Admissions
Admissions
Howard Community Academy Primary School is part of Anglian Learning Trust , which is the Admission Authority responsible for all admissions.
The application process for admissions into the initial year of entry is coordinated by Suffolk Local Authority (LA), which acts on behalf of Anglian Learning Trust to offer places at the School.
Published Admission Number (PAN)
The school admits 45 children into Reception each year. If applications exceed this number, places are allocated using the oversubscription criteria below. Due to Infant Class Size legislation, numbers normally cannot exceed 30 pupils per class in Reception, Years 1 and 2.
Applying for a Reception Place
Applications must be made to your home Local Authority via Suffolk County Council:
- Apply online or access the Common Application Form at: www.suffolk.gov.uk/admissions
- Closing date: 15 January 2026
- National offer day: 16 April 2026 (or next working day)
Late applications or mid-term applications (an “in-year” application) can be made by contacting Howard Community Academy and collecting a School Application pack or by contacting the LA Admissions Team (Suffolk County Council).
Contact details:
You can contact the school for an application pack in person, by telephone 01284 766278; by email office@howardprimary.org
Suffolk County Council Admission Team: admissions@suffolk.gov.uk
Telephone: 0345 600 0981
Oversubscription Criteria
If more applications are received than places available, priority is given in the following order:
- Children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) naming the school
- Children in Care and previously Looked After Children
- Siblings of children already attending the school
- Children of staff
- Other children, ranked by distance from home to school
Attendance at a pre-school does not give priority.
Tie-break: Where criteria are equal, priority is given to the child living closest to the school. If distances are identical, random allocation will be used.
Deferred or Part-Time Entry
Parents may defer their child’s start date or request part-time attendance until compulsory school age. This must be requested at the time of application and cannot extend beyond the final term of the school year.
Waiting Lists
Waiting lists operate for all year groups until 31 December. Positions are ranked according to the oversubscription criteria, not application date, and may change as children join or leave the list. Requests to remain on a waiting list beyond this date must be renewed.
Appeals
Parents refused a place have the right to appeal to an independent panel. Details are provided with refusal letters and on the Suffolk County Council website.
Admissions Outside Reception
Applications for year groups other than Reception can be made by contacting the School office 01284 766278 or email office@howardprimary.org
Where places are unavailable, children will be placed on a waiting list. Infant class size limits apply up to Year 2.
Reception Starters
If you have a child who is due to start school in September 2026, you may now be considering which school to send your child to. If you are considering Howard Community Academy, we invite you to come and find out more about our wonderful Early Years. Come and view the classrooms, playground and we will be able to tell you more about the children’s school day, how we develop their learning and support their personal development. Our wonderful team will be on hand to answer questions and show you around.
If you are interested in visiting the school prior to submitting an application, you are welcome to do so. Please contact us to see if we can make arrangements either during or after the school day.
Please note that visits are not interviews and do not affect any decision regarding the availability of a place.
Appeals
If a place is not available, parents have the right of appeal.
The Trust as the Admission Authority has responsibility for offering a parent an appeal against a refusal to meet their preference for a place. Parents who wish to appeal the decision of the Admissions Authority to refuse their child a place at an academy may apply in writing to the academy where appeals will be heard by an independent panel organised by the local authority.
Appeal hearings for on-time applications to Reception for September 2026 will be heard within 40 school days of the appeal being lodged, or before the end of the summer term, whichever is sooner. Appeal hearings for late applications, or in-year applications will be heard within 30 school days of the appeal being lodged.