Admissions

Admissions & Appeals

Middleton Primary School is part of Cockburn Multi Academy Trust and the admission authority is the Governing Body.

The school’s admission authority sets the admission policy every year. You can read our school’s admission polices below: 

In-year applications to start at our school between September 2025 and July 2026 – read our 2025/26 policy

• Applications for reception places in September 2026 – read our 2026/27 policy
• Applications for reception places in September 2027 – read our 2027/28 policy

​

How to apply for a September 2026 reception place

If you are applying for a reception place for September 2026, all applications are made in advance. The national closing date is 15 January 2026. Offers are made by the Local Authority on national offer day (16 April 2026).   

Our Published Admission Number (PAN) is 60 and this is the number of places the school can admit in reception in 2026.

You must apply to the local authority who empties your bins. If this is Leeds, go to www.leeds.gov.uk/apply. The LA website is a composite prospectus for all Leeds schools and includes information about:   

• all the steps you need to go through to make an application
• the key dates
• a search tool to see if your home address gives any higher priority for admission to any school(s)
• an explanation about how places are offered if there are more applications than spaces (oversubscribed)
• the online application portal - apply online to be sent your offer day letter by email  
• a summary of each school’s individual admission policy criteria
• data about who got a place in the last 3 years - this will help you work out if there is a reasonable chance of your child qualifying for a place.
• information about applying under a specific admission criteria (such as your child being previously looked after). It is important to ensure you submit all supporting evidence by the deadline to show you meet any such criteria.

You will need to make an application to the local authority asking for a place at our school. You do this online at the above link.  If you do not send the application to the local authority, you will not have made a valid application for a place at our school.

You can also watch the Leeds City Council school admissions video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRU1SrS7iJE for more information. 

You can also see information about our school, including previous admission data, on our school page on the Leeds City Council’s website https://www.leeds.gov.uk/schools-and-education/schools/middleton-primary-school

Allocation of Places

If the number of applications does not exceed the number of places available, all applicants will be granted a place at the academy. If there are more applications than available places (over-subscription), the following over-subscription criteria will be used to allocate places:

Priority 1

Children in public care or fostered under an arrangement made by the local authority, special guardianship order or children who were previously looked after but ceased to be so because they were adopted or become subject to a Child Arrangements Order or Special Guardianship Order (See Note 1)  

Priority 2

Children with brothers or sisters who will be at school at the start of the academic year and are living at the same address. (See Note 2)

Priority 3

Children who do not qualify under criteria 1 and 2 but for whom Middleton Primary School is the nearest Primary school. (See Notes 3, 4 and 5)

Priority 4

Any other children

Tie Break

Within each criterion, if there is over-subscription, remaining places available will be allocated according to distance. Children living closest to the school will, therefore, be allocated a place before those who live further away. (See Notes 4 and 5)

If two or more children of multiple birth (twins, triplets etc.) from the same family are tied for the final place, we will admit them all and exceed our PAN.

Application timetable - The below timetable applies to applications made to Leeds City Council. If you apply to another local authority, they may have different dates

In-year applications

If you are moving into Leeds or want to change schools in Leeds, you need to make a school transfer – often called an in-year application.

This includes

• applications for a place in reception after the start of term in September
• applications for a place in all other year groups (year 1-6)

Moving schools can be a difficult experience for a child. You should always speak to your child's current school before trying to move to see what support they can offer you.

How to apply for an in-year place

You can apply for a place online using the Leeds in-year application form at Before you move schools (leeds.gov.uk). You can apply for places at our school and other Leeds schools.

If you have moved house, you’ll need to submit evidence of the house move at the same time you make your online application. You can find out what you need to provide on the above website.

We have to offer places by applying our admission policy criteria to your child’s application.   Leeds City Council will contact you with our decision no later than 15 school days from when you apply.  If they cannot offer your child a place at our school, they will

• add your child to our waiting list in case a place becomes available during the school year  
• send you a letter to explain the reasons we cannot offer a place (usually that we are full) and tell you how you can appeal

Our waiting lists are kept until the end of each school year. You will need to make a new application if you want to be on the waiting list for the following school year.

Appeals

If we cannot offer you a place, you will have the right of appeal. The appeal panel is independent of the school and council and their decision is legally binding. Before you appeal you:

• should accept any place that you have been offered in case your appeal is not successful
• should think about why you are appealing and check if it is likely to be successful
• could read the advice for appealing school places on GOV.UK 
• could get independent advice on making an appeal from a charity

Leeds City Council arranges our appeals, and you can find the appeal form at School appeals (leeds.gov.uk)    

If you are appealing for a reception place for September 2026, you need to submit your appeal form by any deadline set out on the above page to ensure the appeal will be heard before the summer holidays.  

Appeals for Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 – these classes are limited to 30 pupils per teacher by law. This means that appeals for these places are less likely to be successful.

If our school refuses your child a place because of this limit and you want to appeal, you will need to make an infant class size appeal.  You can see if your reasons are likely to be successful by reading the Department for Education's information about infant class size appeals.   

Other appeals - You can appeal because you want your child to attend a particular school. These are successful if the panel agree that the reasons for your appeal outweigh the school's decision not to admit any more children.

Wanting your child to go to a school because you think it is the best one in the area is not likely to convince the panel that your child should get a place there.

When Your Child Must Start at School (Compulsory School Age)

All children can start Reception in September 2027 after they turn 4, and most children thrive when starting school at age 4. You must ensure your child has a full-time education from when they reach compulsory school age. Your child reaches this on 31 December, 31 March or 31 August after their fifth birthday (whichever comes first). This means: 

• Children born between 1 September 2021 and 31 December 2021 reach compulsory school age on 31 December 2026

• Children born between 1 January 2022 and 31 March 2022 reach compulsory school age on 31 March 2027

• Children born between 1 April 2022 and 31 August 2022 reach compulsory school age on 31 August 2027

Deferred Entry and Part-Time Attendance

Once you have a school place offer, you have the right to defer the date your child is admitted to the school until:

• Later in the school year but not after the date at which your child becomes compulsory school age (see above)

• And not after the beginning of the final term (after Easter break) of the school year the offer was made If you do not think your child will be ready to start in September, speak to the school about starting part-time, or after Christmas or Easter break. To discuss deferred entry or part-time attendance for your child, please contact:

• School Office: 01132717969

• Email: info@middletonprimary.org

Leeds City Council Admissions Information

Admissions Policy 2025/26

Admissions Policy 2026/27

Admissions Policy 2027/28FAQ's for Reception and school places

Admissions Catchment Area