Complete all the sections as fully as you can and provide all the requested evidence at the time of application.

The child’s home address must be where he or she is living with the parent or carer entitled to receive child tax credit or child benefit. Please upload a copy of your Council tax statement or tenancy agreement. We will check your address against records and may ask for further evidence.

If you are not the parent or legal carer, or if your child is living at a different address from you, you must explain the reasons for this with the application. We may ask for further evidence of your circumstances.

Checklist

• make sure your preferences are in the right order - you will be offered allocated the highest possible preference of those on the form who can offer your child a place
• give the name, gender and date of birth of any siblings already attending one of your preferred schools. A sibling is normally a full, half, step or adopted brother or sister living at the same address as the applicant. Check the school’s admission criteria for exact details
• give details and upload supporting evidence with your application if you are asking for priority because of medical conditions or social circumstances
• if you are applying for a child who is looked after (in public care) or has previously been looked after but subsequently adopted or subject to a residence order or special guardianship order, you must include evidence with the application such as a letter from the social worker or copy of a court order
• some schools may give priority to children of staff working at the school
• if you write a reason for your preference in the box provided, you must provide supporting evidence with the application form if it is a request for particular priority such as for medical conditions or social reasons
• you must scan and upload copies of supporting evidence or send paper copies to the School Admissions Team clearly marked with your application reference number
• by submitting your online application you are declaring that the information provided is correct and that you understand that an offer of a place may be withdrawn if fraudulent or incorrect information is given
• supplementary information forms, where required, should be returned direct to the school
• apply online by 31 October 2023. If your form is late, it will not be considered until after all on-time applications and your child may miss out on a place at your preferred schools

You can express a preference for up to six schools on your Common Application Form. These should include all the schools for which you wish to apply, regardless of the type of school or if the school is not in Bexley. The only exceptions will be schools not participating in the co-ordinated admissions process, such as independent (private) schools.

The order of preference is very important. If more than one school can make an offer, the system will select the one that is ranked highest on your Common Application Form.

All preferences are considered as equal. The position of a preference on your list will not be taken into account when the school is assessing which applicants have highest priority as they are not permitted to have this information.

You can list six preferences on your form in order to ensure that your child has the best chance of being made an offer. However, you may feel able to express fewer preferences if, for example, your child has a sibling at your preferred all-ability school and you are fairly sure that you have high priority for an offer.

You should read the admission criteria carefully for all the schools you are considering. The criteria are not the same for all schools.

Faith schools give priority to families who attend church regularly. If you do not meet the criteria and the school is over-subscribed, you are unlikely to be offered a place.

Some schools ask children to sit an ability banding test and offer a certain number of places to each band of children. The home to school distances within each band may be different. Places may also be offered by random allocation within bands.

Some schools do not give priority to medical conditions or where a child has a brother or sister already attending the school.

Be realistic about which schools you are likely to be offered. It is important for you to list at least one school in your preferences that you can be confident will be able to offer your child a place, otherwise you risk your child being left without an allocated place when offer letters are sent out on 1 March 2024. If your child is not deemed selective, your preferences should include an all-ability school in case your child does not meet the admission criteria of the Grammar schools listed as preferences.

The number of places available at each school for September 2024 is shown on the Secondary schools in Bexley page via the admission arrangements link. This is known as the school’s published admission number (PAN). It is the number of pupils that the school intends to admit into Year 7 in September 2024.

The admission number is based on the capacity of the school. It is determined largely by the number of classrooms and specialist teaching rooms such as science laboratories. To admit more pupils than the admission number may adversely affect the school’s ability to provide efficient education.

If there are more applications than a school’s admission number, places will be allocated according to the over-subscription criteria available to view on each schools website. You can see all Bexley secondary schools websites on the Secondary schools in Bexley page.

Over-subscription criteria are used to prioritise applicants when a school receives more applications than the number of places available. The criteria are different for each school. Please read the admission arrangements for each school available to view on the school's website. You can find their websites on the Secondary schools in Bexley page.

