Apply online - late applications and changes of preferences
The closing date for secondary school applications was 11:59pm on 31 October 2023.
Late applications opened on 1 November 2023.
All applications are now considered as late applications, no matter what the circumstances are.
Applications received after the statutory closing date (31 October 2023) for secondary school transfers will only be considered after applications received on time have been processed. Late applications will be processed after 1 March 2024.
Remember to list six different secondary schools.
If your child attends any of the following all through schools in Year 6, do not list the school as one of your six preferences. Your child will automatically move up from Year 6 to Year 7 in September 2024 and listing the school as a preference will waste one of your preferences.
- Ark Kings Academy
- Ark Victoria Academy
- Bournville School
- King Solomon International Business School
- Washwood Heath Academy
- Waverley School
Important: Ensure you include details of any siblings attending your preferred school(s) in the field (box) provided for sibling details. Sibling details included in the wrong field (box), such as reasons for preference will not be counted and may prevent you from gaining a place at your preferred school. If you fill in the online application incorrectly, you are liable for not completing the form correctly, not School Admissions and Fair Access Service.
List six secondary schools in order of preference.
Important: Make sure you have read the admission arrangements fully for the schools you are interested in and know how likely it is that your child will be offered a place there. It is important that you include at least one realistic preference for a school that your child would have met the criteria for in previous years.
If you have included preferences for any schools that require you to complete a supplementary information form or includes social and medical needs in the criteria and require you to send evidence, you must send the supplementary information form and/or any required supporting medical evidence directly to the school. Failure to do this may mean that your child’s application is assessed by the school under a lower criterion, and they may not be offered a place.
Do not use this form if your child has an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP). Information about the secondary transfer process for children with special educational needs is available at September 2024 Phase Transfer Process for children and young people with an EHCP.
Download Parent’s guidance to submit online application, change of preferences and password resets
Submit a late application for a secondary school place
Late changes of preference
Late changes of preference are where you have previously submitted an application and have then later made changes to the order of preferences after 31 October 2023. Late changes of preference will be processed after 1 March 2024.
Late changes of preferences are less likely to get a place at one of their preferred schools for their child as the majority of schools in Birmingham fill to their published admissions numbers with on time applicants that met their admissions criteria.
When your late application is processed, we will try to offer you a place at one of your preferences. If we are not able to do this, you will be added to the waiting lists for your preferred schools where relevant. Birmingham grammar schools have a qualifying score of 205 that your child must meet to be added to their waiting lists.
We strongly recommend that you do not refuse the school your child is offered. If you refuse that place there is no guarantee that your child will be offered a place at one of your new order of preferences from the waiting list or via the appeals process. There is a risk that your child may be without a school place in September.
Important information about changing your preferences
You can only have a maximum of six live preferences at any one time. If you wish to change your preferences, we strongly recommend that you carefully consider what your new set of preferences should to be, in other words, which preferences you would like to keep (which must be included again in the new set of preferences submitted) and which preferences you would like to remove.
This is important because you will be taken off the waiting lists for any schools that you remove from your new set of preferences. Any appeals that you have previously sent for schools that are no longer on your list of live preferences will be withdrawn accordingly. This includes grammar schools.
Any offer of a school place that has already been made will not be lost due to a change of preferences, unless a new offer for a higher preference is made due to places being available or due to waiting list movement.
You will receive an email confirmation that you have submitted your application form. Check your SPAM or Junk folder. It is important that you check your confirmation email to make sure everything is correct.
If you amend your preferences, you must re-submit your application form otherwise your application will not be processed.
We will take your final submission as the application to process.
Late applications close on 31 July 2024 at 11:59 pm. If you have not made a late application by 11:59pm on 31 July 2024, you will need to apply directly to your preferred schools using the In-Year application form.
Example of late preference change
Malaika’s family submitted the following preferences before the deadline:
- School A
- School B
- School C
At National Offer Day on 1 March 2024, Malaika is offered a place at School B. She is automatically placed on the waiting list for School A and her family submit an appeal for that school.
Later Malaika’s family submit an updated set of preferences as follows:
- School D
- School E
- School F
Malaika will no longer be on the waiting list for school A, and her appeal will be withdrawn. Her offer for a place at School B will remain, unless she is offered a place at School D, E or F.
If Malaika’s parents would like to stay on the waiting list for School A and retain their right of appeal for that school, their new set of preferences should be:
- School A
- School D
- School E
- School F
Other useful information
- Free internet access is available at your local library
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- If you require any help after reading all the information on the website, phone the Children’s Advice and Support Service on 0121 303 1888
Page last updated: 23 February 2024
