Admissions to schools in Suffolk for the 2027/2028 school year
Between 6 October and 17 November 2025, Suffolk County Council is asking your views about its proposed admission arrangements for the 2027/2028 school year.
Proposed admission changes for community and voluntary controlled schools in Suffolk in the 2027/2028 school year
Suffolk County Council (SCC) is the Admissions Authority for community and voluntary controlled schools in Suffolk. When changes are proposed to the admission arrangements, we must consult on them.
Where admission arrangements have not changed from the previous year there is no need to consult, subject to the requirement that admission authorities must consult on their admission arrangements at least once every 7 years, even if there have been no changes during that period.
Consultation on Admission Arrangements for the 2027/2028 school year
Between 6 October and 17 November 2025, we are seeking your views on our proposed admissions policy for the 2027/2028 school year. The admissions policy is designed to ensure school places are offered to children in an open and fair way.
Details of the proposed changes:
The OSA considered SCC’s admission arrangements for the 2025/2026 school year and found that they did not fully conform with the School Admissions Code.
The OSA’s decision is binding on SCC and the admission arrangements for the 2025/2026 and 2026/2027 school years have been amended to comply with the Schools Adjudicator’s determination. We are now consulting on these amendments for the 2027/2028 school year.
The amendments, which are shown in blue text within the proposed admission arrangements, seek to add clarity to the policy itself and make it clearer for parents and carers to understand. They do not affect how school places have been and will continue to be offered, and to whom. The proposed amendments include:
- clarification on how applications would be prioritised within the sibling oversubscription criterion, if necessary.
- additional information to help parents understand the process for seeking a school place outside of the normal age group.
- clarification on admissions to a community school sixth form.
Full Proposed Admission Arrangements for the 2027/2028 school year
We are required to publish the Full Proposed Admission Arrangements for the 2027/2028 school year throughout the consultation period. There are no further proposed changes to these arrangements other than those mentioned above.
How to respond to the consultation
You can give your views by:
- completing the online survey
- emailing admissionsconsultation@suffolk.gov.uk
- writing to the Admissions Team, Endeavour House, 8 Russell Road, Ipswich, IP1 2BX
Responses must be received no later than 17 November 2025
All responses will be considered before Suffolk County Council’s Cabinet is asked to make a final decision.
Changes to School Admission Numbers at Forest Academy, Brandon
Many of you will be aware of the national trend of falling birth rates. Here in Brandon, the picture is much the same. With no large housing estates built in recent years, and few new houses expected in the near future, the town has simply not seen the number of young families grow.
Part of Brandon’s appeal is its character as a small market town.Thetford and Lakenheath both have many new houses being built which will attract young families. Several schools in the area have already reduced their pupil admission numbers, reflecting the lower demand.
Forest Academy, which expanded over time to welcome 60 children each year into Reception, now finds there are no longer enough children locally to fill those places. Suffolk County Council is therefore consulting with schools and the wider community on a proposal to reduce the admission number (PAN) to 30 from September 2027.
You can give your views by:
Emailing the school: enquiries@forestacademy.co.uk
Applying for a school place for the 2027/2028 school year
Further information about applying for a school place for the 2027/2028 school year will be available for parents from 12 September 2026 on the admissions webpage.
Parents considering sending their children to Forest Academy are encouraged to contact the school to make an appointment to visit.
Please note that even though your child may have a place in the Nursery, you will still need to
apply for a full time school place following the normal admission procedure.
Move to a different school (in-year applications 2025/2026)
Parents and carers can make an in-year application for their child to go to a new school:
- during the school year
- at the start of the school year but in a different age group from the school's normal year of entry
How you make an in-year application depends on which school or schools you want to apply for:
- Suffolk County Council deals with in-year applications for community and voluntary controlled schools
- Voluntary aided, free schools and academies deal with their in-year applications directly
The list of schools' details, admissions policies and Supplementary Information Forms for the 2025/2026 school year shows where you need to apply to for each school.
Please be aware: You must consider how your child will travel to and from school before you apply for a school place. Your child might not be eligible for funded school travel to their catchment area school if this is not the nearest suitable school.