Admission Policy

Loreto Primary School Grange Road Rathfarnham Admissions Policy

April 2020

Roll Number 00729F School Patron: Archbishop of Dublin

1. Introduction

This Admission Policy complies with the requirements of the Education Act 1998, the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018 and the Equal Status Act 2000. In drafting this policy, the board of management of the school has consulted with school staff, the school patron and with parents of children attending the school.

The policy was approved by the school patron on 8^th July 2020. It is published on the school’s website and will be made available in hardcopy, on request, to any person who requests it.

The relevant dates and timelines for Loreto Primary School Rathfarnham admission process are set out in the school’s annual admission notice which is published annually on the school’s website at least one week before the commencement of the admission process for the school year concerned.

This policy must be read in conjunction with the annual admission notice for the school year concerned.

The application form for admission is published on the school’s website and will be made available in hardcopy on request to any person who requests it.

2. Characteristic spirit and general objectives of the school

Loreto Primary School, Grange Road is a Catholic mainstream all girls primary school with a Catholic ethos under the patronage of the Archbishop of Dublin and under the trusteeship of the Loreto Education trust.

Our special ASD class will cater where possible for both boys and girls.

“Catholic Ethos” in the context of a Catholic primary school means the ethos and characteristic spirit of the Roman Catholic Church, which aims at promoting:

Loreto Primary School, Grange Road is a Catholic mainstream all girls primary school with a Catholic ethos under the patronage of the Archbishop of Dublin.

Our special ASD class will cater where possible for both boys and girls.

“Catholic Ethos” in the context of a Catholic primary school means the ethos and characteristic spirit of the Roman Catholic Church, which aims at promoting:

the full and harmonious development of all aspects of the person of the pupil, including the intellectual, physical, cultural, moral and spiritual aspects; and
a living relationship with God and with other people; and
a philosophy of life inspired by belief in God and in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus; and
the formation of the pupils in the Catholic faith,

and which school provides religious education for the pupils in accordance with the doctrines, practices and traditions of the Roman Catholic Church, and/or such ethos and/or characteristic spirit as may be determined or interpreted from time to time by the Irish Episcopal Conference.

Our Loreto Ethos

Loreto schools seek to provide an education that affirms the innate dignity of

every human being created in God’s image, and fosters the full and harmonious development of each student, encompassing the intellectual, physical, cultural, moral and spiritual aspects in an environment of justice, freedom, sincerity, truth and joy.

The creation of a dynamic school community where every student is equally cherished and has a real sense of belonging is a priority in a Loreto school which draws its inspiration from Gospel values and the rich heritage passed on to usfrom Mary Ward and Teresa Ball1, and enshrined in our documents on Loreto Education, including Kolkata Educational Guidelines for Loreto Schools, Continuing the Journey: A Loreto Education and A Mary Ward Schools’ Compass.

Students are encouraged to be reflective and discerning in the spirit of our Loreto and Ignatian tradition and continue to grow with integrity in right relationship with God, with other people and the environment.

Our philosophy of holistic education places the person of the student at the centre of the educational enterprise which nurtures the student’s capacity to “seek truth … to love what is good … to strive for excellence” (Teresa Ball) and joyfully engage with life-long self-directed learning in all its dimensions. In so doing, we are committed to preparing students to take their place in society as generous, confident, perceptive, well-informed, articulate and compassionate people ready to contribute to the common good.

Loreto schools welcome students of all faiths and of none while maintaining a Catholic ethos. Inter-faith and inter-cultural dialogue together with a spirit of inclusivity and the celebration of diversity are fostered in the school. In harmony with our characteristic spirit and recognising that care of faith and education are fundamental to the Loreto tradition, Religious Education is central to our curriculum and the faith formation of Catholic students is supported by the school in accordance with the doctrines, practices and traditions of the Catholic Church. Each student’s spiritual life is expressed and deepened through prayer, ritual in the cycle of the liturgical year, reflection on the profound link between faith and justice and creative engagement with the dialogue of faith and life communicated in nature, in science and in the arts.

