The move and the school place are linked
For families, a house move is also a school move, and the timing rarely fits the annual admissions calendar. This article explains how applications made outside the normal round, called in-year applications, work in England. It draws on GOV.UK’s school admissions guidance and on two English councils, Leeds and Dorset, as worked examples. Councils set their own detailed processes, so check your own authority; Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own systems and are not covered.
What GOV.UK says
GOV.UK says you apply through your local council even if you are applying for schools in another council area or have just moved to England. When moving to another area you may need to supply proof of your new address, such as a mortgage or rental agreement or property deeds, and prove that you will live in the area before the start of the next school term.
The normal round has fixed deadlines: primary applications close on 15 January and secondary applications are usually due by 31 October, with offers on 16 April and 1 March respectively. For applications after the start of the school year, GOV.UK says to contact your local council, which can tell you which schools still have places and how to apply. Once your child is offered a place, they will usually start at the beginning of the following term. It also says the council must provide a place at another school if your child is not offered any of the schools you applied for, usually the nearest with places.
What two councils ask for
Leeds City Council says an in-year application can be made at any time, but offers are usually kept open only for a half term, so you should apply in the half term before you want your child to start. If you apply earlier the school may still offer a place but may require your child to start by the beginning of the next half term. It advises using your child’s current address on the application until you have moved in, and sending evidence as soon as possible because your address can affect your chances at some schools.
For proof, Leeds asks for evidence that you have left the old property, such as an exit utility bill, completion of sale documents or a landlord notice to leave, and evidence of the new address, such as a tenancy agreement or a house purchase completion, and it says completion rather than exchange. If you do not have those documents, it asks you to send as much evidence as possible and explain why. Dorset Council says it processes in-year applications only half a term before the date you want to start, and asks you to make clear whether you are applying from your current or new address. It says you do not need to live in Dorset to apply, and that if you are moving out of Dorset you can apply to your new home authority.
Timing your move around the school term
Because offers are held for a limited period and councils want proof of the move, timing matters. If your completion date is uncertain, a place may be offered before you can send the evidence, or it may lapse. Keep your removals booking flexible where possible, and ask the council what it needs if your dates change. A moving date that slips at the last minute can leave children in limbo, so build a contingency into your plan.
If you are refused a place
GOV.UK says that if your child is refused a place, you can appeal against the decision, and the letter will tell you how. You must appeal against each rejection separately and can appeal only once against each. The admission authority must allow you at least 20 school days to appeal from when it sends the decision letter, must give at least 10 school days’ notice of the hearing, and appeals must be heard within 40 school days of the deadline for making one. The panel must be independent, and your appeal must be upheld if the school’s admission criteria were not properly followed or do not comply with the admissions code.
The guidance also notes a special rule for infant classes. In reception, year 1 and year 2, class size is limited to 30, and an application can be turned down if every class already has 30 children, though an appeal may succeed in some circumstances, including where a place would not push the class over the limit.
Practical steps
Check catchment areas and admissions policies before you commit to a house, if you can. Contact the council for the area you are moving into as soon as you have a confirmed address. Gather the evidence early: exit bills, sale documents or notice to leave, tenancy agreement or completion statement. Keep copies of everything you send, and follow up if you do not hear back. If you are moving from another country, contact the local council for the area where you are going to live.
The bottom line
In England, in-year school applications go through the council for the area you are moving to, and councils ask for proof that you have really moved, so completion dates and paperwork matter. Apply in the half term before you want your child to start, use the address the council tells you to use, and remember you can appeal a refusal. Check your own council’s process, because details differ.