Admission procedures
Year 7 Entry 2025
St John Payne Catholic School is a Voluntary Aided school in the Diocese of Brentwood and is maintained by the Essex Local Authority. The number of intended admissions to Year 7 in any school year is 190.
Parents wishing to apply for a place at St John Payne Catholic School for Year 7 entry in September 2025 must apply to their Local Authority and also complete the school’s Supplementary Information via the link below. The closing date for applications to the Local Authority is the 31st October and the supplementary information should be completed by this date also. National offer day is Monday 3rd March 2025.
If your child is a baptised Catholic, you will need to provide a copy of your child's Baptism certificate. For other Christian applicants you will need to provide either a Christian Baptism certificate or a letter of reference from your church. For other faiths please ask your religious leader for a reference on headed paper. All supporting documents must be uploaded via the account you create on the link below for your application. Paper copies sent to the school will not be accepted.
Schools Admission Policies Directory 2025-2026
Click here to apply - Start by clicking 'Parent Register' to start a new application.
Enquiries
For any enquiries regarding admissions procedures please contact Mrs K Searle using the main school number or email kse@sjp.essex.sch.uk
Appeals
Unsuccessful applicants for admission in Year 7 (2025 - 2026) have the right to appeal to an independent appeals panel. The deadline for lodging an appeal is Tuesday 22nd April 2025. Admission appeals received by this date will be considered on Monday 16th, Tuesday 17th and Wednesday 18th June 2025. Details of how to appeal and the form required can be accessed via the links below: Appeals lodged after this date will be heard by the end of the summer term where possible, or in September 2025. The waiting list will be maintained by the LA until 31st August 2025 and thereafter by St John Payne Catholic School.
Appeals lodged by parents/carers in relation to refusal of a place at St John Payne Catholic School will be held virtually (via Zoom).
Timetable for Lodging Year 7 Appeals 2025
School Admission Appeals Guide
Mid –Year applications
Mid-Year applications will, as far as is reasonably practicable, be dealt with promptly. Parents need to apply directly to the school by completing a Mid-Year Application SIF and an Essex County Council Mid- Year Application form, both of which are available on the links below. These will enable applications to be ranked according to the admission criteria. Where there is oversubscription, applications will be ranked and dealt with in accordance with the oversubscription criteria. Applicants will then be placed on the waiting list and will also have the right to appeal, details of which are in the guide to school admission appeals attachment below.
Please be aware that we are currently heavily over-subscribed and our waiting lists are very long. Whist we welcome applications to the school, we would like to make parents aware that they will be added to the relevant year group waiting list, but may have a very long wait for a place offer.
We receive more applications than we are able to offer places, so the position on the waiting list is likely to go down as well as up. Please refer to our admissions policy where the criteria for applications to the school is fully explained.
For guidance on parish boundaries please see the link below to our diocese website.
http://www.dioceseofbrentwood.net/churches/?addr=chelmsford&radius=5
Mid year application supplementary information form
Essex County Council mid year application form