In accordance with S.15 (2) (b) of the Education Act, 1998 the Board of Management of Loreto Primary School shall uphold, and be accountable to the patron for so upholding, the characteristic spirit of the school as determined by the cultural, educational, moral, religious, social, linguistic and spiritual values and traditions which inform and are characteristic of the objectives and conduct of the school which inform and are characteristic of the objectives and conduct of the school.

3. Admission Statement

Loreto Primary School, Grange Road, will not discriminate in its admission of a student to the school on any of the following:

Loreto Primary School, Grange Road Rathfarnham is an all-girls school and does not discriminate where it refuses to admit a boy applying for admission to this school. An exception to this rule is in relation to applications to the ASD class.
the civil status ground of the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned,

the family status ground of the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned,

the sexual orientation ground of the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned,

the religion ground of the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned,

the disability ground of the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned,

the ground of race of the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned,

the Traveller community ground of the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned, or

the ground that the student or the applicant in respect of the student concerned has special educational needs

As per section 61 (3) of the Education Act 1998, ‘civil status ground’, ‘disability ground’, ‘discriminate’, ‘family status ground’, ‘gender ground’, ‘ground of race’, ‘religion ground’, ‘sexual orientation ground’ and ‘Traveller community ground’ shall be construed in accordance with section 3 of the Equal Status Act 2000.

(a) Loreto Primary School is an all-girls school and does not discriminate where it refuses to admit a boy applying for admission to this school. An exception to this rule is in relation to applications to the ASD class.

Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, is a school whose objective is to provide education in an environment which promotes certain religious values and does not discriminate in relation to the admission of a student who has applied for a place in the school in accordance with section 7A of the Equal Status Act 2000.

Loreto Primary School is a school whose objective is to provide education in an environment which promotes certain religious values and does not discriminate where it refuses to admit as a student a person who is not and it is proved that the refusal is essential to maintain the ethos of the school.

Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham is a school which has established a class, with the approval of the Minister for Education and Skills, which provides an education exclusively for students with a category of ASD special educational needs specified by the Minister and may refuse to admit to the class a student who does not have the category of needs specified.

4. Categories of Special Educational Needs catered for in our special class here in Loreto Grange Road Rathfarnham.

Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, with the approval of the Minister for Education and Skills, has established a class to provide an education exclusively for students with ASD

5. Admission of Students

This school shall admit each student seeking admission except where –

the school is oversubscribed (please see section 6 below for further details)
a parent of a student, when required by the principal in accordance with section 23(4) of the Education (Welfare) Act 2000, fails to confirm in writing that the code of behaviour of the school is acceptable to him or her and that he or she shall make all reasonable efforts to ensure compliance with such code by the student oreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, provides education exclusively for girls and may refuse to admit as a student a person who is not of the gender provided for by this school.

Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, is a Catholic School and may refuse to admit as a student a person who is not of the Catholic faith where it is proved that the refusal is essential to maintain the ethos of the school.

The special class attached to Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, provides an education exclusively for students with ASD needs and the school may refuse admission to this class, where the student concerned does not have the specified category of special educational needs provided for in this class as laid down by NCSE.

6. Oversubscription

In the event that the school is oversubscribed, the school will, when deciding on applications for admission, apply the following selection criteria in the order listed below to those applications that are received within the timeline for receipt of applications as set out in the school’s annual admission notice:

Girls from the catholic parish of Church of the Annunciation Rathfarnham (priority to oldest) and siblings, stepsiblings of children already in the school (priority to oldest). If a sibling has already left the school it will not give a right for the younger sibling to get a place in Category 1.
Girls from outside the catholic parish who have a brother attending St Mary’s Boys’ School Rathfarnham Dublin 14. (priority to oldest).
Children of Staff in the Parish Schools
Other children in the specified catchment area above, priority given to those who live nearest the school.
Children outside the catchment area.

