Admissions
Students joining in September 2026
Valley Park School has a published admission number (PAN) of 240 students, to be admitted into Year 7 each year. Applications for places will be made in accordance with Kent local authority’s coordinated admission arrangements and will be made on the Secondary Common Application Form (SCAF), provided and administered by the Kent Local Authority.
Admissions Process Timeline
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Timeline Secondary Admissions Year 7 2026 |
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National closing date for application forms |
Friday 31 October 2025 |
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National offer day (emails sent after 4pm) |
Monday 2 March 2026 |
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Schools send out welcome letters no earlier than |
Wednesday 4 March 2026 |
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Deadline for lodging appeals |
Thursday 2 April 2026 |
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KCC to reallocate places that have become available from the schools waiting list. After this point schools will take back ownership of their waiting lists |
Monday 27 April 2026 |
In Year Admissions
If you are looking for a place at Valley Park School because you have recently moved into the area, or your child is at another secondary school and you feel that a change of school would benefit their education and/or general well being, you are entitled to apply for a school place.
Please contact the Admissions Team to request an In-Year Admissions Form or download a copy from our website. This form must be completed and returned to the Admissions Team.
The school will notify applicants of the outcome of their application in writing within 15 school days detailing any reason for refusal and information about the right to appeal.
Appeal Dates & Information
PLEASE READ THIS CAREFULLY
Appeal Dates & Information Academic year 2026/2027
If you have not been offered a place following an in-year application, you are entitled to appeal to an Independent Appeal Panel. This panel is completely independent of the school and the Local Authority. In accordance with the 2022 School Admission Appeals Code, the admission authority and all appeal panels have elected for all admissions appeals to be held online. Online appeals have the advantage of being heard from your home or place of work. No longer do you have to travel to a hearing.
If you wish to appeal, please complete your appeal online. Please do NOT use ANY other appeal form or send your form to your local authority. It is highly recommended that you download the explanatory booklet about appeals which you should read before you complete the appeal form.
You should include any evidence or supporting material with your appeal form (photos of your child will not be accepted). You MUST state the grounds of your appeal at the time you lodge your appeal form. Your appeal form will not be accepted unless you give the grounds of your appeal. You may appeal for more than one school, but a separate form must be completed for each school you wish to appeal for. If you are appealing for more than one child, a separate form must be completed for each child and use a different email address.
Please note that the online form will ask you to download two utility bills dated in the last THREE months. If you do not have access to a scanner, please take two photographs using a mobile phone and upload the photographic files.
Information and a timetable for Summer Transfer appeals will appear on this website before 28 February 2027.
The timetable for ‘in-year’ appeals is as follows:
| Last day for lodging appeal forms | 20 School days after the decision letter informing you that you had not been offered a place. |
| Invitation letter giving details about your hearing will be sent by the Clerk to the Independent Appeal Panel | This will be EMAILED at least 10 school days before the hearing unless you have opted on the appeal form for a shorter notice period.
All in-year appeals will be heard within 30 school days of the appeal form being lodged. |
| Closing date for any additional supporting evidence | Up to 12 noon on FIVE school days before your hearing you can upload additional documents to your online appeal folder. You are advised that additional paperwork received on the day of the appeal hearing will not be taken into account. |
| Letter from the Clerk informing you of the decision of the independent appeal panel | Due to the high number of appeals, an email is sent a few working days after your hearing with the decision of the panel. This is followed up around 20 school days later with a further emailed letter outlining the panels’ reasons. |
The timetable for Sixth Form appeals is as follows:
| Last day for lodging appeal forms | 31 August 2026. For 6th form appeals only, the appeal form can be completed by a student or parent. An Appeal form can be downloaded on this link |
| Invitation letter giving details about your hearing will be sent by the Clerk to the Independent Appeal Panel | To facilitate a hearing as soon as possible, an email will be sent at very short notice. However, if a student or parent wishes to have 10 school days’ notice, this needs to be indicated on the appeal form. |
| Date(s) of hearings | Late August/September 2026. |