Admissions
Our Students
Sir Bobby Robson School is a specialist day provision for children whose primary need is social, emotional and mental health difficulties (SEMH). It is expected therefore that children entering the school will have identified SEMH needs and hold an Education, Health and Care Plan that states as such.
Our school caters for pupils from Year 4 to Year 11 in key stages 2, 3 and 4.
Admission to the school shall be determined by formal consultation.
Admissions Criteria
We work closely with the Local Authority on our admissions processes. We aim to have each years new intake completed in the January before a September start, allowing for a strong transition process to then take place. Please be aware, we are an over subscribed school and we always receive vastly more consultations for placements than we have capacity to accept. Each application is assessed on an individual basis. In each case, we take account of the needs of the individual child and consider whether the school would be suitable to meet their needs with particular reference to the following factors.
- The compatibility of the prospective pupil with peers already on roll.
- The ability of the school to meet the child’s needs within available resources.
- The impact of admission on the efficient education of other pupils.
A place will be offered where:
- The school can meet the child’s needs effectively.
- The placement is compatible with the efficient education of others; and
- The placement represents an efficient use of public resource.
Pupils may also have associated communication and interaction needs or specific learning difficulties, but their primary need must be SEMH as defined in the SEND Code of Practice. The school is unable to support pupils whose primary need is Autism as this is a communication and interaction need.
The pupil should not have persistent non-attendance as their rationale for placement.
The school is unable to support pupils with complex medical and personal care needs.
The pupil should not have a level of risk that cannot be managed safely within a small-group SEMH setting. We are unable to support pupils on a one-to-one basis.
Equality
We are committed to providing equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice for all children and families, to providing an environment in which all children are supported to reach their full potential. Applications are considered regardless of gender, religion, background, race or disability.
Admissions Process
Parents and carers are advised to read the attached Admission Arrangements.
Applying for a Place
Admission to the school shall be determined by formal consultation via the Local Authority.
Our admissions procedures are as follows:
We admit pupils with education and health care plans naming the school. Places will usually be taken up at the start of the school year.
Sir Bobby Robson School staff may observe potential pupils in their current setting to assess suitability.
Parents wishing their child to be considered for a place will be advised to contact their home Local Authority SEN service. The commissioning LA will consult the Headteacher regarding each pupil the LA considers potentially suitable to request a place in the school.
The Headteacher will consider the suitability of the school provision in addressing the needs of the child and also giving consideration to the needs of the current pupils on roll.
All pupils will be reviewed at the end of Key Stage 2 for suitability of transfer to Secondary School.
Sir Bobby Robson School will consent to being named, except where admitting the child would be incompatible with the provision of efficient education for other children; and where no reasonable steps may be made to secure compatibility. Consideration will need to be given to numbers in and the profile of each year group.
Appeals
Appeals will be to the First-tier Tribunal for statemented students. Parents whose children have special educational needs can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) against decisions made by Local Authorities in England about their children’s education. The application forms and guidance can be found on www.justice.gov.uk/tribunals/send.