ENROLMENT POLICY
Scoil Nioclais Naofa is a co-educational primary school under the patronage of the Archbishop of Dublin. The school aims to promote the full and harmonious development of all pupils: cognitive, intellectual, physical, cultural moral and spiritual, including a living relationship with God and other people and promotes
a Christian philosophy of life.
There are 17 full time teachers, including the principal, 4 SET teachers, employed in the school. The school caters for the full range of classes from Junior Infants to Sixth Class and has two special classes for children on the autistic spectrum.
Children enrolled in Scoil Nioclais Naofa are required to co-operate with and support the schools Code of Behaviour as well as all other policies. Parents/Guardians are responsible for ensuring that their child(ren) co-operate with these policies in an age-appropriate way. A copy of the Code of Behaviour is available for all families and each parent will be requested to sign an undertaking to uphold the school Code of Behaviour and Policies.
Scoil Nioclais Naofa operates under the Rules for National Schools and Department Circulars and is funded by grants and teachers resourced by the Department of Education and Science. The school is subject to The Education Act (1998), The Education Welfare Act (2000), The Education for Persons with Special Education Needs Act (2004) and all relevant equality legislation. Scoil Nioclais Naofa follows the curricular programmes laid down by the Department of Education and Science.
Application Procedures
Parents seeking to enrol their child(ren) in Scoil Nioclais Naofa should return a completed enrolment application form (available in the office) by the 31st January each year or enrol online via the school website. Parents of children enrolled in Junior Infants will be invited to an open day in the school in June each year.
No child is refused admission for reasons of ethnicity, special educational needs, disability, language/accent, gender, traveller status, asylum-seeker/refugee status, religious/political beliefs and values, family or social circumstances.
While recognising the rights of the parents to enrol their child in the school of their choice, the Board of Management of Scoil Nioclais Naofa is also responsible to respect the rights of the existing school community and in particular, the children already enrolled. This requires balanced judgements, which are guided by the principles of natural justice and acting in the best interest of the children.
The completion of an application form or the placement of your child’s name on a list, however early, does not confer an automatic right to a place in the school.
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Enrolment to Solas
· Children must have a diagnosis of ASD and a letter of referral from a clinician stating that it is in their best interest to attend an ASD class that is attached to a mainstream primary school.
Children and young people are eligible for enrolment in a special class for autism when the following is provided in
support of such an application:
Professional report(s) outlining:
• Diagnosis of special educational needs (e.g. Autism: DSM IV/V or ICD 10/11
(psychologist, psychiatrist, multi-disciplinary report)
AND
• A demonstration of the understanding of complexity of the child’s overall level of
need/s evidenced in the professional reports
AND
• Given the severity or complexity of the child’s support needs, a clear professional
recommendation as to what educational placement type would be most appropriate
to best meet the child’s needs, along with the rationale for same
AND
• A letter from the NCSE confirming that the child is known to them and that the child
has the required diagnosis and recommendation for a special class for autism
· Children already enrolled in the school but who need a place in Solas.
- Siblings and stepsiblings of children already enrolled in the school and children resident in the parish of Dunlavin. (The eldest child will have priority).
- Children of staff (The eldest child will have priority).
- Children residing outside the parish of Dunlavin.(The eldest child will have priority).
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In the event that there are two or more students tied for a place or places in any of the selection criteria categories above (the number of applicants exceeds the number of remaining places), the following arrangements will apply:
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In the event that there are two or more children tied for a place the , the oldest child will be given priority. If two applicants have the same date of birth , then a lottery will apply with an independent party present.
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Decision making
Decisions in relation to application for enrolment are made by the Board of Management. Children must be at least 4 years of age by March 31 prior to the start of that school year.
To assist the school in such circumstances of over crowding, the Board of Management reserves the right to determine the maximum number of children in each separate classroom bearing in mind Department of Education and Science guidelines in relation to class size and staffing provisions. Other factors that may be considered are:
- Size and available space in classrooms
- Educational needs of children of a particular age
- Multi-grade classes
- Presence of children with special educational/behavioural needs
In the event of the number of children seeking enrolment in any given class/standard exceeding the number of places available the following criteria will be used to prioritise children for enrolment:
- Brothers and sisters (including stepsiblings, resident at same address)
of children already enrolled with priority going to the oldest.
- Children living within the parish – priority oldest
- Children of current school staff- priority oldest
- Children whose home address is closest to the school (as measured by a straight line on an O.S. Map) if the child is normally resident outside of the parish/agreed catchment area.
- In the event of being unable to enrol a child(ren) from categories A, B, C
in a given class at the beginning of a year, or mid-year, such children will receive priority (in order of A, B, C) for the subsequent school year over other children on the class waiting list.
Other pupils may be enrolled during the school year if newly resident in the area and there is space in the required class. Pupils wishing to transfer from other schools are enrolled subject to the Rules for National Schools, Education Welfare Act and the school’s enrolment policy.
Children with Special Needs
Children with special needs enrolling in Scoil Nioclais Naofa will be resourced in accordance with the level of resources provided by the Department of Education and Science to the Board of Management.
The Board of Management may request a copy of the child’s medical and/or psychological report or request that the child be assessed immediately in order to assist the school in establishing the educational needs of the child and to profile the support services required. The Board of Management will endeavour to have all resources and support in place before the child is admitted to the school. This may include visiting teacher service, resource teacher, special needs assistants etc, specialised equipment or furniture, transport service etc.
The school will meet with the parents of the special needs child to discuss the school’s suitability for the child. If necessary a full case conference may be called including parents, class teacher, learning support teacher, resource teacher and psychologist or social workers as appropriate.
It may be necessary for the Board of Management to defer enrolment of a child pending assessment report and/or provision of resources by the Department of Education and Science to meet the needs specified by in the psychologist and a medical report.
Appeals Procedure
Parents who are dissatisfied with an enrolment decision, may appeal to the Board of Management. It must be addressed, in writing, to the Chairperson of the Board, stating the grounds for the appeal, and lodged within ten days of receiving the refusal. Parents, if unhappy with the result of this appeal, may appeal to the Department of Education and Science under Section 29 of the Education Act on the official form provided by the Department. This appeal must be lodged within 42 days of receipt of the refusal from the school to enrol.