Admissions
Most children join St James Primary in Reception Class when they are 4 or 5 years old, whilst some join us in Little Ducks Nursery, or in later years where places are available. Children who join us in reception stay with us for 7 years, giving them continuity of education between infant and junior phases, and helping us to get to know each individual child really well.
Our children move on to a wide range of secondary schools, including Broadwater, Woolmer Hill, Rodborough and Weydon. Some of our children also move on to independent schools in Y7.
Whenever your child joins our school, we are committed to making it an easy and enjoyable experience for them and we spend time ensuring a smooth transition from nursery or a previous school.
The documents immediately below are generic for all admissions to St James Primary. You will find additional forms specific to that type of admission within each drop-down section. The information under each section will guide you through the process. Where procedures or dates vary from the Admission Policy, details are also shown in these sections. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Please pay particular note to the requirements in the Admissions Policy if you are applying under exceptional circumstances, sibling priority or faith criteria.
In-Year Applications. Applications made at any time other than the Reception year should be made directly to the school. Applications will be treated using our oversubscription criteria, subject to a maximum of 30 children in a Reception or Key Stage One year group. Applications submitted on or after the 1st September of the year of entry will be considered as ‘In-Year’ applications. Parents will be notified of the result within 10 school days wherever possible, but within 15 school days at the latest, giving the schools decision and where applicable detailing reasons for refusal and the parent’s right of appeal.
Little Ducks Nursery. Applications to Little Ducks Nursery are made in a different way. Please visit the Nursery tab at the top of this page
Parish Maps. Please click on the links below to view the parish maps on 'A Church Near you' website:
- Admissions Policy 2022 2023
- Admissions Policy 2023 2024
- Admissions Policy 2024 2025
- Faith Supplementary Information Form
- Staff Supplementary Information Form
Admissions to Reception year in September 2023
Children join us at age 4 in the Reception year and stay with us until leaving for Secondary school, aged 11, at the end of Year 6.
Parents wishing to make an application for their child to join St James Primary School in September 2023 should read the 2023-24 Admissions Policy and make an application to Surrey County Council by the closing date of 15 January 2023. Applications are made on the Surrey County Council website.
Parents applying under Criteria 4, 5 or 7 must also submit the school’s Supplementary Information Form (SIF), so that the application can be considered correctly.
Parents will be advised of the outcome on the evening of 17th April 2023.
Please see the Waverley School Booklet below for detailed information regarding all the local schools.
Documents will be shown in alphabetical order.
To list in date order, the folder should contain the word 'letter' or 'minute'.
Admissions to Year 3 in September 2023
We admit children into Year 3 if there are available places. Whilst we cannot guarantee we will have places, we often have flexibility to admit children at the beginning of the Junior phase and parents are welcome to apply for a September 2023 start with us.
As we do not have an official Year 3 intake (PAN), you are not able to apply for a Year 3 place at St James Primary using the usual Surrey admissions system. However, this is advantageous to you, as you can make two applications if you wish; one direct to us and another for a standard Year 3 application through Surrey County Council.
Parents must apply using the School managed application for Year 3 admission in September 2023 (SMA3) form below by the closing date of 15th January 2023. Applications will be considered according to our published admissions criteria in our Admissions Policy.
Parents applying under Criteria 4, 5 or 7 must also submit the school’s Supplementary Information Form (SIF), so that the application can be considered correctly.
We will contact you ahead of the primary offer day on 17th April 2023 to advise whether or not we are able to offer you a place. At this point you could potentially have two offers, one from us and another via Surrey County Council. If we offer you a place, we require you to respond in writing to us to accept or decline the offer by our acceptance deadline, 2nd May 2023, (which is in line with the Surrey County Council date).
Admissions to other years or throughout the school year
We accept admissions into other years and at times other than September, when we have available spaces.
We operate a waiting pool for each year group which we review and rank if a place becomes available. For such admissions or to join the waiting pool, parents should complete the School managed application form for in-year admissions and return it directly to the school.
Parents applying under Criteria 4, 5 or 7 must also submit the school’s Supplementary Information Form (SIF), so that the application can be considered correctly.
Appeals
Appeals against an admissions decision must be made according to the Admissions Appeals Timetable below. Parents who have not been allocated a place are entitled to appeal against the Governors’ decision to an Independent Appeal Panel.