Killinarden Community School
The Board of Management
Admissions Policy
(Updated July 2011)
1. General Information
1.1 School Name: Killinarden Community School,
Killinarden,
Tallaght,
Dublin 24.
1.2 School Roll No: 91337B
1.3 Telephone: (01) 452 7447/452 7325 Fax: 01 4527308
1.4 e-mail: [email protected]
1.5 Web site: www.killinardencs.ie
2. School Background
2.1 Killinarden Community School was established in 1982. It is a co-educational second-level school under the patronage of the Archbishop of Dublin. The trustees are the Archbishop of Dublin, the Daughters of Charity of St.Vincent De Paul and the County Dublin Vocational Education Committee.
The school was established to provide for the post-primary education of the children of Killinarden Parish which includes Killinarden Estate, Knockmore, Killinarden Heights, Donomore, Cushlawn Park and Hazelgrove.
2.2 Killinarden Community School (KCS) participated in a European Union Health Promoting School Project in 1998 and in a Pilot Phase of the Whole School Evaluation (WSE) process organised by the Department of Education and Science (DES) in 1999. The Department Inspectorate recognised that the school motto ‘Putting Young People First’ underpinned all the school policies and their implementation.
2.3 The continuous development of KCS has been noted by all concerned as testimony to the unfailing commitment of the whole school community to the promotion of:
- a climate of mutual respect;
- an excellent standard of curriculum provision;
- high and realistic expectations for students;
- partnership between home, school and community.
3 School Mission
3.1. The underlying philosophy of KCS is that each student should have appropriate educational opportunities and that the school should be organised so as to enable this to happen.
3.2 The school operates an inclusive philosophy based on caring, a reinforcement of positive behaviour and retention of students. This philosophy was highly commended in the WSE Report. Teaching and learning, which are at the heart of the school function, highlight the importance of the relationship between the student and teacher. This is seen as crucial in the school’s efforts to retain students in the education system.
3.3 In the school prospectus given to the parent(s) and/or guardian(s) of all new entrants there is information regarding the buildings, facilities, teaching staff, learning supports for students, discipline, extra curricular activity, subjects and courses. In addition to teaching staff the school has auxiliary and ancillary staff.
3.4 In accordance with the Education Act (1998), the Board of Management (BOM or the Board) agrees with the principles of a democratic society and promotes respect for the diversity of values, beliefs, traditions, languages and ways of life in society. The Board is accountable to the trustees for upholding the characteristic spirit of the school. Appropriate provision, as required by those concerned, is made for religious instruction, worship and education.
3.5 KCS encourages student involvement in the life of the school and to this end staff members have worked to establish a Student Council first formed in January 2005. Senior students are involved in a mentoring/leadership role, in paired reading and other initiatives with junior students.
3.6 Killinarden Community School is a recognised school under the Education Act 1998 and as such is dependent on the resources provided by the DES. Therefore school policy must necessarily have regard to such resources as are available to the school. As a recognised school, KCS follows the curriculum asprescribed by the Education Act, 1998, which may be amended from time to time (s.s. 9 and 30).
4 School Uniform and General Accessories
4.1 Students attending KCS are expected to wear the school uniform as specified by the BOM and outlined below and in the School journal. The uniform is as follows:
- Navy V-Necked sweater with school crest.
- Mid-grey straight legged school uniform trousers.
- Mid-grey school skirt, option for girls.
- Blue shirt and school tie (Senior students have a choice of ties).
- Black school shoes are compulsory.
Black school shoes are defined as shoes with a solid black sole, solid weather-proof material (not canvas) which covers
and protects the front of the foot and tied with laces or a strap.
The jumper and tie can be purchased in school. Information as to how to purchase these will be supplied to parents by letter before the start of the new school year or at the time of admission for late entrants. The rest of the uniform
must be purchased elsewhere.
School Coat: A water-proof fleece lined navy coat, with school crest, can be bought in school and is strongly recommended.
The Physical Education (P.E) uniform is;
- White T-shirt and navy tracksuit trousers, runners.
4.2 The uniform must be worn correctly at all times and students may not be admitted to class unless wearing full uniform. Students may be sent home if they are regularly out of uniform.
P.E is an integral part of the curriculum and students are expected to take part fully. A doctor’s certificate will be necessary if a student is to be excused. Students are expected to wear the P.E uniform during P.E. classes.
4.3 Facial piercings such as eye-brow bars, nose or facial studs are not allowed. Large and potentially dangerous jewellery is forbidden.
4.4 Mobile phones, i-pods, MP3 players, cameras etc must be powered off on entering the school grounds.
No photographs may be taken on the school premises without permission from school management. Taking photographs of students or staff is forbidden without their permission.
5. Admission Procedures
5.1 Enrolment for any school year will generally take place in October/November of the previous year i.e. when the student is in 6th class in Primary School. While this may appear early, the time is chosen to facilitate effective school
management and organisation. The Board devised what is considered to be an appropriate admission/enrolment application pack. Parent(s)/guardians(s) can obtain the enrolment pack by contacting the school.
There are six parts to the pack.
1. Prospectus
The prospectus details the facilities and courses the school has to offer.
2. Application Form
Details of information sought are set out on the application form.
3. Admission policy
This admissions policy is published by the Board of Management and is available to parents by contacting the school. It is given to the parents of all applicants. It may also be downloaded from the school website.
