Before applying

Important facts you should know before applying for a school place

Making decisions about your child’s education will be one of the most important things that you do. To help you make that decision you need to read the relevant school admissions policy but the following are some important facts to remember. Only an adult with parental responsibility for the child can make an application.

1. You can choose Welsh-medium, English-medium or a faith-based education school search

• You do not need to be fluent in Welsh or even a Welsh speaker for your child to attend a Welsh–medium school becoming bilingual
• For a place at one of Newport’s (voluntary aided) faith schools, apply directly to the school, apart from Malpas Church in Wales Primary School where you should submit an application via this website. For a place at all other Newport schools, apply here.

2. Parents can express a preference for (choose) any school they want their child to attend and the council will try to meet that preference where places are available.

• Children whose parents have expressed a preference for a school will be given priority over children whose parents have not
• You should consider expressing a preference for at least three different schools to increase your chance of getting a school place that you are happy with, as there are some areas of Newport where demand for school places is particularly high
• As there is no guarantee of a school place in any particular school, you should not assume that your child will be allocated a place at the school of your choice, even if it is the catchment school or you live quite close to it
• If the number of applications for a nursery or school is fewer than or equal to the number of places available, all applicants will be admitted. However, where there are more applications than there are places available, a list of over-subscription criteria will be used to determine priority for places (see the relevant school admissions policy for details)
• You can ask to be allocated an alternative place at your nearest available school if your choices are unsuccessful
• Attending a nursery class does not guarantee admission nor give any advantage to the child’s application for Reception. Similarly, attendance at a primary school does not guarantee admission nor give any advantage to the child’s application for secondary school.

3. Each Newport address has both an English and a Welsh-medium catchment school

• Children living in that catchment area will be given priority for admission upon making an application, although this does not guarantee a place
• In the case of your catchment school, an applicant living outside of your catchment area who expresses a preference for it will receive a higher priority than you if you do not express a preference for it
• If you decide not to list your catchment school as one of your preferences but are unsuccessful with all of your choices, your child will only be considered for an alternative place at the catchment school if places are still available

4. You will need to think about how your child will travel to school, as they may not be entitled to free school transport.

• Transport is not available for nursery-age pupils

5. Does your child have a younger brother or sister?

• A successful application for one child does not guarantee admission for other members of your family.
• Consider any future applications you may need to make and the potential impact if they are unsuccessful, particularly if you are applying to a school outside your catchment area

6. What evidence will you need to submit with your application?

• An application without the correct evidence will be incomplete and will not qualify for priority under the oversubscription criteria, which could mean that your child is not offered a school place.
• In submitting evidence, you must supply only copies of documents. The Council cannot take responsibility for the return of any original documents provided.