Admissions

If you would like your child to attend our school, then please see full details of our admission arrangements below.

Scarcroft is a primary day school for children aged four to eleven. The Maximum Admission limit for any year-group varies, in agreement between the school and the City of York Council. However, the maximum total number of pupils in the six infant classes is 180 ie six classes of 30. In the infants (Reception to Year 2) there is a legal maximum of 30 pupils in a class. This maximum continues throughout the juniors (Years 3 to 6), and would only be exceeded in the case of exceptional circumstances.

In line with the national guidelines, pupils enter school in September of the year in which they are five. The majority of our pupils start school full-time in Reception. However, parents do have the right to request a part-time place. Alternatively, parents may choose to defer their child’s entry, for example, to start school in January, as long as the child is in school by the term following their fifth birthday. If you believe that your child would benefit from a part-time place or a deferred place, please make an appointment to discuss this with the Headteacher, prior to applying for a place at the school.

Although Scarcroft is part of a Multi-Academy Trust, we continue to follow the City of York Admissions Policy and the admissions process is managed by the City or York Council’s Admissions Department. This means that Scarcroft Primary School normally takes children who live in the school’s catchment area. There may occasionally be times when this leaves the school with spare places – under these circumstances it may be possible for pupils who live outside the catchment area to gain a place. In the event of the school being oversubscribed, the City of York Council will allocate places according to its Admission criteria (see CYC link below). Parents who are unable to obtain a place for their child at Scarcroft School have the right to an independent appeal.

For more details please take a look at the City of York Council admissions page.

South Bank Multi Academy Trust Admissions Policies

SBMAT Admissions Policy – 2025-26 (DRAFT)

Admissions Policy – 2024-25

Admissions Policy – 2023-24

Additional admissions information

Admissions consultation 2025-26
This year’s admissions consultation is being jointly held by admissions authorities in the City of York and will open on 2 October and run until 12 November 2023. The consultation includes the admissions policies and planned number of places available at each school in the year(s) of entry. More information about the consultation process and how to contribute can be found here and South Bank Multi Academy Trust’s draft 2025-26 admissions policy can be found here.

PAN consultation for admissions 2025-26 
South Bank Multi Academy Trust is consulting on a reduction in PAN (Published Admission Number) for Scarcroft Primary School. The consultation period will run for a period of six weeks from 2 October to 12 November 2023. More information on the proposal can be found in the consultation document here.