Information on the procedure for applying for reception places at primary and infant schools.
Primary admissions timescale – September 2025
- Week commencing 4 November 2024 – Information on application process distributed to schools.
- Monday 11 November 2024 – Online and telephone application facilities open.
- From week commencing 18 November 2024 - Preferences start to be recorded on the Admissions System and initial information available to schools on SAM.
- Midnight Wednesday 15 January 2025 – Closing date for submission of applications.
- By Monday 27 January 2025 – The Admissions and Transport Team send other Local Authorities details of Derbyshire children who have expressed preferences for their schools.
- By Monday 27 January 2025 – The Admissions and Transport Team to have received from other Local Authorities details of their children who have expressed preferences for Derbyshire schools.
- By Monday 3 February 2025 – The Admissions and Transport Team will have released all preference details to own admission authority schools where assessments are done by the school.
- By Friday 7 February 2025 - The Admissions and Transport Team will have released preference details for checking by own admission authority schools where assessments are done by the Admissions and Transport Team.
- By Friday 21 February 2025 – Own admission authority school rankings to be complete on SAM, checked and confirmed to the Admissions and Transport Team. Schools should ensure that a Governors’ meeting to consider preferences is scheduled in order to meet this deadline.
- By Monday 3 March 2025 – The Admissions and Transport Team to send to other Local Authorities potential offers of places in Derbyshire schools.
- By Monday 3 March 2025 – The Admissions and Transport Team to receive from other Local Authorities potential offers of places in their schools.
- By Friday 21 March 2025 – Allocation process complete. The Admissions and Transport Team to release details of children to be offered places (subject to the receipt of information from neighbouring Local Authorities). This information is confidential until National Offer Day.
- Wednesday 16 April 2025 – National Offer Day. Decision available online and letters posted 2nd class where appropriate.
- Wednesday 16 April 2025 – Waiting lists for all oversubscribed schools established and administered by the Admissions Team.
- Wednesday 21 May 2025 – Closing date for appeals (20 school days from offer day).
- May 2025 onwards – Own admission authority schools to inform the Admissions and Transport Team of the outcome of appeals to the independent appeal panels. Where appeals have been successful, the Admissions Team will deal with any resulting movement.
- Monday 21 July 2025 - Main round of appeals to be heard by this date.
- From Monday 8 September 2025 – Schools to notify the Admissions and Transport Team of any pupil allocated a place who does not take up the place offered or who leaves whilst the waiting list is maintained.
- 31 December 2025 – Waiting lists cease to be maintained by the Admissions and Transport Team.