About the consultation – school admission arrangements for 2026 to 2027
Consultation closed: 29 January 2025
Consultation opened: 18 December 2024
All local authorities responsible for school admissions must adhere to the School Admissions Code, which is the legislation and guidance issued by the Department for Education (DfE) under Section 84 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. The code states that admission authorities:
...must ensure that the practices and the criteria used to decide the allocation of school places are fair, clear, and objective. Parents should be able to look at a set of arrangements and easily understand how places for that school will be allocated.
Where changes are proposed to admission arrangements, the law requires that the body responsible for admissions must publicly consult on the changes.
Background
We have a statutory duty to ensure that admissions are coordinated within Central Bedfordshire for all children being admitted into the normal year of entry, and to ensure that only one offer of a school place is made.
We are the admissions authority for community and voluntary controlled schools and must therefore undertake consultation on any proposed changes to its admission arrangements. Other schools, such as academies and voluntary aided schools, are responsible for their own admission arrangements but still fall under our coordinated scheme.