Address:
Hilton Lane
Little Hulton
M28 0SY
Telephone: 0161 529 5200
Email: ask.lowry@lowryacademy.org.uk
Website: Lowry Academy website
Headteacher: Mrs C Coy
School type: Academy
Total number of places for year 7: 180
Total applications received by offer day: 182
Breakdown of offers at offer day (1 March 2024): All applicants offered
Total numbers of offers made (including alternative offers): 178
Total vacancies: 2
The Lowry Academy is an inclusive school and welcomes children from the local community. It is part of United Learning (the Trust). Admissions Number The published admission number for Year 7 is 180.
The Governors of the Academy are delegated responsibility by the Trust for the admission of students. For entry into year 7 the admissions application and offer process will be coordinated via Salford City Council and its timetable.
Applications should be submitted on the Common Application Form to the home borough / local authority: that is, the local authority responsible for the child’s address. The admission of students with an Educational Health Care Plan is conducted through a separate process. Parents of these students should contact their home local authority’s SEND department.
Consideration of Applications for entry into Year 7 There are no faith criteria as part of the admissions policy. Children from families of all faiths, or none, are very welcome. All students are admitted without reference to ability or aptitude.
The Academy will consider all applications for places. Where fewer than 210 places are received, the Academy will offer places to all those who have applied.
Where the number of applications for admission is greater than the published admission number, applications will be considered as follows. After the admission of pupils with Education Health Care Plans (EHCP) where The Lowry Academy is named on the EHCP, the criteria will be applied in the order in which they are set out below:
The Academy will apply the above criteria to applicant’s subject to the following exceptions:
A. A “Cared for Child” means any child who is in the care of a Local Authority in accordance with Section 22 (1) of the Children Act 1989. A child who was “previously a Cared for Child” means a child who after being Cared for became subject to an Adoption Order under the Adoption Act 1976 or under Section 46 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002, a Residence Order or Child Arrangement Order under Section 8 of the Children Act 1989 or Special Guardianship Order under Section14AoftheChildren Act 1989.Applicants can be asked to provide additional evidence in order to verify the previously Cared for status of a child. It is at the discretion of the Academy Trust what evidence is required. The final decision will be made by the Academy Trust.
If any information supplied by an applicant is judged by the Academy Trust to be fraudulent or intentionally misleading, the Academy Trust may refuse to offer a place, or if already offered, may withdraw the offer.
B. A child is regarded as having been in state care in a place outside of England if they were accommodated by a public authority, a religious organisation or any other provider of care whose sole purpose is to benefit society. Applicants can be asked to provide additional evidence in order to verify the previously Cared for status of a child. It is at the discretion of the Academy Trust what evidence is required. The final decision will be made by the Academy Trust. If any information supplied by an applicant is judged by the Academy Trust to be fraudulent or intentionally misleading, the Academy Trust may refuse to offer aplace, or if already offered, may withdraw the offer.
C. In Salford, children who would be eligible for this criterion are those who are at level three and have ongoing social worker involvement, and all at level four on the 'Thresholds of needs and response in Salford’. For children resident in other local authorities, contact will be made with the child's social worker to confirm that the child's level of need falls within these boundaries of the Salford thresholds. The Academy and Salford Local Authority must have confirmation of an applicant's level of need from an appropriate professional before they will be considered under this criterion.
D. Brothers or sisters are defined as full or half brother/sister, adoptive brother/sister, fostered brother/sister, and the children of parents who are married or cohabiting, where the parents and children live together in the same household. For the purpose of clarity, it does not include cousins. The Academy reserves the right to ask for proof of relationship.
E. The home address where a child lives is considered to be a residential property that is the child’s main or only address during termtime. Applicants can be asked to provide additional evidence in order to verify addresses and/or other details provided. It is at the discretion of the Academy Trust what evidence is required(evidence may include, but is not limited to, Child Benefit, GP registration, evidence of home ownership/tenancy etc.). The final decision on the home address of a child will be made by the Academy Trust. If any information supplied by an applicant is judged by the Academy Trust to be fraudulent or intentionally misleading, the Academy Trust may refuse to offer a place, or if already offered, may withdraw the offer.