All the secondary schools in Bexley are Academies. Academies provide free education to pupils in the local community, but they are not maintained by the Local Authority. Some schools were established as Academies from the date of opening and others have changed to Academy status. The governors of Academies set their own admission criteria, and may use ability tests to ensure a balanced intake if the school is over-subscribed. Appeals should be made directly to Academies, not to the Local Authority.

Four of the Academies in Bexley are grammar schools. Admission to all four schools is based on the results of the Bexley selection test. A grammar school place will be allocated only to pupils who meet the admission criteria of a preferred school, have taken the selection test and have been deemed selective, or to those on a reserve list who have just missed the selective score. Children must have registered for the selection test by 30 June 2023 and will be tested during the week of 11 September 2023. Visit our Bexley selection test page for find out more about the test.

If you ask for priority to be given under a particular criterion, for example for a medical condition or special circumstance, you must do so at the time you complete the Common Application Form and provide all supporting evidence at the time of application and before 31 October 2023. Later requests will be considered only if the circumstances arise later.

You can enter a reason for a preference on the online and paper Common Application Form, but you must also submit separate medical or other evidence to support the reason, if appropriate, by 31 October 2023.

Although all schools in Bexley decide their own oversubscription criteria, measurements of home to school distance are usually provided by the London Borough of Bexley. Distances are measured as a straight line from home to the school for all schools.

Home to school distances, measured by radial distance (straight line), where supplied to Academies by the London Borough of Bexley, are measured by the Council’s GIS system using the intersection of the geographical grid co-ordinates (known as eastings and northings) supplied by the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG), or equivalent database, for the home address and for the school entrance approved by the Governors as an official entrance. The system measures in miles and is accurate to three decimal points.

The home address will be taken as the child’s home address on 31 October 2023, unless there is a qualifying change of address by 8  December 2023. It must be the address at which the child lives with the parent or registered guardian who is the main carer, ie, the parent eligible to receive Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit.

The table below shows the distance up to which places have been offered over the last five years. It is impossible to predict exactly how far places will be offered for pupils due to start in September 2024. However, it is hoped that this table will enable parents to make a judgement of their chance of being offered a place based on what has happened in recent years.

The distances are by straight line measurement. The distances are those reached at the end of the process in August, not the distance when initial offers were made in March.

Note: This table below does not include the faith schools in Bexley nor schools that have ability banding or random allocation as part of their admission criteria (Harris Academy Falconwood, Harris Garrard Academy, and Hurstmere School). 

You will need to provide the following documentation as proof of your principal home address:

• A current Council Tax statement or Council Tax Benefit letter or a valid tenancy agreement from a commercial letting agency.

When applying online, you can scan and upload copies of the documents. If you will be providing a paper copy, please send it to the School Admissions Team ensuring it is clearly marked with your unique application reference number and your child’s name and date of birth. Please do not send original documents.

If you are unable to provide the requested documentation, you can seek advice from us on 020 8303 7777.

Please note that if you submit your application without the relevant proof of address, it may not be processed.

In establishing your principal home address, we will check records held by the Council, by schools and by external agencies. We may also ask you to provide additional proof such as:

• opening/closing accounts for Council Tax.
• residence orders (or other court orders) if relevant.
• evidence confirming the completion of the sale or purchase of a new property
• for families of service personnel with a confirmed posting to Bexley, or crown servants returning from overseas to live in Bexley, proof of address, accompanied by an official letter confirming the posting, will be accepted ahead of the return to the UK

Secondary schools will ask to see evidence of your address and your child’s date of birth after offers are made. Places may be withdrawn if your details do not match the information on your application form.

The London Borough of Bexley is responsible for applicants resident in the borough of Bexley on the closing date for submission of the Common Application Form, 31 October 2023. If parents provide documentary evidence both that they have left an address outside Bexley and have moved into Bexley before 8  December 2023, the London Borough of Bexley will accept responsibility for administering the application. The documentary evidence required is confirmation that liability for council tax on the previous address has been cancelled and that the parent is now registered, and living, at the new address for council tax purposes as the occupier of the new address in Bexley. Evidence of the move must be received by the London Borough of Bexley by 8 December 2023.

