Dear Primary 7 Parents
Please, read the following information and the attached document, which has been published by the Education Authority (EA), regarding applying for a Post-Primary School Place: -
• Post-primary application forms will be accessible online at www.eani.org.uk/admissions and the application opening window is between 12 noon on Monday 1 March and 4pm on Tuesday 16 March 2021.
• It is the responsibility of parents to check that all relevant information is included on their child’s application before submitting the form.
• Digital assistance is available via the Admissions Helpdesk 028 9598 5595 in addition to the user guides on the EA website and the guidance leaflet ‘Applying for a Post-Primary School Place’ (attached document).
• Using the Recite Me tool on the EA website, parents can translate information and access audio transcripts of admissions criteria and our guidance materials in a range of languages. Parents may watch the subtitled video in six different languages and access translated versions of the Primary 7 leaflet.
• Parents can check if their child would be eligible for transport assistance to a particular school on the EA website.
• Parents have the right to express school preferences but no child can be guaranteed a place at any particular school. More than half of post-primary schools are oversubscribed and not all children who apply will receive a place at an oversubscribed school. To ensure the best chance of getting their child into a post-primary school of their choice, it is strongly recommended that at least four schools are listed in the order of preference and include at least one non-grammar school. Parents can list as many schools as they wish and in some areas where many of the schools are oversubscribed, it may be wise to list more than four schools. Up to 12 schools can be listed on the online application.
• It is important that parents find out the following information about the schools they are considering. This will help them to assess if their child is likely to be offered a place:-
1. The admissions criteria sets out how the school will decide which children will be selected/not selected if the school is oversubscribed. Parents should think about how well their child meets the criteria. The admissions criteria for all schools can be found on the EA website. If parents have questions about what something in a particular school’s criteria means they can contact the school for clarification.
2. The number of applications the school received in previous years and the number of pupils who were accepted. This information is included with the school's criteria on the EA website to let parents know if the school is usually oversubscribed.
A ‘Post Primary Application Tutorial Video – Desktop View’ providing a step-by-step guide to the online application is now available and a mobile phone view will follow shortly. You can access the videos at:
https://www.eani.org.uk/school-management/ea-digital-admissions-online-resource-hub/videos-presentations
All relevant materials are accessible on the EA website:
https://www.eani.org.uk/parents/admissions/admissions-videos-and-guidance
If you have any queries please contact the EA post-primary admissions office by telephone:
028 9598 5595 or Email: postprimaryadmissions@eani.org.uk.
We will also arrange an online Zoom call, for Primary 7 parents, after the mid-term break to talk through the online application process. Thank you and all the best.