F. Applications from separated Parents/Carers Only: One application can be considered for each child. Where parents/carers are separated, it is essential that agreement be reached by both parties concerning the nominated preferredschools. Where a child spends part of their week with one parent and part with the other, only one address can be used. The address used should be the one of the parent/guardian who receives the Child Benefit Allowance for the child. If Child Benefit is not claimed, the address should be that at which the child spends most of their time during term time at the point of application.
G. In the case of over subscription against criteria 1 - 4, priority will be given within category to children who live closest to the Academy as measured by a straight line from the child’s home address to the centre of the Academy using I-LPG (Local Land and Property Gazetteer) information. Where it is necessary to differentiate between applicants living in flats using the same street entrance, priority will be given to the applicant(s) living closest to the ground floor and then by ascending flat number order. Where it is necessary to further differentiate between applicants living the same distance from the school, priority will be decided by random allocation. Details of this process are outlined below under ‘Final tiebreak allocation process.’
Salford City Council operates a formal waiting list on behalf of the Academy for any applicants who are unsuccessful in securing a place. The waiting list is ranked according to the over-subscription criteria. Any places that do become available, if not required for a child with an Education Health Care Plan or one who is required to be admitted through an In-year Fair Access Protocol (see below), are allocated in accordance with these criteria. The waiting list does not give priority either to those that have been on the list longest or to those that applied after the closing date. The governors will review the waiting list regularly and all parents / carers will be asked to reaffirm their intention to remain on the waiting list at the end of each academic year.
If there are insufficient places to accommodate all applicants and after using all oversubscription criteria, applicants for the final place(s) cannot be split, the remaining place(s) will be allocated using a random allocation process. The process will be electronically administered through the Trust’s IT system in use at this time and ratified by the governing body.
On National Offer Day (normally the 1st of March) the home borough / local authority will inform parents of the outcome of their application and which school their child has been allocated. The Lowry Academy will also send out offer letters with a deadline for accepting or declining a place.
Arrangements for Admitting Pupils outside of the normal admissions round Applications outside of the normal admissions round are known as in-year admissions. Salford City Council manage in-year admissions on behalf of the Academy. Further information about applying for a place in-year can be found here. If the year group applied for has a place available, the child will be admitted unless there are reasonable reason(s) not to admit in accordance with Schools Admissions Code. If more applications are received than there are places available, the oversubscription criteria outlined above shall apply. Parents/carers whose application is turned down are entitled to appeal (see below).
Families may seek a place for their child outside of his/her normal age group under various circumstances such as for summer born children who started primary school later, ill health, if the child is gifted and talented or when the child has experienced problems.
Where a parent wishes to seek a place for their child outside their normal age group, they should contact the Academy whereupon the process will be explained. The Academy will make its decision on the basis of:
Where the Academy agrees to a parent’s request for their child to be admitted out of their normal age group and, as a consequence of that decision, the child will be admitted to a relevant age group as part of the main admissions round (Year 7) the local authority and Academy will process the application as though it were any other application made as part of the main admissions round, and the same oversubscription criteria shall apply. Where the application falls outside the main admission round, then the in-year admission process shall apply.
Parents have a statutory right to appeal against the refusal of a place at a school for which they have applied. This right does not apply if they are offered a place at the Academy, but it is not in their preferred age group.
Parents will have the right of appeal to an independent appeal panel if they are dissatisfied with an admission decision of the Academy. The appeal panel will be independent of the Academy. The arrangements for appeals will be in line with the School Admissions Appeals Code (the “Code”) published by the Department for Education. The determination of the appeal panel will be made in accordance with the Code and will be binding on all parties.
Parents/carers can obtain appeal forms and details of the appeals process via the Salford City Council School Admissions Appeal page.
If parents/carers decide to appeal, they will receive an advance notice of the hearing date. They will be invited to attend the appeal. The hearing will be conducted as informally as possible, and parents/carers will have the opportunity to put forward their case and ask questions. If the appeal is refused, the Local Governing Body will not consider a further appeal for admission in the same academic year, unless there is a significant material change in circumstances of the parent or child.
The Lowry Academy participates in the In-Year Fair Access Protocol managed by Salford City Council in order to minimize the number of students who are at risk of underachievement by being out of school. This is reviewed by The Admissions Forum on a regular basis.
This policy has been made in accordance with the most recent legislation. This policy will be administered fairly and impartially. The decision to admit, or otherwise, is the sole responsibility of the Governing Body.