Schools Organisation, Capital and Admissions Group: Notes of meeting on 20 May 2025

Item 2. Normal round admissions 2025-26  

• Devon offered 93.5% of parents expressing a preference a place in their highest ranked school and 98.2% at any preferred secondary school.
• Devon offered 95.9% of parents expressing a preference a place in their highest ranking school and 98.9% at any preferred primary school.

Item 3. Admissions policy 2027-28

• SOCA endorsed the recommendation that policies are amended to ensure compliance with the admissions code removing limitation on timeframe for UK service personnel and crown servants to apply for an in-year admission. This follows a recent determination of the Schools Adjudicator.

Item 5. Term dates 2026/7 and 2027/8

• 2026/27 and 2027/28 recommended term dates have been agreed by the local authority.

Item 6. Flexi-Schooling

• LA and DfE default position is that children receive a full-time education offer in school.
• Flexi schooling arrangement is a valid request for parents, and must be considered on a case by case basis and a decision to agree or refuse made by the school in the best interests of the child.
• The LA must be informed of any flexi schooling arrangements agreed and their duration.

Item 9. Capital Maintenance Programme

• DCC were awarded £5.38m for 2025/26 in School Condition Allocation from the DfE. This is £2.3m more than expected based on previous years’ methodology, however, a condition investment backlog remains across the estate.
• SOCA noted update in legislation and governance linked to Building Safety Act, placing more onus on the client (school) to comply with legislation. Schools considering any school-led capital works are urged to seek advice from Built Environments Team on client duties and responsibilities to follow correct due process.

Attendance

DCC

Katherine Crompton (Chair) – Capital Programme Manager,  Shona Meek – Senior School Organisation Officer, Andrew Brent – Senior Policy Officer, Fran Butler – Early Years and Childcare Sufficiency Lead, Heidi Watson-Jones – Executive Assistant (Inclusion & Learning)

Devon Schools Leadership Services

Primary

David Perkins (part) – Littletown Primary

Special School Heads

DAG

Ian Rogers

SW Norse

Nick Cook (part) – South West Norse,

Apologies

Penny Hammett – FORT Federation, Kirsty Wright – Catholic Diocese of Plymouth, Richard Power – Exeter Anglican Diocese (Capital),

1. Minutes of previous meeting – 4 March 2025

• Outstanding Actions:
• Noted DSLS has been unable to secure further headteacher representative volunteers from North and West Devon to sit on Fair Access Panel.
• Pupil place planning data still to be shared with 4 outstanding LLC groups in East Devon.
• Small schools data has been shared.
• All other actions complete or in hand.
• Minutes agreed as an accurate record.

2. Admissions – Normal round admissions 2025/26 

• SOCA noted the data for the 2025/26 normal admissions round.
• Secondary – Devon offered 93.5% of parents expressing a preference a place in their highest ranked school and 98.2% at any preferred school.
• 134 children (1.8%) were not offered a place at any preferred school, mainly due to parents not expressing a second preference however all have been offered a school place.
• Noted rise in Devon children accessing school places out of county. Considered whether families are particularly accessing grammar school places in other LAs.
• Primary –  Devon offered 95.9% of parents expressing a preference a place in their highest ranking school and 98.9% at one of their preferences.
• 72 children (1.1%) were not offered a place at any preferred school.
• 9201 places were available with 2388 vacant.

3. Admissions – Admissions Policy 2027/28

• Will shortly begin new admissions policy round, and policies will be drafted during summer for implementation from September.
• Any schools or MATs wishing to make changes for individual schools to seek advice from Andrew brent or Diocese – including any proposed reduction in PAN.
• Noted recent determination by OSA against a school which had placed a limitation on in year applications made for crown servants or UK service personnel more than 4 months in advance. It was determined that it was unlawful to restrict when an in-year application could be made for this group; this will now be applied to all schools. The LA recommends adjustment to policies and coordination scheme for 2027/28 to remove any reference to Crown servants and UK service personnel restrictions. The impact on Devon schools is likely to be minimal, but will need to consider if it will be appropriate to consider a limitation in timeframe for all in year applications.
• SOCA endorsed the recommendation that policies are amended to ensure compliance with the admissions code.

4. Admissions – Composite Prospectus – September 2025

• Andrew Brent is reviewing data for the collation of the composite prospectus which will be prepared over the summer.
• Schools with any changes should notify schoolsadmissionpolicy-mailbox@devon.gov.uk

5. Admissions – Term dates 2026/7 and 2027/8

• Confirmed that 2026/27 and 2027/28 recommended term dates have been agreed by the local authority.
• Maintained schools must plan to be open for children for 190 school days. Academies are not bound by the same Regulations but there is an expectation that they will also be open for 190 school days in the year.
• Noted smaller schools seem to be consolidating the number of classes which impacts on the number of places available in each year group. Schools were reminded that there must be a clear rationale for such organisational change and that any change must be defensible at appeal.  Schools are asked to take advice and check any assumptions with Admissions Team before taking such action.
• Noted that financial drivers may provide the rationale for local decisions to reduce the number of classes rather than the quality of teaching and learning.

