Explanatory note

These Regulations amend the Education (Determination of Admission Arrangements) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/126) (“the principal Regulations”). They are consequential upon amendments to the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 (“the 1998 Act”) made by the Education Act 2002.

Regulation 2(3) re-enacts regulation 3 (Determination of admission arrangements) of the principal Regulations with amendments. This imposes a duty on admission authorities to have regard to the indicated admission number (now defined in regulation 2(1) of the principal Regulations) for each relevant age group when determining an admission number. The duty on an admission authority to consult on their admission arrangements by 1st March in the determination year, and determine those arrangements by the 15th April, remains unchanged, except where the new regulation 5A of the principal Regulations applies.

Regulation 2(5) inserts the new regulation 5A (Suspension of consultation requirements) into the principal Regulations. This relieves a governing body who are an admission authority from the duty to consult on their admission arrangements in any alternate year where certain criteria are satisfied. These are: that in the preceding determination year the governing body consulted on their proposed admission arrangements in accordance with section 89(2) of the 1998 Act; that no objection was made to the adjudicator under section 90 of the 1998 Act about those proposed arrangements; and that they propose to determine the same admission arrangements in the determination year in question. However, before this exemption can apply, the local education authority maintaining the school must have notified the Secretary of State that all admission authorities in the relevant area undertook the consultation required under section 89(2) in the determination year relating to the 2004–05 school year or any following determination year.

Regulation 2(7) amends regulation 8(1)(a) (Manner of notification of admission arrangements) of the principal Regulations in the light of section 89(2A) of the 1998 Act, which relieves governing body admission authorities from the duty to consult under sub-section (2) on their proposed admission arrangements where prescribed conditions are satisfied. The effect of the amendment is that all bodies who were entitled to be consulted under section 89(2) are to be notified of an admission authority’s determined admission arrangements, even if they were not actually consulted, so retaining their right of objection to the adjudicator under section 90.

Regulation 2(8) re-enacts regulation 9 (Circumstances in which additional publication is required) of the principal Regulations with amendments. The effect is to extend the circumstances in which an admission authority are required to undertake additional publication of their admission arrangements to enable parents living in the relevant area to refer an objection to the adjudicator. Previously, additional publication was only required where admission arrangements included pre-existing selection arrangements. However, an admission authority must now also undertake additional publication where they have determined an admission number for a relevant age group which is lower than that indicated by the net capacity assessment method set out in guidance (Assessing the Net Capacity of Schools). This guidance can be obtained from DfES Publications, PO Box 5050, Sherwood Park, Annesley, Nottingham, NG15 0DJ. The new regulation 9(4) and (5) of the principal Regulations prescribes the additional information which an admission authority must publish.

Regulation 2(9) amends regulation 10 of the principal Regulations. This amendment is consequential upon the changes to the publication requirements made by paragraph (8), and extends the requirement on admission authorities to provide, on request, further information regarding their admission arrangements. Previously, such information was limited to pre-existing selection arrangements but is now extended to information relating to the determination of an admission number lower than the indicated admission number.