Changes of address within the London Borough of Bexley will be accepted until 8 December 2023 if documentary evidence of the move, as described in the paragraph above, is provided by that date. After 8 December 2023, or if sufficient evidence of the move is not provided, the previous address will be used for allocation purposes until after the first round of offers has been made on 1 March 2024.

For families who move into Bexley after 8 December 2023, the application will continue to be administered by the home Local Authority at the time of application. The London Borough of Bexley will become responsible after the national offer date of 1 March 2024.

The London Borough of Bexley is committed to removing disadvantage for service children. Where families of service personnel have a confirmed posting to Bexley, or crown servants returning from overseas to live in Bexley, proof of address, accompanied by an official letter confirming the posting, will be accepted ahead of the return to the UK.

If you change address after you have submitted your Common Application Form, you must inform the School Admissions Team. If you are offered a place at a school based on an address that you have left without informing us, the offer may be withdrawn.

You must have parental responsibility to apply for a school place for the child named on the Common Application Form. If you do not have parental responsibility, you must attach a letter to the application form explaining the circumstances and the reason for the application.

If you are looking after a child who is not your own child or a close relative, it may be considered to be a private fostering arrangement and you must notify the Council’s Children’s Social Care Team. If we receive an application for a school place for a child who is not living with one of their parents, we will ask you for further details if not provided with the application and make sure that the Social Care Team is aware of any child who is being privately fostered. (This does not apply to children in public care who are being looked after by foster parents or who are subject to formal court or guardianship orders).

Where custody of a child is shared, the principal home address will be with the parent or guardian that is receiving child benefit.

Parents may request early or late entry to secondary school. Requests should where possible be made during the normal application period for secondary school places, accompanied by any available supporting evidence.

If the request is agreed, the application for a school place will be processed in the appropriate year’s application period. If the request is not agreed, the child must transfer to secondary school at the correct time of their chronological age group. A place will not be allocated at a preferred school unless the child qualifies for a place under the published admission criteria either in the normal or deferred year of entry.

In-year requests for admission outside the normal age group (i.e. other than for entry to year 7) should be made at the time of application with supporting evidence.

There is no right of appeal against a decision not to admit a child outside the normal age group.

The application form contains a statement that the information supplied is true and that providing false or misleading information may render the application invalid. Where there is suspected fraud, investigations will be undertaken.

If we find that an offer of a school place was made on the basis of false or misleading information, the London Borough of Bexley reserves the right to withdraw the offer at any stage during the admissions process.

In disputed cases, the London Borough of Bexley will make a judgement based on all available evidence.

You can make only one application to your home Local Authority. If you live in Bexley and want to apply for schools in other boroughs, you should list the schools on the Bexley Common Application Form. Do not apply to both Bexley and another Local Authority. If you do, the London Borough of Bexley reserves the right to consider only the preferences made on the Bexley Common Application Form and your child may lose the opportunity of being offered a place at schools named on a second application.

The London Borough of Bexley encourages parents to apply online. If you apply online, we would ask you not to submit a paper Common Application Form as well. If you submit a paper form as well as an online application, the details on the application submitted closest to the closing date will be taken as the valid application.

If the online application and the paper Common Application Form are submitted on the same day, the London Borough of Bexley will use the online application as the valid application.

Midday meals are provided at all schools in Bexley for pupils who wish to have them. Arrangements are also made for pupils who bring their own food to eat at lunchtime.

Free school meals

You can apply for your children to receive free schools meals if you are receiving certain welfare benefits.

Children in reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are currently provided with a free meal by the school. Your school still needs to know if your child would have been entitled to free meals, as it can claim valuable extra funding.

