Non Selective 6th Forms

[AmIIndecisive]

Hoping someone can answer my question, do non selective schools select the more academic external students for 6th form (above and beyond the minimum entry requirements) when they are over subscribed, or do they have to stick to their admissions policies?

@AmIIndecisive non-selective schools usually have a separate admissions policy for their sixth form, which will be published on their website. The policies are allowed to select academically and usually do, not least because A Levels are difficult. There is often a blanket minimum GCSE score (e.g. five grade 6's), plus additional criteria for each course, (e.g. A Level Further maths may need 7+ in GCSE maths). They have to apply the same criteria to internal students and external students.

They have to comply with the National Admissions Code, e.g. they're not allowed to select on things like behaviour, attendance, aspirations, hobbies etc.

Thanks for your reply. They do have a minimum grade requirement of 6 x Grade 6 for GSCS but I was wondering if they have a 9 x 9 Grade prediction student and they are oversubscribed, will they pick them over someone who is predicted all 7s?

Not unless it says so in their policy, no.

They will have oversubscription criteria, but they are likely to be distance based, like in year 7.

Thanks for your answer, but if you apply directly to the school and not the LA then I don’t think things like distance etc apply for 6th form? Sorry if these are stupid questions! Just thinking would be in a good state schools interest to have a student that will end up with better results for their tables and destinations etc.

Yes, those things do apply if they're in the policy. You need to find the policy on the school website and read it. State schools aren't allowed to make the admissions rules up as they go along, even if they're administering the admissions themselves. '

Thanks @bizniss you are a wise font of knowledge. I have already read the policy (went through it with a fine tooth comb!), it talks about PAN and minimum requirements (and CLA and EHCPs obvs) but doesn’t mention distance. It does say that the interview performance won’t determine a place and is only to discuss courses. I was just checking because I was discussing this with a number of friends of mine who said of course they will take a child with better predictions for GCSE because it will help them with their tables, so I wanted to clarify that if the LA isn’t involved in the decision-making process, the school could effectively ‘select’, even though they say they are non selective.

That's interesting @AmIIndecisive because they definitely need to say what their oversubscription criteria are. If not, they would be wide open to appeal for not having a compliant policy. If you want me to take a look, feel free to dm me the school name.

My son was offered a place at a non selective school for sixth form, he needed a reference from his current school and the requirements was that he met the minimum entry grade for the subject choices and distance from school.

I'm a bit confused by what you mean by "non-selective" sixth forms as I think all sixth forms are going to be selective to some point (or at least in terms of what courses they will let you take).

Assuming you mean something like the sixth form my DD attends, where the entry criteria are as low as they can be to ensure that students can access the course (mostly 5s for A Level, for example) I assume it is school specific? DD's school, for example, states that they prioritise people making the sixth form their first choice (which in practice means that you are available to enrol at the start of the enrolment period or you potentially lose your place) and then by distance.

I imagine schools more worried about league table positions would set higher entry criteria.

The 6th form my dc attends specifies that after all other criteria has been met, they take the kids with the highest GCSE scores. The base line is you have to get at least 6 x grade 6 GCSEs but many subjects require a 7 to study it at A Level. Internal candidates (it's attached to a high school) take priority over external candidates, priority is given to kids in care and kids whose parents teach at the school etc.

Last year about 40 spaces went externally and, from what I can tell, many of those kids have very high GCSE grades, with a lot of 8s and 9s.

Whether the school is its own admissions authority or whether it is a community school is not important. Every setting has to admit on the basis of its published admissions policy for the relevant academic year. They are also required to run a consultation if they propose changes.

If they have no catchment and disregard distance, even as a tie break, are they perhaps prioritising children in receipt of Pupil Premium / FSMs, children with siblings on roll, children of teachers and staff, sporting aptitude, medical or social need, feeder schools etc. Also, in addition to the 6 x grade 6 minimum requirements, you may find individual subject thresholds are set higher.

If a sixth form is over-subscribed, then yes, it can be selective, even if it a non-selective school. And that selection can rule out external students who meet the minimum entrance requirements.

Can you copy and paste the relevant bit of the admissions policy?

To clarify, it can be selective even if it isn't oversubscribed.

There is a difference between selection criteria, which apply to all students equally (e.g. all sixth formers must have a minimum of five grade 6 GCSE's), and oversubscription criteria which apply only to external applicants (e.g. if more external applicants meet the selection criteria than there are external places available, they will be prioritised based on 1. Looked after children, 2. Siblings, 3. Distance from their home to the school).

I'm just reading the post 16 admissions policy of DD's old school. It's a school in a small market town with the vast majority of pupils bussed in from the surrounding villages and hamlets. It's the only school in the LA with a 6th form and can only accommodate 150 pupils in each year group.

They don't get many pupils from other schools as most live in town about 10 miles away and where there is a large 6th form college.

Entry requirements are 5 or more GCSEs at grade 5 or above, including English and maths, and a minimum of grade 6 in the sciences and maths if studying those subjects. All students need to achieve a minimum of grade D in their A level subjects to progress to year 13.

It is over subscribed, but I have no idea how they select applicants from other schools.

Based on my school, non selective slightly lower results than three local secondary sixth forms.
We have an entry requirement of a certain amount of points from best 8 GCSE's, different subjects have their own requirement.
Our internal students will get places first following the above criteria, on results day they have till 930 to register with us.
External students have to register with us where we check the requirements, and its a first come first served once a course is full its full. No retraction of an offer once you have signed up on results day.

I'd be surprised if "first come first served" would be considered objective, fair and reasonable, as required by the National Admissions Code. How is it worded in the policy?

It doesn't seem to be common for people to formally appeal against sixth form admissions decisions yet, from what I've seen locally and on mumsnet, breaches of the admissions code for 16+ entry are rife.

Are you sure you read the formal policy, not just a high level summary of it on the website? It's not unusual for sixth form admissions policies to be difficult to find, but schools have a statutory duty to publish them online.

Ours is supposedly non-selective but has a minimum of 5 GCSEs at grade 4 and subject-specific requirements.

Everyone applying from the 5 feeder schools is guaranteed a place subject to the minimum GCSEs, then if oversubscribed there is a ballot but they reserve the right to allow applicants to not take part in the ballot if they are looked after or have an EHCP, sibling, or child of a staff member.