Secondary admissions guide - waiting lists and additional preferences
Do I have to request to be added to waiting lists?
a) For higher preferences than the school offered:
If you have not been offered your first preference school, your child will automatically be added to the waiting list of any Bromley school named as a higher preference on your original application.
b) For lower preferences than the school offered:
If you wish for your child to be considered on the waiting list for any Bromley school named as a lower preference on your original application than the school offered, you may do so by emailing the Bromley admissions and transport team: secondary.admissions@bromley.gov.uk.
c) For non-Bromley schools:
Please contact the relevant local authority for that school to find out their process for waiting lists.
Am I guaranteed to get a place from the waiting lists?
No, there is no guarantee that a place will become available at any of the schools your child is on the waiting list for.
If I accept the school offered, does this reduce my child’s consideration on another waiting list?
No, whether or not you have accepted a place at another school has no impact on your child’s position on a waiting list.
Similarly, refusing a place at a school does not increase your child’s chances of gaining a place from another school’s waiting list.
How will my child be considered on a waiting list?
All waiting lists are held in the order that the published oversubscription criteria are set out for that individual school. It is unlawful to maintain a list on a ‘first come first served’ basis.
This means that a child’s place can move up or down on any waiting list, dependent on any offers made or any other children added to the waiting list who may have a higher priority against the oversubscription criteria.
How long are the waiting lists open?
The council holds the waiting lists for all schools until 31 December 2024. If you wish your child to continue to be considered for any school after this time you would have to re-apply as an in-year admission.
When will I find out if my child is offered a place from a waiting list?
The council will start to make offers (re-allocate vacant places) from 10 April 2024 and will contact you if a place can be offered to your child.
How can I find out my child’s position on any waiting list
From 10 April 2024, you can request information on your child’s position on any Bromley school waiting list by emailing your request (quoting your child’s name and date of birth) to secondary.admissions@bromley.gov.uk or by telephone (020 8313 4044).
You will be contacted if your child is top of the waiting list and a place becomes available. The position on a waiting list is unlikely to fluctuate significantly and requests for position updates should not be made any more frequently than every two weeks.
NB: Your child’s place can move up or down on any waiting list, dependent on any offers made or any other children added to the waiting list who have a higher priority against the oversubscription criteria. This means that the information provided on your child’s waiting list position will only be correct at the time of the response to your request.
Can I request for my child to be considered for additional schools that I did not name on the original application?
Yes, you can request to add additional preferences to your application using the ‘Secondary Additional Preference form’, which is available on the council’s website from 1 March 2024. Once completed the form can be submitted as detailed on the website.
Once completed forms are received, they will be processed from 10 April 2024 (for Bromley schools), and you will be notified in writing if a place can be offered. For non-Bromley schools, your additional preferences will be processed in accordance with that Local Authority’s timetable and Bromley has no influence over when they are processed.
NB: The total number of preferences allowed for each child is 9. This includes your original preferences (limited to 6) and any additional preferences.
What happens if I am satisfied with the school offered (even if my child is on other school waiting lists) or I change my mind about my child being on a particular school waiting list?
If you are satisfied with the place offered or have changed your mind and no longer require your child to remain on any particular waiting list, please email secondary.admissions@bromley.gov.uk to request that your child be removed from the relevant waiting lists).