Fair Access Protocol

1. Introduction

There is a statutory requirement for all Local Authorities to have in place a Fair Access Protocol (FAP) which is agreed by the majority of schools in the authority, and all schools* must participate.  Leeds FAP follows the provisions within the School Admissions Code and DfE FAP guidance. 

The protocol aim is to:

1. Acknowledge the real need of vulnerable young people who do not have a school place and to deal with their applications quickly, with empathy and in a personalised way.
2. Ensure that vulnerable children, and those who are having difficulty securing a school place in-year, are allocated a place as quickly as possible.
3. Reduce the amount of time that vulnerable pupils spend out of education and contribute towards keeping children safe.
4. Ensure that no school, including those with available places, is asked to take a disproportionate number of children who are eligible under the protocol.
5. Ensure that there is a supportive reintegration process for pupils who are eligible under the protocol.
6. FAP provides a fair and transparent system to ensure that all schools share the collective responsibility of helping the most vulnerable, by admitting their fair share of children being placed via the FAP. This includes supporting those children who have been permanently excluded from other schools and those who display challenging behaviour.

FAP does not replace the usual in-year admissions process. Parents can make an in-year application at any time and are entitled to have that preference met wherever possible, as well as the opportunity to appeal a decision when a place is not offered and be added to any waiting lists.

2. Principles

The successful operation of Leeds City Council's Fair Access Protocol is due to the willingness of all schools to work together with a genuine ethos of collaboration and co-operation to:

• accept collective responsibility for the vulnerable children living in their local community and their right to education.
• act with a sense of urgency to minimise a pupil's time out of education – allocating appropriate school places to vulnerable children within 20 school days of them being identified as requiring FAP support.
• ensure all schools admit their fair share of unplaced vulnerable children.
• work together restoratively in an open and honest way, offering constructive support and challenge to each other.

Our schools work together collaboratively, taking into account the needs of the child, the needs of the school, and also the wider Area Inclusion Partnership (AIP) and its commitment to inclusion for all. When securing a place for a child through the agreed Protocol, all schools and pupils are treated in a fair, equitable and consistent manner.

3. Equality Duty

The School Admissions Code outlines that schools are subject to the Public Sector Equality Duty and therefore must have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations in relation to people who share a relevant protected characteristic and people who do not share it.

The protocol acts as a safety net for the most vulnerable who are unable to secure a school place in the normal way. Being eligible for consideration under the Fair Access Protocols is not a legitimate reason to refuse an in-year application. Section 3.24 of the Appeals Code outlines that if an application is refused, the admission authority must present their case for refusal, demonstrating how admission of the child would prejudice the provision of efficient education or efficient use of resources.

4. Exemptions

Leeds City Council has a responsibility to all children living in Leeds (defined by the authority that council tax is paid to) to ensure that they have a reasonable and accessible school place.

The Fair Access Protocol does not apply to admission of a looked after child, or a child with an Education, Health and Care Plan naming the school in question, as these children must be admitted.

Children currently looked after by a Local Authority

An application must be supported by the Virtual School and a Supplementary Information Form (CLA SIF) should be completed by the Social Worker who holds parental responsibility for the child.   However, in recognition of the potential impact on resources that schools may experience when admitting looked after pupils, these in-year admissions will be taken into account when considering fair sharing and will be weighted as 5 points.

5. Waiting lists and appeals

The Protocol may require schools to admit pupils above their Published Admission Number (PAN) or in-year prejudice limit and ahead of pupils on their waiting list or those awaiting an appeal.

Section 2.15 of the School Admissions Code outlines that looked after children, previously looked after children, and those allocated a place at the school in accordance with Fair Access Protocols, must take precedence over those on a waiting list.

Where a child has applied for and been refused a place, the school's waiting list operates in the manner set down in the school’s admission policy, regardless of whether the child secures a place at another school through the fair access protocol. Should a place become available, all children remain entitled to the place if they are highest up the waiting list regardless of whether the application triggered FAP or not.

Appeals

The appeals process is legally separate and independent from the FAP. Parents retain the right to appeal against the refusal of a school place as normal and the appeal panel is not bound by any FAP school place offer.

A school will be required to admit that child if an appeal is upheld. In all circumstances, the decision of an appeal panel is binding and must be complied with. The fact that an appeal has been lodged is not a reason to delay the FAP process.

