Does anyone understand the new Skinners admissions system?

[lapindebois]

Because I have been puzzling over this, and I don't. OK, so I get that they have introduced a 360 'pass' mark - fine. But given that they don't prioritise by score, I cannot see any sense in having an inner and an outer area. Judd - yes. They prioritise by score, so I can see why they'd want to reserve 25 or so places for outer area, so that they still get the very brightest boys. But for Skinners, as far as I can see, it just means that somebody scoring 360 on the outside of the inner area could fail to get a place, while someone scoring 360 on the very inside of the outer area could get a place. Which seems weird and unfair. Why not just set your 360 pass mark and then prioritise everyone by distance? Am I missing something??

[PanicMode]

KCC are putting pressure on Kent schools to accept Kent children. There is a huge shortage of grammar places in the county for the children who live in the county and so the schools are responding to that pressure, and being asked to prioritise local West Kent children who qualify with a score of 360. Parents living OOC are free to move IC if they think it's really that 'unfair'

[Sorrel]

Because I have been puzzling over this, and I don't. OK, so I get that they have introduced a 360 'pass' mark - fine. But given that they don't prioritise by score, I cannot see any sense in having an inner and an outer area. Judd - yes. They prioritise by score, so I can see why they'd want to reserve 25 or so places for outer area, so that they still get the very brightest boys. But for Skinners, as far as I can see, it just means that somebody scoring 360 on the outside of the inner area could fail to get a place, while someone scoring 360 on the very inside of the outer area could get a place. Which seems weird and unfair. Why not just set your 360 pass mark and then prioritise everyone by distance? Am I missing something??

There are 140 places reserved for inner area and 20 for outer. As PanicMode says, Kent Council is pushing for most places to be reserved for Kent children (and providing money if they are!). In theory, as you say, a person at the outer bit of the inner area could miss out, but they would be quite a long way away (north of Sevenoaks) whereas the nearest 'outer' person will be very close, as Tunbridge Wells is right by the Sussex border. Skinners is also going to hike the number of places by 10 each year for the next few years, most if not all going to inner area.

The 20 outer area places give siblings a chance and then, for the remaining places and as brothers feed through, the closest of the Sussex people.

[lapindebois]

Ah, I hadn't thought about the sibling thing. I guess I can see the east Sussex thing too. I was thinking that going purely on distance over 360 would give you the best local community school; but that doesn't work if KCC are providing more funding for Kent pupils. In which case, I'm surprised that the Judd inner area doesn't align with the Kent border.

[Sorrel]

Ah, I hadn't thought about the sibling thing. I guess I can see the east Sussex thing too. I was thinking that going purely on distance over 360 would give you the best local community school; but that doesn't work if KCC are providing more funding for Kent pupils. In which case, I'm surprised that the Judd inner area doesn't align with the Kent border.

Interesting, I always thought it did but you're right, it includes Frant etc. Maybe KCC considered it 'local' enough at a time when Skinners was still purely superselective.

[Sevenoaks mum]

So supposing they are able to offer places to everyone in area who has scored 360 or more and they still have one space left. What happens to that? Is it offered to a boy scoring 323 living in TW ahead of a boy scoring 359 in Sevenoaks? Or do they look at all the boys scoring 359 and give it to the closest one? It hardly seems fair if it is the first scenario.

[Sorrel]

Yes, the boy with 323 in TW would get it I think. It is a bit of an odd system.

[mystery]

someone said that KCC is providing more money for Kent pupils at Kent grammar schools than for pupils who live outside Kent? That's not possible / allowed / legal /fair etc, surely.

KCC's role is as a commissioner of school places and an all ability school should be, to them, as suitable for a "high ability" child as a grammar school and neither can they have a per head funding formula which provides a different amount for Kent / out of Kent children.

If there's a "shortage" of grammar school places the legal framework is there for existing grammar schools to expand if they wish to.

However, there can't, by definition, be a "shortage" of grammar places as there is no rule / policy etc as to what percentage of children "should" attend a grammar school and neither can such a policy be set. If the population as a whole goes up and the number of places at grammar schools stay the same, over time it simply will be that a lower percentage of children attend grammar schools and the non-selectives have a spread of pupils more representative of the population as a whole.

[Sorrel]

It's not more money per capita, but an injection of capital funding on condition that they change admission criteria (link is to a letter from the headmaster):

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