator (Laura Gardiner) admin@st-josephs.gloucs.sch.uk or telephone 01453 860311.

School Admissions Appeal Timetable

We will ensure that appeals lodged by the appropriate deadlines are heard within the following timescales:

1. For applications made in the normal admissions round¹, appeals must be heard within 40 school days of the deadline for lodging appeals;

2. For late applications², appeals should be heard within 40 school days from the deadline for lodging appeals where possible, or within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged;

3. For applications for in-year admissions³, appeals must be heard within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged.

4. Appellants will receive at least 10 school day's notice of the date and time of their appeal hearing.
5. Decision letters will be sent within 5 school days of the hearing wherever possible.

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¹ Under the School Admissions (Admission Arrangements and Co-ordination of Admission Arrangements ) (England)  Regulations  2012  an application is  made  in the  ‘normal  admissions  round’  if  it  is  not  a ‘late application’ or an ‘in-year application’:

² An application is a ‘late’ application if it is for the admission of a child to a relevant age group; it is submitted before the first day of the school term of the admission year; and a determination relating to the application is not made by an authority on or before the offer date. The ‘relevant age group’ is the age group at which pupils are or will normally be admitted to the school e.g. reception or year 7 (Section 142 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998).

³ An application is an ‘in-year’ application if it is for the admission of a child to a relevant age group and it is submitted on or after the first day of the first school term of the admission year, or it is for the admission of a child to an age group other than a relevant age group.