Admission Policies & Processes

Admission Policy

Our admission policy can be found here.

Information from KCC

Your guide to applying for a primary school in Kent 2026

In Year Admissions

For any in year admissions please contact our school office who will be able to advise you on this. Please use this link to complete the form for any in year admissions.

In Year Admission Form (kent.gov.uk) 

Applying for Early Years Foundation places in September:

Further information can be found by clicking on this link: http://www.aquilatrust.co.uk/1646/admissions

When your child is three or four years old, parents or carers will need to start thinking about which primary school you would like your child to go to.

At Reculver, we welcome you to view the school in action, by attending one of our Open Sessions for families with prospective new entrants. Dates for these sessions are advertised on our website and available from the school office. Please telephone the school office for more details or to make an appointment to visit us at a mutually convenient time.

The County Admissions procedure is followed on an annual basis, which includes the advice to apply for a school place online.

Please see the following link to find the admissions booklet detailing the application process.

Parents are informed by the Local Authority of the decision regarding a place for their child on Thursday 16th April 2026. After you have been informed that your child has been offered a place, you will receive information regarding our induction programme for children joining our Foundation Stage so that you and your child can become familiar with school and can start in September with confidence.

There are 60 places for new entrants in the Foundation Stage this year. Class sizes in Key Stage One [Foundation Stage, Year 1 and Year 2] are not permitted to exceed 30.

 

Whenever the school is oversubscribed the following criteria apply:

1. Looked After Children, Previously Looked After Children and Internationally Adopted Looked After Children (LAC, PLAC and IAPLAC) 

A “Looked After Child” (LAC) s a child who is (a) in the care of a local authority, or (b) being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social services functions (see the definition in Section 22(1) of the Children Act 1989) at the time of making an application to a school.

A "Previously Looked After Child" (PLAC) is a child who was looked after but ceased to be so because they were adopted or became subject to a child arrangements order or special guardianship order immediately following having been looked after.

An "Internationally Adopted Previously Looked After Child (IAPLAC) is a child who appears (to the admission authority) to have been in state care outside of England and ceased to be in state care as a result of being adopted.

2. Siblings

Siblings of pupils attending the school at the time of application. ‘Sibling’ means a natural brother or sister, a half brother or sister, a legally adopted brother or sister or half-brother or sister, a step brother or sister, or other child living in the same household who, in any of these cases, will be living with them at the same address at the date of their entry to the school.

3. Children of Staff

Priority will next be given to children of staff at the school, in either of the following circumstances: a) The member of staff has been employed at the school for 2 or more years at the time at which the application for admission to the school is made, or b) The member of staff is recruited to fill a vacant post for which there is a demonstrable skill shortage

4. Social and Medical need

Priority will be given to a small number of children in the exceptional circumstances whose mental or physical impairment means they have a demonstrable and significant need to attend the specific school over any other. Supporting evidence in the form of a letter from a doctor or social worker or other relevant qualified, independent professional, would be required. Medical, health, social and special access reasons will be applied in accordance with the school’s legal obligations and does not guarantee that a child will be given priority as each decision will be made on the merits of the individual case.

5. Distance from school

Proximity to the school with those living closest to the school having priority calculated by: We use the distance between the child’s permanent home address (defined in KCC’s annual admissions prospectus) and the school, measured in a straight line using the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG) address point. Distances are measured from a point defined as within the child’s home to a point defined as within the school as specified by NLPG. The same address point on the school site is used for everybody. When we apply the distance criterion for the school, these straight-line measurements are used to determine how close each applicant’s address is to the school. Where applications are made from properties or abodes that are not registered to the NLPG, including new build properties, KCC may be required to use planning sites or other relevant co-ordinates. In exceptional circumstances where alternative co-ordinates are not available, measurements will be determined by a KCC Senior Admissions Officer and confirmed by Head of Service. 4 The child’s home address is the place where the child is permanently resident with his or her parent or parents or legal guardians. Where a child lives with parents with shared responsibility the ‘home address’ is considered to be the address at which they sleep for the majority of school nights.

Transfer to Secondary School

When your child approaches their final year of Primary School, you will need to start thinking about which secondary school they will go to.

Finding a secondary school

A good place to start finding out about getting your child into secondary school is to read our booklet Admission To Secondary Schools In Kent.

The booklet is updated annually by the Local Authority and tells you everything you need to know about the admissions process together with details of Kent secondary schools and their dates and times of open sessions.

We are always happy to support parents and carers in this process when their child reaches this stage and to respond to questions about the procedure. We will schedule meetings within school and inform you of these nearer to the time.

lease see the document below for the key dates/timetable for admissions and appeals:  

guide to applying to primary in kent 1 .pdf