Fact Finding

Your local authority produces a booklet listing all schools in your area. The booklet will tell you about the schools and their admission policy. Areas such as admission arrangements and how popular the schools are will also be covered.

 Your local education authority (LEA) is your government body responsible for providing a range of services which includes looking after educational needs in your area. Some state schools, such as church schools, have a certain amount of independence from their LEA and may have their own application procedures and rules. It is wise to enquire if this is the case.

Many schools now have "speciality" status, which means they may call themselves a "science centre", "music school" or "humanities college". However, comprehensive schools with these labels usually have achieved extra funding for their speciality but still provide the full range of National Curriculum subjects and extra activities in addition to their speciality.

The School Brochure (Prospectus)

Every school publishes a brochure (called a prospectus) each year. This will tell you a lot more about a school than the local authority booklet can, so get them for all schools that you might be interested in.

Prospectuses have a lot of useful information and will help you understand what different schools are like. However, it is worth bearing in mind that there is some competition between schools as much of their financing depends on the number of pupils they have. This can lead to the prospectus reading like a sales brochure. A visit to a school in session will help to gain a realistic impression.