Placing your Child into a School

Placement Guidance  | Pre-School Registration | Early Entry |  Application Process

Entry Age

Your child will be admitted automatically to school in August if his or her fifth birthday falls between 1 March of that same year and the last day of February of the following year.  You can, however, make a request for early entry to school for a child whose fifth birthday falls after the above period. A separate booklet, obtainable from the education office, Argyll House, contains full details.

Registering your child

If your child is due to start school in the August, he or she should be registered in your local primary school before the end of the preceding January. Local advertisements issued in January each year provide full details on how to register your child.

Placing Requests

Your child will normally attend the local primary school and transfer from it, after the Primary 7 stage, to its associated secondary school. However, as a parent, you have the right to make a placing request for your child(ren) to be educated in a school other than the local school. In December each year, the authority will advertise its arrangements in connection with placing requests.
There are sound educational reasons for trying to ensure that the transfer or admission of children to a school takes place at the start of a school session. We therefore, advise all parents who desire a placing request (other than those who are moving home to a new area) to seek this to take effect only at the start of the next school session.
Should you wish to make placing requests in respect of more than one school for your child, the duty of the authority as defined by the Act applies only to the first named school. Every effort, however, will be made to try to meet parental wishes, but you should note that it is not always possible to grant every placing request to a particular school.

How to make a placing request

If you wish to make a placing request you must complete a separate copy of the attached proforma (PC1(a)) for each child involved.
You do not have to give a reason for making a placing request. If, however, there are more requests than places available, your case may well be strengthened if your reasons are known.
Please send the completed form(s) to the education office responsible for the school you wish your child to attend and inform the head teacher of your local school that you are making a placing request.
You should receive an acknowledgement within 5 working days of receipt of your application.
If placing requests are submitted by 8 February, every effort will be made to meet parents’ requests within the limits of the accommodation and places available in schools. Your placing requests will be considered against a set of guidelines which set out the council’s priorities for admission. As soon as a decision has been made you will be notified of the result. If your placing request is successful, you will be asked to contact the school to establish arrangements for enrolment.

If your Request is Refused

If your placing request is refused, or if you are not advised by the authority of its decision on your request by 30 April (or within 2 months for requests made at other times of the year), you may lodge an appeal with an appeal committee. Information on how to appeal may be obtained from the education office, Argyll House.
The appeal should be sent to the Head of Secondary Education and Pupil Support, Argyll House, Dunoon.
You will, by the time of the appeal, know the reasons why your placing request was refused and you will be given the opportunity to present your case in person or through a representative, whichever you prefer.
If the appeal committee refuses your request, you have the right of further appeal to the Sheriff (other than in the case of early entry requests, where there is no guarantee of appeal).