6. In-year decision making

The School Admissions Code (2021) states that all schools must admit every child who has applied for a place, without condition or the use of any oversubscription criteria, unless admitting the child would prejudice the provision of efficient education or the efficient use of resources. Admission authorities must not refuse to admit a child solely because:

1. They have applied later than other applicants
2. They are not of the faith of the school
3. They have followed a different curriculum in their previous school; or
4. Information has not been received from their previous school

There are therefore only two reasons why any in-year application for a school place may be refused:

1. That to admit any further child to the school would cause prejudice to the provision of efficient education or the efficient use of resources in the school, or
2. That the admitting authority has good reason to believe that the child may display challenging behaviour, and the school already has a particularly high proportion of children with challenging behaviour or those who have previously been permanently excluded, when compared to other local schools, and that to admit a further child with challenging behaviour would prejudice the provision of efficient education or the efficient use of resources (3.10 of the School Admissions Code)

Reason 1 is not subjective, meaning the circumstances of the applicant should not influence whether or not prejudice would be caused to the school by admitting another child.

If a child is refused admission and is vulnerable and eligible for admission under the Fair Access Protocol, the case for refusal will need to describe clearly the prejudice that would be caused to the school if the child were admitted, and why this outweighs the vulnerable child's need for a school place, should the applicant appeal the decision.

Reason 2 (3.10 of the Code) is subjective and relates to the circumstances of the child. Meeting one of the Fair Access Categories must not, in itself, be taken to imply that the child will display challenging behaviour. The School Admissions Code defines challenging behaviour as:

The DfE FAP guidance states: The following reasons on their own should not be grounds for considering that a child may display challenging behaviour:

• poor attendance elsewhere;
• a defined number of suspensions, without consideration of the grounds on which they were made;
• special educational needs or having a disability.

The Code also highlights that

Schools will need to evidence why they believe the child may present challenging behaviour before refusing admission on these grounds and can ask the previous school for background information to support this. The Area Inclusion Partnership (AIP) team may be able to support with this. Any information gathered should be made available at the Fair Access Panel.

Please note: Challenging Behaviour (3.10 of the Code) is not a legitimate reason for refusing to admit any child who is seeking a place in Reception or Year 7 at any point during that year.

7. Referral criteria

If a child has not secured a school place offer using the in-year process, the admission team will identify applications that meet one or more Fair Access categories - see below:

If any school governing body wish to refuse admission under reason 2 (challenging behaviour) a formal referral to the Local Authority for consideration under the Fair Access Protocol must be submitted. School governors need to use the Local Authority referral form found on the School Admission Resources on Leeds for Learning.

The Local Authority Fair Access Team will ensure:

• applications for eligible unplaced children are considered by the appropriate Fair Access panel(s)
• reviews of all 3.10 referrals to ensure that the high threshold for refusal in the School Admissions Code has been met
  

8. Unplaced children

Only 'unplaced' children are eligible for supported admission through the Fair Access Protocol.  This means children who do not have an offer of a reasonable and accessible school place, including:

• children who are new to Leeds
• where a house move within Leeds has resulted in the current school place becoming inaccessible (regardless of AIP boundaries) - an in-year transfer application should usually be made within 6 months of the house move
• children who are returning to a mainstream state school/academy, for example unable to continue with private education.
• applications where the Fair Access Manager and Chair of the Panel agree in advance of the Panel that there are evidenced exceptional circumstances for an application to be presented to the Panel
  

An unplaced child must also meet one of the Fair Access categories (listed below) to be considered for admission through the protocol.

Placed children

This means any child who already has an accessible school place. These applications won’t be considered under the protocol. The family still has the right of appeal against the refusal to admit and the appeal process is separate, with the panel making a different legal decision (see appeals section below).

9. Fair Access categories

The School Admissions Code defines the categories when an application can trigger the Fair Access Protocol. The categories are mandatory across England and are set down in paragraph 3.17 of the School Admissions Code.

The applicant child must also be unplaced as defined above and have been unable to secure a place through the usual in-year admissions process.

Leeds FAP uses a weighting system when considering fair sharing, which is related to the Code category and is shown below.  Children admitted to the school and added to the school roll are given a weighting based on the below categories.   If an application triggers more than one category below, the single highest weighting category will apply for fair sharing purposes. Weightings are not added together.

It is important to recognise that not all children and young people whose application identifies with these categories will have difficulty securing a school place. Many will be admitted successfully through the usual in-year admission process.

10. Operation of Fair Access Panels

Leeds City Council, in partnership with the Area Inclusion Partnerships (AIPs), will arrange Fair Access Panel meetings on a regular basis, accommodating school terms and school holidays. These will be planned at least one term in advance with dates shared with schools.

The purpose of the panel meeting is for a child focussed discussion and panel agreement on which school place will be allocated to each vulnerable child – the purpose of the meeting is not to focus on the reasons why each school cannot admit the child.

The information provided to schools in SAM is all the information parents have provided on their application, and if any school referring a pupil for consideration under fair access has provided further information to support their referral, we will then add this to SAM.

AIPs receive funding from the LA to support the Re-inclusion Officer role, and if schools require support with gathering background information to inform an admission decision, this needs to be agreed locally within the AIP.

