Welcome to Ellacombe C of E Academy! We are delighted that you are considering joining our school family and we would like to take this opportunity to warmly welcome you to the Learning Academy Partnership. We are really looking forward to working in partnership with you to ensure that your child has the best possible start to their primary education.
If you are interested in your child joining the academy, please contact us to discuss what we have to offer and to arrange a visit if you can with our Head Teacher, Alison Helm – 01803 293040 or email ellacombe@lapsw.org. Once you decide you would like a place you must make a formal application.
Most children join our academy at the normal round, the main intake into school from the start of September in Reception. As a parent, you can apply for a place to the Local Authority.
There are different options for parents of children starting school in Reception. This includes part-time education and deferring or delaying admission until later in the reception year or, for children with birthdays in the summer term, to the following September. Come and talk to us if you are considering this.
Do come and talk with us if you are interested in a place in a different year group for any reason.
Applications for residents of Torbay are made between 15 November and 15 January for primary schools at https://www.torbay.gov.uk/schools-and-learning/admissions
If your child lives in another LA, including Cornwall, Dorset, Plymouth, Somerset, Devon you should apply through that council. The closing dates are the same nationally.
For questions about your child joining the school or just about the admissions process in general, please don’t hesitate to contact the school direct or contact Torbay 01803 208908 or by email to Contact Form (torbay.gov.uk) Torbay publishes guides to the admissions process: the TIPS 4 Booklet
Please also visit other pages on our website, our Twitter page or our Facebook page to find out more about our fabulous academy; we work extremely hard to keep everything up to date, sharing all of the fabulous learning that takes place each term.
The Learning Academy Partnership is the admissions authority for all our academies within the Trust. It has responsibility for the admissions policies and decisions on applications for admission. We have an admissions policy for each academic year and they will be published on this page when they are proposed for consultation and after they have been determined annually. They are written to comply with the School Admissions Code 2021 and School Admissions Appeals Code 2022.
The Local Authority
School admissions policies
See our determined policies below. If you have any comments regarding the policy, you can contact us at the school or schoolsadmissionpolicy-mailbox@devon.gov.uk.
School admissions policy 2024-25
2024 Ellacombe admissions policy
School admissions policy 2025-26
This is our determined policy. If you have any comments regarding the policy, you can contact us at the school or schoolsadmissionpolicy-mailbox@devon.gov.uk.
School admissions policy 2026-27
We will consult on an admissions policy between November 2024 and 10 January 2025. If you have any comments regarding the policy we propose, you can contact us at the school or schoolsadmissionpolicy-mailbox@devon.gov.uk.
From November, you can view this policy here
After the consultation, we will determine the policy at a meeting of the admissions authority held before the end of February 2025. Once determined, the policy will be updated online by 15 March 2025.
Objections can be made up to 15 May 2025 to the Office of the Schools’ Adjudicator.
The Admissions Appeals Timetable 2025
The deadline for submitting appeals allows appellants at least 20 school days to prepare and submit a written appeal. The appeal must then be heard within 40 school days for the normal round and within 30 days for in-year admissions.
Allocation date for the normal round Reception: 16 April 2024
Deadline for appeal forms to be submitted: 31 May 2024
Appeals will be heard within 40 school days, by: 26 July 2024
Where possible, appeals that are submitted after 31 May will be heard by 26 July. If that is not possible, they will be heard within 30 school days of the appeal form being submitted.
In-year appeals can be submitted after a refusal. They will be heard within 30 school days of an appeal being submitted.
The Admissions Appeals Timetable 2026
The deadline for submitting appeals allows appellants at least 20 school days to prepare and submit a written appeal. The appeal must then be heard within 40 school days for the normal round and within 30 days for in-year admissions.
Allocation date for the normal round Reception: 16 April 2025
Deadline for appeal forms to be submitted: 31 May 2025
Appeals will be heard within 40 school days, by: 25 July 2025
Where possible, appeals that are submitted after 31 May will be heard by 25 July. If that is not possible, they will be heard within 30 school days of the appeal form being submitted.
Where possible, appeals that are submitted after 22 April will be heard by 24 June. If that is not possible, they will be heard within 30 school days of the appeal form being submitted.
In-year appeals can be submitted after a refusal. They will be heard within 30 school days of an appeal being submitted.
We invite parents to visit so that we can discuss the provision on offer to children in our Reception class, how it is tailored to meet the needs of the youngest children, parent concerns, how their needs would be met as they move through the school and school readiness. Children follow the same Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum in Reception as in Nursery and Childminder settings. The Early Years is delivered in a way where learning involves lots of play and exploration rather than formal learning at tables and can be tailored to meet the needs of the individual child.