Please complete a free school meal application if you receive any of the benefits below. Even if you don’t want your child to receive a free meal, it is still important to complete the application form so that the school can get extra Government funding towards things like learning support and after school activities.

Am I eligible?

Parents do not have to pay for school lunches if they receive any of the following:

• income Support
• income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• the Guarantee element of State Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit, provided you are not entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual income (as assessed by HM Revenue & Customs) that does not exceed £16,190
• Working Tax Credit 'run-on' - the payment someone may receive for a further four weeks after they stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
• Universal Credit - you must annually take home £7,400 or less in Universal Credit payments. This equals an average of £616.67 per month in net earned income (after deductions)

You are not eligible for free school meals if you receive Working Tax Credit or other support payments that are not mentioned above.

How do I apply?

Visit the Free school meals page to find out how to apply.

Apply for free school meals

There are some school where you will need to apply directly to the school for free school meals. You can find a list of these schools on the Free school meals page.

Claims will normally be processed within 10 working days of the form being received, although it may take longer during busy periods at the start of the school year.

You must inform the Council immediately if you change address, stop receiving any of the qualifying support payment/benefits or about any other circumstance that might affect entitlement to free school lunches. If you do not, you may be liable to repay the cost of any lunches taken by your children.

Occasionally parents ask for their child to transfer from one school to another. Parents are expected to consult the head teacher of their child’s current school, before the request to transfer is made, to establish whether a change of school is in the child’s best interests. If, after full consultation with the child’s head teacher, you wish to apply to move schools, you should ask the head teacher to arrange a managed move.

If that is not agreed, an in-year secondary school application can be made either to the School Admissions Team or to your preferred school.

Decisions on in-year admission to Academies will be taken by the governors.

Applications for a secondary school place in a Bexley School after the beginning of Year 7 should be made by completing the in-year secondary school application form. You can apply either to the School Admissions Team, or direct to the schools that you are interested in. If you apply to the School Admissions Team via the in-year secondary application form, we will pass details on to the schools listed. The school will make a decision on whether a place can be offered and let you know the outcome. If a place is refused, you can ask for your child to be placed on the waiting list and you have the right to appeal against the decision.

Applications to schools in neighbouring boroughs should be made to the relevant Local Authority.

Applications for places at grammar schools where the child has not already been deemed selective will be dealt with as an in-year application. Arrangements for testing will only be made on receipt of a completed in-year application form submitted either to the Council or to the school. If a child is deemed selective after an in-year test, it does not guarantee the offer of a place at a grammar school. Any vacancies will be offered in accordance with the school’s oversubscription criteria.

Every effort will be made to meet your preferences. However, it will not always be possible to place your child in one of the schools you would prefer. If you live in Bexley, the School Admissions Team will ensure that your child is offered a school place if he or she is not on the roll of any school or is not being educated at home.

The London Borough of Bexley prides itself in the work it undertakes to plan for and commission school places. That said, like the rest of London, it is coming under increasing and unprecedented pressure. In the case of applications for Year 7 places received by the published closing date, offers of first or second choices remain amongst the highest in London. For applications received at any other time in the academic year including all other year groups, options are far more restricted. Therefore, before you consider applying, please be aware of these limitations.

If you need further advice, contact the School Admissions Team:

• email schooladmissions@bexley.gov.uk
• telephone 020 8303 7777

Information about the Bexley selection test can be found by visiting our Selection tests pages.

If you have questions that have not been answered, you can:

• email selectiontests@bexley.gov.uk

Or, contact the School Admissions Team:

• telephone 020 8303 7777
• email schooladmissions@bexley.gov.uk

For most children, transport needs will be met by the provision of free travel by Transport for London (TfL). Children who travel by bus will need to obtain the appropriate Oyster photocard in place at the time. It will be the parent/carers’ and child’s responsibility to meet the requirements set by TfL for retaining their Oyster photocard.