All young people will be offered a reasonable and accessible school place. The School Admissions Code requires a place will be allocated for the child within 20 school days of being accepted under the FAP.

All schools are required to identify a representative to attend panels who:

• Will contribute to the solution focussed discussion to identify the school to be allocated for the child
• Is authorised by the school's admission authority to make decisions on accepting children via the protocol
• Will arrange the timely admission of pupils when agreed by the panel

The attendance of the Chair of the Fair Access Panel, a member of the Admissions Team and one Headteacher will make the meeting quorate.

11. Panel decisions

Having considered the details of each case, and the discussion in the panel meeting, the panel will identify which school should admit the pupil. Consideration should be given as to whether a child has any particular needs and which school is best able to meet and support those needs.

The discussion and decision on allocation of a school place by panel will take into account the following principles and factors:

11.1 Pupil’s best interests and parental preference

Parental preference will be included on the FAP log.  Information collected by the AIP team and any reports or documents from previous settings or agencies may be shared with the panel. Professionals working with the child may attend FAP to provide information where appropriate.

Every effort will be made to place siblings together in the same school.

11.2 Accessibility of the school to child’s home

This means a safe walking distance measured by the nearest available route of:

• a maximum 2 miles walk for a child who is under the age of 8
  
• a maximum 3 miles walk for a child who is age 8 or older
  

When a child can travel independently to school (secondary school age) the availability of dedicated school transport and public bus services will also be considered. 

Transport journeys should not require a child to make several changes on public transport resulting in an unreasonably long journey time.  As a child friendly city, a pupil travelling independently would not usually be expected to travel for more than one hour and/or use more than two buses in one journey. 

11.3 Previously on roll at a Leeds school

Where fair sharing is equal, if a child has been on roll at a Leeds school within the last 3 terms (a rolling school year), provided the previous school remains reasonable and accessible from the home address, the panel will consider an offer to return to the previous school.  Reintegration support can be requested from the AIP team.

11.4 Fair sharing

Panels will consider the number of children already admitted to each school under the Fair Access Protocol to ensure that no school is asked to admit a disproportionate number of children via the protocol.

Fair sharing will be considered based on pupils admitted to the school and placed on the school roll. Each pupil admitted to the school will be given a weighting as set out in section 9 above and those figures will be used for fair sharing numbers.

Children who have been made offers but do not start at the school will not be given any weightings.

11.5 Individual school circumstances

Each school may have particular circumstances which need to be considered by the panel when reaching a decision on which school will admit the child.

The LA will provide a data dashboard at each panel. This will include standard data for each school.  Data is collated from Synergy and will have been input based on the school’s census return or any update received by the Schools Imported Data (SID) feed.   The school level data will be considered by the Panel in decision making alongside information shared by school representatives.   

If a school appeal panel has not granted an appeal for the child based on the prejudice to the school being greater than the child’s need for a place, the FAP Panel will usually not choose the school for the child. However, where the child remains unplaced and requires the support of the fair access protocol to secure a place, the vulnerability of the child must be considered alongside all accessible schools.

12. Permanently excluded pupils and pupils not ready for mainstream

Throughout the period of the permanent exclusion process, the pupil remains on the roll of the excluding school for up to 45 days should the process move through governors’ meetings, appeals and independent review process. From the 45th day (or before if the exclusion process ends after the governors’ meeting), the pupil will then have been removed from roll and the family will be supported to apply for a new school place at any school the parents choose.

Schools who receive an application must consider it in line with the School Admissions Code.

Where a permanently excluded child is presented to panel, the AIP team will ensure a reintegration plan and appropriate support is in place. There is an expectation that the excluding school will pay the financial adjustment (£4,500) to the receiving school to support reintegration.

The home Local Authority is responsible for providing 6th day provision following a permanent exclusion and travel to that provision. This responsibility is fulfilled by the Area Inclusion Partnership.

The family of a permanently excluded child can apply for a school place at any time. Where an application is made, that child will be presented to panel. The panel will decide whether the child is ready for mainstream. The AIP team will ensure that this advice is sought from appropriate professionals whenever an application for a school place is made following a permanent exclusion.

Where there is a professional view that a pupil is not ready for a mainstream school, the AIP will continue to ensure the pupil is receiving an age-appropriate education and will carry out safeguarding visits. The pupil will only be presented to the Fair Access panel when there has been a professional assessment and discussion at AIP Inclusion Sub-Group (ISG) alongside a report and documentary evidence that the student is ready to be re-integrated back into a mainstream provision.

If the Fair Access Panel, based on the information available to them, determine that the pupil is not ready for mainstream school, the AIP will continue to ensure the pupil is receiving an age-appropriate education in an alternative provision and will maintain safeguarding visits. The AIP will then work with partners (for example  Educational Psychologist, Cluster, AP setting) to ensure that a professional assessment and report is available for further discussion at AIP ISG  so that clear plans are in place for the interventions required, and as soon as the student is ready for re-integration to mainstream, the case is referred back to Fair Access Panel for allocation of a place. 

