Admission and Oversubscription Policies
Admission Policy
The Admissions Body is the Management Committee of Maharishi Free School. The maximum number of children admitted to any year group is 15.
The Maharishi Free School is a Reception to Year 11 (all-through) School. A child already enrolled at the school in Year 6 will automatically have a place in Year 7 and there will be no need to reapply.
Any pupil will be admitted without reference to academic ability or aptitude, race, colour, gender, religion, socio-economic status, ethnic or national origins. It is acknowledged that the success of Maharishi School as reflected by the success of its pupils is dependent upon the unique Consciousness-based Education curriculum and principles embedded in our day-to-day activities. This curriculum includes the daily practice of Transcendental Meditation as taught exclusively under the auspices of the Maharishi Foundation. Although it is not expected that each child will be practising Transcendental Meditation (TM) prior to being offered a place at the School, each child will learn and be regularly practising TM prior to the 1st day of their first term at the School. The School will be happy to make arrangements for this for you once you have received an offer of a place, and there will be no charge for any pupil learning TM to attend the School.
It is expected that at least one carer/parent also learn TM at the same time as the child. Experience has shown that not only does this enable a parent to understand and support the child’s experience and growth, but also results in significant benefit to the parent. Should the child’s circumstances preclude a parent or carer learning, as in the case of a child in public care, then this expectation can be waived.
Open Days
In order to appreciate the unique practical and philosophical differences inherent in Consciousness-based Education, it is also expected that parents/carers attend one of the many Maharishi Free School open days held throughout the year prior to choosing Maharishi Free School for their child; during this open day, parents will be briefed on these differences including both the School’s and the parent’s responsibilities. Should schedule conflicts not permit attendance at an open day we would be happy to schedule a time that is mutually convenient. Also if a child is in public care we would be happy to meet the child to provide him or her with a brief overview that is targeted to their age. Neither the parents/carers nor the child(en) will be subject to any interviews, and advice will not form part of, or influence the application of, the published admission criteria during this Open Day briefing process.
Reception
Reception places are available on a full or part-time basis and parents should feel free to approach the School and discuss this option at any Open Day.
Deferred Entry
If your child is offered a full time place before s/he reaches compulsory school age, you have the option of deferring the child’s entry until later in the school year, but not beyond the start of the next term after the child’s fifth birthday. A place will be held and will not be offered to another child.
Special Educational Needs (SEN)
Applications for children with a statement for special educational needs (or in receipt of other SEN support) are considered separately in liaison with the Local Authority. Where places are allocated within this category they are counted within the school’s published admission number.
Shared Parenting
Where a child lives between addresses then the address where he or she wakes up for the majority of school days will be considered for admission purposes. Parents may be asked for evidence of residence where this is required to apply the admission policy (ie for straight line measures).
Twins / Triplets etc.
Where a single place remains and the next the next offer is for twins / triplets (or other multiple births) then the Governing Body will consider using discretion to allocate all of the children places.
Late Applications
Any applications received after the closing date will be accepted but considered only after those received by the closing date. You are therefore encouraged to ensure that your application is received on time.
Fraudulent Information
If the allocation of a place has been made on the basis of fraudulent or intentionally misleading information, the governors reserve the right to withdraw the place. In certain circumstances places may be withdrawn after a child has started at the school.
Oversubscription Policy
Where applications for admission exceed the number of places available, selection will be made by the School Governing Body who will, after the admission of pupils with Statements of Special Educational Needs where the school is named in the Statement, apply the following criteria in the order set out below, to decide which children to admit:
a) A ‘looked after child’ or a child who was previously looked after but immediately after being looked after became subject to an adoption, residence, or special guardianship order.
b) Where the applicant is considered a sibling of a child currently enrolled at the School (sibling, half-sibling, adopted sibling or foster sibling, whether or not their main address is the same).
c) Children of staff in either or both of the following circumstances:
i) where the member of staff has been employed at the School for two or more years at the time at which the application for admission to the school is made, and/or
ii) the member of staff is recruited to fill a vacant post in the School for which there is a demonstrable skill shortage for the requirements of the post
d) Pupils transferring from another school that is approved and supported by The International Foundation of Consciousness-based Education.
e) Where having applied the above criteria and allocated places to the children satisfying those criteria there remain places available, 25% (rounded down) of the places remaining will be allocated in order of proximity of the child’s address to the School’s address, with the most proximate first. The measurement used will be a straight line distance from the main entrance of the pupil’s home to the front door of the building where the relevant year-group is usually taught with those living nearest to the school being given priority. The remaining 75% of places remaining (rounded up) will be allocated by a random draw.
Note: The distance and random draw allocation measures in e) will be used as a tie-breaker should any of the earlier criteria be oversubscribed, with tied distances being decided by random draw.
Waiting List
Disappointed applicants will be placed on a waiting list ranked in the same order as published in the oversubscription criteria to the published admissions criteria. The waiting list will remain in operation from the day the original places are awarded and will be used to allocate places which become available before the start of the school year. A separate waiting list will be maintained for each year group.
Parents can be notified on request of where their child has been placed on a waiting list but indication of the likelihood of being offered a place will not be given as their position may change if families having a higher priority, who apply for places for their children, move into the neighbourhood of the school. The Local Authority will retain the waiting list until 31st August each year and the Governing Body will retain the list from 1st September until 31st December.
Appeal Procedures
Parents wishing to appeal against the refusal to admit a child to the School may do so by writing to the Chairman of the Governors at the School, preferably within 14 school days of receipt by parents of a letter from the School informing them that a place is not available. An independent appeal panel will be convened to consider the appeal.