Find out about 11-15 Zip Oyster photocards

If your child is 16 or older, they will need a 16+ Oyster photocard

Find out about 16+ Zip Oyster photocard

The parent/carer of any children whose transport needs fall within the criteria set out within The London Borough of Bexley’s Travel Assistance Policy, but which are not met by the TfL scheme should write to the School Admissions Team setting out why they believe that they need additional support. The transport needs of children with Statements or Education Health and Care Plans will be considered as part of the child’s annual review.

Home-to-school travel assistance and Special Educational Needs (SEN) for children aged between 5 and 16

The majority of children with an EHC Plan will not need or receive specialised travel assistance from the Council, and the completion of an EHC Plan does not confer an automatic entitlement to the provision of travel assistance by the Council.

Visit the SEND travel assistance to find out more about the service and how to apply.

You can also contact the Travel Assistance Commissioning Team for any further guidance:

• email tact@bexley.gov.uk
• telephone 020 3045 4321

All referrals are assessed for eligibility and most appropriate form of transport provision against Bexley’s Home to School Travel Assistance Policy.

The London Borough of Bexley requires good standards of behaviour on all transport to and from school and reserves the right to withdraw transport where a child places himself or herself, other passengers or transport staff, at risk in terms of health, wellbeing or safety.
 

Travel Training

Travel training is designed to help young people get more from life by giving them the confidence to travel independently. Being able to access public transport helps people to make their own choices about how they live and what they want to achieve. 

If you would like more information about home-to-school travel training, please contact the Travel Assistance Commissioning Team:

• email tact@bexley.gov.uk
• telephone 020 3045 4321

Further information on school sixth forms and other post-16 learning opportunities in and beyond Bexley will be provided to students at the start of Year 11 at secondary schools.

Alternatively, you can find more information by visiting the Post-16 education in Bexley page.

University Technical Colleges (UTCs) are technical academies for 14 to 19 year olds. They have University and employer sponsors and combine practical and academic studies. UTCs specialise in subjects that need modern, technical, industry-standard equipment such as engineering and construction, which are taught alongside business skills and the use of ICT.

Studio Schools are innovative schools for 14 to 19 year olds, backed by local businesses and employers. They often have a specialism, but focus on equipping young people with a wide range of employability skills and a core of academic qualifications, delivered in a practical and project-based way.

There is only one local UTC:

Leigh UTC - Dartford

• Specialisms - Engineering and Computer Sciences
• Visit the Leigh UTC website for more information

A list of other UTC’s and studio schools across London is available on request. Please contact schooladmissions@bexley.gov.uk to request a copy. Alternatively, look at the UTC website for more information about the colleges and the admission criteria and process.

If you live in Bexley and your child will start Year 10 in September 2024, you can apply online for a place at a UTC or Studio School by 31 October 2023. The same closing date and process apply to UTCs as they do to secondary school admissions at Year 7.
 

Pupils who have been permanently excluded, or who are having difficulties finding a school place for the reasons specified in the School Admissions Code 2021, may be considered under the Fair Access Protocol agreed by head teachers and operated in partnership with the Local Authority. A panel of secondary school head teachers considers applications for places made under the protocol and seeks to facilitate an appropriate placement. Parents should apply as described above for a school place; the London Borough of Bexley will determine whether the Fair Access Protocol applies and will inform parents as necessary.

The personal information that you provide will be collected by the Council as data controller in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Protection Act 2018. The purpose of collecting your personal information is to assist with administering the admissions process as set out in these pages and preventing any fraud/criminal offence or the safeguarding of a child.

The Council may be required to pass on the personal information you have provided to other bodies for administrative purposes and as required by law.

These include:

• the current school (if any)
• the schools which parents have included amongst their preferences
• other admission authorities in the borough for the purpose of securing a school place
• other Local Authorities so as to ensure that parents have provided consistent information and do not hold on to more than one offer of a place
• an organisation legitimately investigating allegations of fraud, criminal offences or child protection
• a government department in order to comply with statutory requirements

Your information will only be retained for as long as required for these purposes.

You can read more about the use of your personal information at Privacy notice.