Changing or transferring to a Swindon school
Before making your application
You should read the relevant admissions guide before you start your application. These documents contain important information about how we will consider your application. If you're applying for a an academy or free school, you should contact them directly to view their admissions policy. See also: A note about Swindon Academy
General things to consider:
Your reasons for wanting your child to change schools will depend on your circumstances. However, before you go ahead, you should consider the following:
- Schools may not follow the same curriculum. Your child may be required to follow a different curriculum and/or may miss out or repeat parts of a curriculum.
- How will your child travel to the new school? Bear in mind that it's a parent's responsibility to make sure you can get your child to the school you apply for.
- Have you considered the cost buying new school uniform? There is no financial support available for this.
If you’re applying because you’re moving home:
- You should be aware that you can choose to keep your child at their current school. However, this may affect any entitlement you have to school travel support.
- Moving into a school’s catchment area doesn’t guarantee your child a place at the school. The decision is based entirely on the availability of spaces in the relevant year group at the school.
If you’re applying because your child is having problems at their current school:
- You should think about the situation carefully before you make a final decision to apply. You should talk through any problems you have with your current school and try to resolve the issue. This is usually preferable to moving schools. There may be an Education Welfare Officer who you can contact through the school.
If you’re applying for more than one child:
- You should be aware that each request will be considered on an individual basis. You cannot make a joint application. If one child is offered a school place, it does not guarantee a place at that particular school for any other child in the family.
If you’re applying so that your child starts at the beginning of a new term:
- For a September start date that isn’t part of a phased transfer (infant to junior school or primary to secondary school) you should apply in plenty of time. We normally consider applications from June of the same year.
- To start after the Christmas or Easter holiday, you should apply in plenty of time and refer to the process periods timetable.
- Be aware that we cannot process applications during school holidays because schools are not available to discuss or confirm places. Where an application has been received over the holidays and can’t be processed before the new term starts, we would expect the child to return to their current school until we can process the application and offer a place.
A note about Swindon Academy
Swindon Academy is on two sites: Alton Close and Beech Avenue. If you are applying for a place at Swindon Academy in any year from Reception to year 6, you can specify a preferred site, which the school itself will consider. It won't always be possible to offer the preferred site.
As the local authority co-ordinate applications, we do not take your preferred site into consideration. If your application for Swindon Academy is successful, we will inform you of this. However, Swindon Academy will be in contact to tell you which site your child will attend.