Entrance Exam: Saturday 11 December 2010
Pre-Test: Saturday 9 October 2010
Open Evening: Thursday September 30th 2010

For entry into Year 7 in September 2011, parents have to include the school as one of their three preferences on the Common Application Form (CAF). If you want your child to be considered for a place at both the Halifax Grammar Schools, The North Halifax Grammar School and The Crossley Heath School, then BOTH must be included in your 3 preferences on the CAF. All students who have included the school on the CAF will be eligible to sit the admission test. The published admission number for the school for September 2011 is 155.

Parents who are considering The North Halifax Grammar School are strongly urged to place it as their FIRST preference.

The admission test will consist of:

(a) A verbal reasoning test – the reasoning test is a predictor of future performance and as such does not rely upon material that will have been covered in the primary school curriculum. The results from the test are standardised and age-weighted.

(b) A test in Mathematics – this is based on the National Curriculum in Mathematics for KS2.

© A test in continuous writing in English – an appropriate written task for a Year 6 student.

After the tests are completed pupils will be placed in a single list based on their performance in terms of aggregated scores in tests (a) and (b). Those with the highest score will be at the top of the list, which will therefore be an order of merit. Some 75% of places available (i.e. at least 116) will be offered to that same number of pupils who achieved the highest aggregate scores in tests (a) and (b). The final 25% of places (i.e. at least 39) will be offered on the basis of aggregate scores in all three tests. The test in continuous writing will be completed by all pupils, but will only be taken into consideration in the case of the final 25% of places to be offered.

If several pupils satisfy the first order criteria equally, then a range of supplementary criteria will be invoked, in this order:

• children in public care;

• proximity of the child’s home to the school, with those living nearer accorded the highest priority (as measured by a straight line distance from home to the school’s main entrance).

• pupils with siblings (to include step-siblings resident in the same household) presently attending the school;

The pupils identified in the order of merit, assessed as suitable for a Grammar School place and being capable of gaining full advantage from the type of education provided, will be notified to the Local Authority (LA). The LA will then allocate places according to the coordinated scheme and parents will be informed by letter at the beginning of March 2011.

The coordinated scheme in Calderdale is administered as an equal preference scheme. This means that parents express a preference for up to three schools on the CAF and although they are ranked in order, they are given equal preference. The LA will operate the scheme and coordinate admissions by sending every preference to the admission authorities without reference to the rating on the CAF. Therefore, schools will offer places based on their oversubscription criteria which cannot include ‘first preference first’. The ranking is used to discriminate between preferences if two or more schools are able to offer a place, then the highest preference is offered. Parents wishing their daughter or son to be considered for a place at The North Halifax Grammar School are advised to place it first. The child is then eligible to sit the admissions test. However, if they do not perform well enough in the test to qualify for a place at The North Halifax Grammar School, they may meet the criteria for another school. Parents of children who sat the admissions tests will be informed of the outcome once the LA has been informed of those children who have been assessed as suitable for a Grammar School place. This should be in January 2011. This is not an offer of a place, which will be issued by the LA dependent on parent’s preferences on the CAF. On March 1st 2010 the school was full and therefore parents who are considering The North Halifax Grammar School are strongly urged to place it as their first preference.