6. Admissions – Flexi-Schooling

• Updated DfE guidance on attendance will be reflected in Flexi-Schooling guidance and protocol in due course.
• Noted LA  and DfE default position is that children receive a full time education offer in school.
• Flexi schooling arrangement is a valid request for parents, and must be considered on a case by case basis and decision made by the school in the best interests of the child to agree or refuse.
• This should not be offered as a lifestyle choice, but should be a positive step back into full time education where a child has been unable to access school due to illness.
• The LA must be informed of any flexi schooling arrangements agreed and their duration.
• Non-attendance during flexi schooling arrangements must not be recorded as education off site.
• Noted that flexi-schooling has not routinely been occurring in Devon.
• Considered special school approach, and noted that it would be expected that the SEND Statutory Team are notified of any flexi schooling arrangement.

Actions

• AB to remind schools at June DSLS briefing to notify the LA of any flexi schooling arrangements, and that flexi schooling should not be implemented from lifestyle reasons,

7. Admissions – Children Missing Education

• Noted that Georgina Bennett will be retiring from the local authority and her contribution was acknowledged.  Andrew Brent will be covering CME on an interim basis pending outcome of the LA Inclusion and Learning redesign.
• Any queries to be sent to educate.educationchildrenmissingeducation-mailbox@devon.gov.uk

8. Early Years update

• Nursery Admissions policy template being reviewed and updated, specifically around the working parent entitlement changes and moving to an academic year basis.  Over-subscription criteria for different age groups being reset. 
• Community and VC schools must use the template, however in practice most schools are adopting the policy.
• Children’s Centre buildings which will not be used for Family Hubs will be used for full daycare for under 5s.
• Three buildings may be taken on by schools with the remaining centres subject to an expression of interest in running childcare from the building. 

Opportunities for Development – Information for childcare providers

• Childcare Expansion Capital Grant has now closed for applications to develop places for babies and 2 year olds.
• 114.6 FTE and 82.4 FTE 2 year old places have been created across 11 providers.
• Transition and Starting School – schools are reminded that the September offer is for a full time place, and not part time or staggered. This is a particular issue this year as due to the childcare entitlement changes there is unlikely to be sufficient nursery and childcare provision to backfill part time school attendance reception.
• Noted that parents may request part time school attendance until statutory school age, and that if nursery provision is also accessed, that will need to be paid for.

Action

• DSLS to remind schools that it is a statutory requirement to offer a full time reception entry and the impact on parents where part time arrangements are put in place.

9. SW Norse update

• Number of DMP and VA schools remain static.
• Noted recent improvement in service contract performance. There have been some delays in transferring data to Connect 2 system for lift servicing, however understand that the servicing has been completed.
• Will now work to review the data and review longer term plans for replacement of equipment.
• Direction of travel for DMP and the VA scheme remains challenging as number of school sites with fewer pupils increase. Working with Diocese and DCC to review way forward, taking into consideration 26/27 contractor fee uplifts and complexities around national impact of NI increases.
• Schools are requested to check all installations are listed on Connect2. In the event that there are any installations that have not been serviced, Schools should contact Mike.Burlace@norsegroup.co.uk to arrange for installations to be added to the contract.

10. School organisation update

• Ongoing challenges around delivery of new Cranbrook Cobdens primary school site.
• A bid for East Devon Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding towards building a new primary school in the Exeter Mosshayne/Tithebarn area was considered by EDDC on 19 May 2025: an update will be provided at the next meeting.
• Cranbrook special free school included in DfE review of all free school proposals with no forward movement at this time.
• Noted development of new SEN Unit at KEVICC from September 25/Jan 26 supporting the LA’s SEND strategy.
• Noted the consultations currently in progress to change age range.
• Noted schools successful in their bids for the DfE’s school based nursery grant funding and approval of age range changes.
• Noted academisation proposals.
• The DfE recently announced additional capital funding for School Condition Allocations, Basic Need and High Needs Provision capital allocations.
• For the High Needs Provision capital, the DfE guidance encourages increased Resourced Provision or SEN Units in mainstream schools, special school expansions only where appropriate and improvements in mainstream schools (but cannot fund maintenance or condition based need).

11. Capital Programme Update

• DCC were awarded £5.38m for 2025/26 in School Condition Allocation from the DfE. This is £2.3m more than expected based on previous years’ methodology, however, a condition investment backlog remains across the estate.
• Minimum funding floor of £25k per school has been implemented for the coming year which has benefited 59 Devon small schools that otherwise would not have received a capital maintenance allocation.
• Noted capital programme allocations, supporting delivery of several schemes across the county.
• SOCA noted update in legislation and governance linked to Building Safety Act, placing more onus on the client to work with principle designers (e.g. SW Norse) and contractors.
• Schools considering any school-led capital works are urged to seek advice from Built Environments Team on client duties and responsibilities to follow correct due process.

Future meeting dates (via Teams)

• Tuesday 23 September 2025 (09.30 -11.30)
• Tuesday 2 December 2025 (09.30 – 11.30)
• Tuesday 3 March 2026 (09.30 – 11.30)