4. Code of Behaviour
This is a detailed document on the code of behaviour. Included is a more general list of classroom behaviour rules and a more student friendly summary titled ‘What’s in/What’s Out’.
Recognising the importance of partnership between home and school, the Board requires that prior to being admitted to the school each student, parent(s)/guardian(s) and the Secretary of the Board, sign the existing school Code of Behaviour. The Code of Behaviour is the outcome of a wide consultative process and is subject to amendment if and when necessary. A copy of the signed document is kept in the student file.
5. Consent Form
This signed form gives the school permission to obtain necessary information from other schools and/or other sources to enable it to build an educational profile of the applicant.
6. Book Purchase Support Scheme Application Form
To provide assistance in the purchase of school books this form must be filled in and returned to the school with the application form. The degree of support is dependent on funding from the DES.
**Passport photographs
Parents must supply two passport sized photographs of their child at entry age.
Information collected by the school during the application process will be stored in a student file
5.2 Any application for admission to KCS made on behalf of a student outside the catchment area and/or already enrolled in another post primary school must be made to the Board of Management. Parent(s)/guardians(s) can obtain an enrolment pack by contacting the school.
When such an application is received the Board will seek:
(1) information from the parent(s)/guardians(s) as to the reasons for seeking admission to KCS
(2) information from the previous school whether primary or post primary regarding the applicant’s ability, performance, special educational needs, attendance, attitude and behaviour in that school.
KCS students may not progress to the senior cycle before sitting the Junior Certificate Examination (JCE). An applicant will not be admitted to that cycle without having sat the JCE, where that was feasible.
The size of classes in KCS is determined by the particular needs of the students and on the staffing available and this will always be a major factor in the Board’s decision to grant or refuse an applicant’s admission to the school.
Any expulsion from a school will be deemed by the Board to be justified unless an appeal against the expulsion has been upheld. However this does not mean that a previous justified expulsion from a school automatically means refusal of
admission to an applicant.
Before admitting an applicant to the school the Board must be satisfied that the school has the resources to cater adequately for the applicant’s educational and behavioural needs and/or the admission of the applicant will not put undue extra strain on the school’s resources.
The Board’s decision on enrolment will depend on a consideration of all the above factors and on the potential impact on the teaching and learning of existing students in the school and on the difficulty of the workload of each individual teacher.
6 Criteria for Admissions Policy
6.1 The Board of Management of Killinarden Community School is supportive of the principle of inclusiveness in particular in regard to students with a disability or other special educational needs in so far as is reasonably
practicable and subject to the resources provided by the Department of Education and Science. The Board is supportive of the principle of equality of access to and participation in the school. The Board respects parental choice of school and the diversity of societal values. A draft school policy on supporting the needs of students with English as an additional language (EAL) is available on request.
6.2 The concept of Killinarden Community School working in and for the community it serves is deemed central to the objectives of the 1998 Act. Accordingly emphasis is placed on serving, in the first instance, children from the school’s catchment area which includes Killinarden Estate, Knockmore, Killinarden Heights, Donomore, Cushlawn and Hazelgrove. KCS works closely with the other community schools in Tallaght and respects the catchment area of each of these neighbouring schools.
6.3 As per s.19.3 of the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, the Board acknowledges that it is required to make a decision in respect of an application not later than 21 days after all the information it is entitled to seek has been provided and then
to inform the parent of the decision in writing.
6.4 Section 19 of the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000 provides that the Board of Management of a recognised school shall not refuse admission of a student to the school except where such refusal accords with the school’s admission policy published by the school, as required by the Education Act (1998).
6.5 Prior to admitting a child under s.20 of the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, the Principal is required to supply the parents of the student with a copy of the School Code of Behaviour. The Principal will, as a condition of such admission, require the parent(s)/guardian(s) to sign that the Code of Behaviour is acceptable to them and ‘that they will make all reasonable efforts to ensure compliance with the code by the child’.
6.6 If the Board of Management or the Principal refuse admission, parent(s)/guardian(s), and the applicant if 18 years of age or over, should be informed of the possibility of redress through the appeals process as indicated in the section below (6.7).
6.7 A refusal to admit a student to the school may be appealed in writing by the parent(s)/guardian(s) to the Board of Management directly. Then, if necessary, it may be appealed to the Secretary General of the DES under S. 29 of the
Education Act, 1998.
7 Conclusion
7.1 Recent legislation highlights the importance of good relationships between home and school. KCS believes that the interests of its students are best served when home and school work together.
To this end the school has developed various policies. It has a policy on; drug, tobacco, alcohol, and solvents abuse, use of mobile phones, use of internet and communications technology, behaviour and bullying.
In time other policies may need to be added and all existing policies will need to be reviewed on a regular basis, i.e. every five years.
7.2 The school expects the full co-operation of parents regarding their children’s attendance at school.
7.3 The ethos of Killinarden Community School promotes the holistic development of each member of the school community. An OECD Report in 1996 referred to the importance of the classroom culture, the quality of teaching and
the relationship between student and teacher as being at the core of success in education.
Education flourishes in an environment where good relationships are encouraged, where people feel valued and respected and where there is genuine tolerance, fairness and support for those in difficulty.
The aims of the school are well summarised in the following adapted quotation from the Australian educationalist David Loader (1996):
‘Schools are about the growth of people, the extension of their intellectual, social and cultural capacity. Schools are also about the growth and maturity of a society where people can live, develop and find meaning in their lives’.