Increasing secondary school choices for children eligible for free school meals

A new policy giving pupils eligible for free school meals priority when applying for a secondary school place in Brighton & Hove was agreed at last night's Children, Families & Schools Committee.

It means Brighton & Hove is one of the first councils in the country to introduce a school admissions priority for children on free school meals, aimed to give some of the city's most disadvantaged pupils a greater choice of secondary school.

A consultation carried out in November and December across Brighton & Hove saw 593 respondents agree or strongly agreed with the proposal, with 401 respondents disagreeing.

A response from The Sutton Trust outlined their research comparing top performing comprehensive schools and the number of pupils who attend on free school meals (Selective Comprehensives 2017 - Sutton Trust), and the conclusion that proximity-based oversubscription criteria plays a part in these low numbers.

They strongly advocate for more schools to bring in fairer admissions policies to ensure greater numbers of disadvantaged children can gain access to high performing schools and access high quality teaching in their local areas.

The Sutton Trust also highlighted findings in their research (Fairer School Admissions - Sutton Trust) that 50% of senior school leaders in schools believe social segregation is a problem in state schools. They have also found that 78% of parents believe schools should have a fairer mix of pupils from different social backgrounds.

The Sutton Trust stated that the admissions arrangements would be a 'bold step forward', enabling more pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds to access the best schools in their area and wholeheartedly support this proposal.

Increasing fairness

The average percentage of secondary pupils on free school meals across the city is 25%, expected to rise to 28% in 2025.

Currently, within this statistic there's a large variation in the percentages of pupils eligible for free school meals at individual schools.

Some schools take well above the average percentage of children on free school meals and some schools well below the average.

The introduction of this policy from the academic year beginning September 2025 should improve equality in this area across the city's schools.

Schools would not be expected to admit more free school meal pupils than the average percentage across the city.

Reducing inequality

Councillor Lucy Helliwell, joint chair of the Children, Families and Schools Committee, said: "We believe we're the first council in the country to introduce a school admissions policy giving a priority for pupils eligible for free school meals.

"We're aiming to reduce the area-based inequality in schools and ensure pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds have access to better choice of secondary schools.

"The future of our children is essential and giving those from disadvantaged backgrounds the opportunity to access the best schools will offer them the best chance in life. I'm extremely proud to see Brighton & Hove leading the way."

More information

• Read the full school admissions arrangements report to the 22 January Children, Families & Schools Committee (agenda item 48)