13. AIP support and multi-agency meetings

The Area Inclusion Partnership (AIP) team may be able to offer support for the reintegration of vulnerable children into schools. Consideration will be given by the panel to the support available / requested.

In exceptional circumstances, it may be necessary to hold a multi-agency meeting before an offer of a school place can be agreed. Where a multi-agency meeting is required, this must be agreed by the Panel and must take place in time to ensure a school place is agreed within 20 school days. The AIP are responsible for ensuring the child is accessing an educational provision while a school place is confirmed/sought.

14. Local Authority as final decision maker

The purpose of any panel meeting is to identify the school place the vulnerable child will be offered, and all schools are required to attend the panel with this objective in mind. If the Panel are unable to agree an appropriate school place, the Local Authority will act as final decision maker and will notify a school that they are required to admit the vulnerable pupil, based on the principles outlined above.

If a school refuses to admit at this stage, the Local Authority will consider pursuing a formal direction in line with the School Admissions Code 2021.

15. Local Authority Powers of Direction

Where a pupil living in Leeds has been refused entry to, or been permanently excluded from, every suitable school within a reasonable distance, the Local Authority will issue a direction to maintained schools or request Secretary of State direction for an Academy.

The home Area Inclusion Partnership holds responsibility to make arrangements for suitable education for the vulnerable pupil while a place is not agreed. If the direction is upheld the cost for this provision will be recharged to the receiving school by the AIP.

The full processes for Direction are outlined in the School Admissions Code. Maintained schools have the right to appeal against the direction to the Office of the School Adjudicator. Academies must follow the process as outlined by the Secretary of State.

The Local Authority will only direct (or request direction) at a school which is a reasonable distance from the pupil's home, and from which the child has not been permanently excluded.

16. Safeguarding

There is a collective responsibility to ensure the safeguarding of all young people and we must work together to protect them and act in their best interests.

Once it has been agreed, either in advance of a Panel or at a Fair Access Panel, that a child should attend a named school, that school is accountable for the young person and is responsible for securing attendance as quickly as possible. Children should be on roll within 5 school days of a place being agreed.

Where a school determines that a child's whereabouts is unknown, all reasonable enquiries should be made by the school, as outlined in the Attendance and CME guidance.

When a school place has been allocated but parents have not taken up the offer within 10 school days, the school should provide the Panel/Local Authority with details of the reasonable enquiries made (including phone calls, emails, letters and home visits to the family) using the School Attendance Service referral form held on Leeds for Learning.

The Local Authority may pursue a School Attendance Order where necessary and the place at the agreed school remains available to the young person throughout this process.

17. Record Keeping

The AIP keeps an accurate record of each Fair Access Panel meeting to include:

• panel attendees and apologies
• cases discussed
• decisions on each case
• on roll dates for each case
• follow up actions
• schools to provide current numbers on roll in each year group and their admission number

This record will be circulated to all members of the Panel within 3 working days of the panel. Any anomalies should be raised with the AIP as soon as possible.

The Local Authority (Admissions Team – Fair Access) holds and maintains:

• a log of all cases identified as requiring admission via Fair Access Protocol
• background information as provided by schools and AIPs
• detailed notes on the panel discussion about each vulnerable child
• data relating to the number of pupils, and the fair sharing weightings of admissions agreed via the Fair Access Protocol

These records will not be widely shared, however, will be available upon request by any school who requires the information to make a decision.

18. Fair Access Panel outcome

Where a child is offered a school place, it is the responsibility of the school making the offer to arrange contact with the family without delay. The school must meet with the parent/carer of the young person and agree a start date no later than 5 school days after the Fair Access Panel decision.

In all cases, the Local Authority will relay the outcome of the Fair Access discussion to the parent/carer of the young person as soon as possible, and within 5 calendar days of the decision.

Under the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024 and the DfE statutory guidance, schools are required to notify the Local Authority within 5 days when a pupil's name is added to the admission register at a non-standard transition point. This process for notifying the Local Authority is via the 'pupil movement' e-form to the Admissions Team unless the school is connected to the Schools Imported Data (SID) feed.

19. Privacy notice to parents

View the School Admissions privacy notice from Leeds City Council.

20. Protocol review

If the majority of schools in Leeds can no longer support the principles and approach of this Fair Access Protocol, schools may initiate a review with the local authority, by contacting the Fair Access Manager in writing with details of the schools concerned and the specific elements which are unsupported.

The existing Fair Access protocol will remain binding on all schools until the point a new protocol is adopted in accordance with the School Admission Code.