In the event that there are two or more students tied for a place or places in any of the selection criteria categories above (the number of applicants exceeds the number of remaining places), the following arrangements will apply:

Priority to oldest if applicable

Nearest the school

7. What will not be considered or taken into account

In accordance with section 62(7) (e) of the Education Act, the school will not consider or take into account any of the following in deciding on applications for admission or when placing a student on a waiting list for admission to the school:

a student’s prior attendance at a pre-school or pre-school service, including naíonraí, other than in relation to a student’s prior attendance at—

(I) an early intervention class, or

(II) an early start pre-school, specified in a list published by the Minister from time to time;

the payment of fees or contributions (howsoever described) to the school;

a student’s academic ability, skills or aptitude;

other than in relation to:

admission to the ASD special class in so far as it is necessary in order to ascertain whether or not the student has the category of special educational needs concerned

the occupation, financial status, academic ability, skills or aptitude of a student’s parents;

a requirement that a student, or his or her parents, attend an interview, open day or other meeting as a condition of admission;
a student’s connection to the school by virtue of a member of his or her family attending or having previously attended the school; other than, (1) siblings of a student attending
the date and time on which an application for admission was received by the school,

This is subject to the application being received at any time during the period specified for receiving applications set out in the annual admission notice of the school for the school year concerned.

8. Decisions on applications

All decisions on applications for admission to Loreto will be based on the following:

Our school’s admission policy
The school’s annual admission notice (where applicable)
The information provided by the applicant in the school’s official application form received during the period specified in our annual admission notice for receiving applications

(Please see section 14 below in relation to applications received outside of the admissions period and section 15 below in relation to applications for places in years other than the intake group.)

Selection criteria that are not included in our school admission policy will not be used to make a decision on an application for a place in our school.

9. Notifying applicants of decisions

Applicants will be informed in writing as to the decision of the school, within the timeline outlined in the annual admissions notice.

If a student is not offered a place in our school, the reasons why they were not offered a place will be communicated in writing to the applicant, including, where applicable, details of the student’s ranking against the selection criteria and details of the student’s place on the waiting list for the school year concerned.

Applicants will be informed of the right to seek a review/right of appeal of the school’s decision (see section 18 below for further details).

10. Acceptance of an offer of a place by an applicant

In accepting an offer of admission from Loreto Primary School, Grange Road Rathfarnham you must indicate—

(i) whether or not you have accepted an offer of admission for another school or schools. If you have accepted such an offer, you must also provide details of the offer or offers concerned and

(ii) whether or not you have applied for and awaiting confirmation of an offer of admission from another school or schools, and if so, you must provide details of the other school or schools concerned.

11. Circumstances in which offers may not be made or may be withdrawn

An offer of admission may not be made or may be withdrawn by Loreto Primary School where—

it is established that information contained in the application is false or misleading.
an applicant fails to confirm acceptance of an offer of admission on or before the date set out in the annual admission notice of the school.
the parent of a student, when required by the principal in accordance with section 23(4) of the Education (Welfare) Act 2000, fails to confirm in writing that the code of behaviour of the school is acceptable to him or her and that he or she shall make all reasonable efforts to ensure compliance with such code by the student; or
an applicant has failed to comply with the requirements of ‘acceptance of an offer’ as set out in section 10

12.Sharing of Data with other schools

Applicants should be aware that section 66(6) of the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018 allows for the sharing of certain information between schools in order to facilitate the efficient admission of students.

Section 66(6) allows a school to provide a patron or another board of management with a list of the students in relation to whom—

(i) an application for admission to the school has been received,

(ii) an offer of admission to the school has been made, or

(iii) an offer of admission to the school has been accepted.

The list may include any or all of the following:

(i) the date on which an application for admission was received by the school;

(ii) the date on which an offer of admission was made by the school;

(iii) the date on which an offer of admission was accepted by an applicant;

(iv) a student’s personal details including his or her name, address, date of birth and personal public service number (within the meaning of section 262 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005).

13. Waiting list in the event of oversubscription

In the event of there being more applications to the school year concerned than places available, a waiting list of students whose applications for admission to Loreto Primary School, Grange Road Rathfarnham were unsuccessful due to the school being oversubscribed will be compiled and will remain valid for the school year in which admission is being sought.

Placement on the waiting list of Loreto is in the order of priority assigned to the students’ applications after the school has applied the selection criteria in accordance with this admission policy.

Applicants whose applications are received after the closing date, outlined in the Annual Admission Notice, will be placed at the end of the waiting list in order of the date of receipt of the application.

Offers of any subsequent places that become available for and during the school year in relation to which admission is being sought will be made to those students on the waiting list, in accordance with the order of priority in relation to which the students have been placed on the list.

14. Late Applications

All applications for admission received after the closing date as outlined in the annual admission notice will be considered and decided upon in accordance with our school’s admissions policy, the Education Admissions to School Act 2018 and any regulations made under that Act.

Late applicants will be notified of the decision in respect of their application no later than three weeks after the date on which the school received the application. Late applicants will be offered a place if there is place available. In the event that there is no place available, the name of the applicant will be added to the waiting list as set out in Section 13.

15. Procedures for admission of students to other years and during the school year

The procedures of the school in relation to the admission of students who are not already admitted to the school to classes or years other than the school’s intake group are as follows:

An Application form for children seeking admission to classes other than Junior Infants of a particular year will be up online or can be collected from the school Office.

Parents are invited to fill in the application form and return to the school.

Please refer to sections 6 – 14 where the same criteria will apply for applications for classes other than the intake class of any specific year.

16. Declaration in relation to the non-charging of fees

This rule applies to all schools.

The board of Loreto Primary School, Grange Road Rathfarnham or any persons acting on its behalf will not charge fees for or seek payment or contributions as a condition of-

an application for admission of a student to the school, or
the admission or continued enrolment of a student in the school.

17. Arrangements regarding students not attending religious instruction

A written request should be made to the Principal of the school. A meeting will then be arranged with the parent(s) or the student, as the case may be, to discuss how the request may be accommodated by the school.

18. Reviews/appeals

Review of decisions by the Board of Management

The parent of the student, may request the Board of Management to review a decision to refuse admission. Such requests must be made in accordance with Section 29C of the Education Act 1998.

The timeline within which such a review must be requested and the other requirements applicable to such reviews are set out in the procedures determined by the Minister under section 29B of the Education Act 1998 which are published on the website of the Department of Education and Skills.

The Board of Management will conduct such reviews in accordance with the requirements of the procedures determined under Section 29B and with section 29C of the Education Act 1998.

Note: Where an applicant has been refused admission due to the school being oversubscribed, the applicant must request a review of that decision by the Board of Management prior to making an appeal under section 29 of the Education Act 1998.

Where an applicant has been refused admission due to a reason other than the school being oversubscribed, the applicant may request a review of that decision by the Board of Management prior to making an appeal under section 29 of the Education Act 1998.

Right of appeal

Under Section 29 of the Education Act 1998, the parent of the student, may appeal a decision of this school to refuse admission.

An appeal may be made under Section 29 (1) (c) (i) of the Education Act 1998 where the refusal to admit was due to the school being oversubscribed.

An appeal may be made under Section 29 (1) (c) (ii) of the Education Act 1998 where the refusal to admit was due a reason other than the school being oversubscribed.

Where an applicant has been refused admission due to the school being oversubscribed, the applicant must request a review of that decision by the board of management prior to making an appeal under section 29 of the Education Act 1998. (see Review of decisions by the Board of Management)

Where an applicant has been refused admission due to a reason other than the school being oversubscribed, the applicant may request a review of that decision by the board of management prior to making an appeal under section 29 of the Education Act 1998. (see Review of decisions by the Board of Management)

Appeals under Section 29 of the Education Act 1998 will be considered and determined by an independent appeals committee appointed by the Minister for Education and Skills.

The timeline within which such an appeal must be made and the other requirements applicable to such appeals are set out in the procedures determined by the Minister under section 29B of the Education Act 1998 which are published on the website of the Department of Education and Skills