Welcome

to Ryecroft Academy

Ryecroft Academy is a thriving and happy school. We are really proud that we deliver the very best education for our children through a vibrant and inspiring curriculum but also through promoting a nurturing, safe and calm environment in which children can flourish and prosper. We strive to make certain that all pupils are kind and compassionate and respectful to others.

Contact us for more information

Early years open events

Wednesday 12 November 4.15pm – 7.15pm
Wednesday 19 November 9.30am – 2.30pm

We understand that choosing the right school for your child to start their educational journey is always an important decision for families and we are here to help. We would be delighted to welcome you and your child to our academy for a tour. Please complete the form below; we will then contact you to book you onto one of our tours.

    As an academy, we are part of The GORSE Academies Trust, who are the admission authority for the academy.

    The academy’s admission authority sets the admission policy every year. You can read our academy’s admission policies at the links below.   

    In-year applications to start at our school between September 2026 and July 2027 – read our 2026/27 policy.

    Applications for Reception places in September 2027 – read our 2027/28 policy.

    Downloadable Policies

    Admissions Policy for 2025-26
    Admissions Policy for 2026-27
    Admissions Policy for 2027-28

    Admissions Timetable 2027
    Deadlines date for applications for Reception places in September 2027 15 January 2027
    National Offers Day 16 April 2027
    Deadline for accepting offers and first cut off for appeal forms 30 April 2027
    Date on which Reception appeal hearings will be held June – July 2027
    Appeal decision letters to be sent Within 5 working days from date of hearing wherever possible

    How to apply for a Reception Intake place

    If you are applying for a Reception place for September, all applications are made in advance. Offers are made by local authorities on national offer day. Our Published Admission Number is 45.

    You must apply to the local authority who empties your bins. If this is Leeds, please go to www.leeds.gov.uk/apply. You can also watch Leeds City Council schools’ admissions video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRU1SrS7iJE for more information.

    In-year Admissions

    If you’re moving into Leeds or want to change schools in Leeds, you need to make a school transfer – often called an in-year application.

    We are part of the Leeds coordinated in-year application scheme. This means you can apply for a place online using the Leeds in-year application form at Before you move schools (leeds.gov.uk).  You can apply for places at our school and other Leeds schools at the same time on this form.

    If you have moved house, please upload evidence of the house move with the online application. You can find out what you need to provide on the above website.

    We offer places by applying our admission policy criteria to your child’s application. Leeds City Council will contact you with our decision no later than 15 school days from when you apply. If they cannot offer your child a place at our school, they will:

    • Add your child to our waiting list in case a place becomes available during the school year
    • Send you a letter to explain the reasons we cannot offer a place and tell you how you can appeal.

    Our waiting lists are kept until end of each school year. You will need to make a new application if you want to be on the waiting list for the following school year.

    Nursery Admissions

    Please apply directly to our school to secure your place. You can complete a quick form at the school office or alternatively, download, complete and hand this form into the school office.

    Download: Word Document | PDF

    Virtual Tour

    Apply for your child to start Reception in September 2027

    Admission arrangements for children entering school in Reception are dealt with by Leeds City Council and this information can be found in their composite prospectus.

    We have one intake each year at the start of the Autumn Term. Pupils are eligible to be admitted to school in the September following their 4th birthday. Prospective parents are most welcome to make an appointment to look around our school or to visit on our Open Day.

    Parents are asked to complete preference forms in the Autumn of the year before the child starts school. Places are allocated in the late Spring / early Summer Term – we have a maximum intake of 45 children. Following this stage, some parents choose to appeal if their choices have not been met.

    Once we know our exact intake, we begin the process of ensuring every child’s entry into school is happy and relaxed. In the Summer Term before the September start, parents come to a Welcome Meeting with their children to find out more about how we work and ask any questions they might still have.

    This meeting also gives parents the opportunity to meet and talk with the Reception class teacher and other support staff. Soon after, children are invited to spend time in their new class as part of the transition process.

    If we are unable to offer you a place the Leeds City Council Admissions Team will contact you to advise of the schools in your area and any vacancies at these schools. You will have the right of appeal to an Independent panel for the school you have been refused.

    How to apply – Invitation to apply letters

    If your child is due to start primary school in September 2027 you will receive a letter before 1 November 2026, inviting you to apply for a place for your child between 1 November 2026 and 15 January 2027.

    The letter will inform you of your nearest school. This is the school at which your child has a higher priority for admission under the school’s admission policy.

    It is recommended that you include this school as one of your five preferences, even if it is your fifth preference, although there is no guarantee that you will be offered a place at this school.

    Before you apply:

    To Apply Online:

    You will need a valid email address.

    After completing your online application, you will receive an email confirming it has been received. If you don’t receive an email, your application has not been completed properly. You should log back in and make sure the form is fully completed. If you live outside Leeds and want your child to go to a school in Leeds, you must apply to your own local authority and they will inform us of your request.

    The online application form will be available to use from 1 November 2026 for applications to start Reception class in September 2027.​​​

    You must submit an application even if you would like a place at your priority catchment school or your child has a sibling in school.

    Appeals

    If you are not offered a place at the academy you requested, you will have the right of appeal. The appeal panel is independent of the academy and council and the decision is legally binding.

    Before you appeal you:

    Leeds City Council arranges our appeals and you can find the appeal form at School appeals (leeds.gov.uk)

    If you are applying for a Reception place for September, you need to submit your appeal form by the above deadline to ensure the appeal will be heard before the summer holidays.

    Appeals for Reception, Year 1 and Year 2

    These classes are limited to 30 pupils per teacher by law. This means that appeals for these places are less likely to be successful.

    If our academy refuses your child a place because of this limit and you want to appeal, you will need to make an infant class size appeal.  You can see if your reasons are likely to be successful by reading the Department for Education’s information about infant class size appeals.

    Other appeals

    You can appeal because you want your child to attend a particular school. These are successful if the panel agree that the reasons for your appeal outweigh the school’s decision not to admit any more children.

    Wanting your child to go to a school because you think it is the best one in the area is not likely to convince the panel that your child should get a place there.

    Downloadable Forms

    Supplementary Information Form (SIF)
    Download: Word Document  |  PDF

    Downloadable Policies

    Admissions Policy for 2025-26
    Admissions Policy for 2026-27

    Please see the information below from Leeds City Council to assist you in applying for a school place

    Where can I find useful information for parents?

    You can find information about schools, previous years allocation data, catchment maps and links to school admission policies on our ‘find more information about a school’ page on our website https://www.leeds.gov.uk/schools-and-education/composite-prospectus.

    You can find on our website www.leeds.gov.uk/apply

    • an address lookup tool – for families to check if their address has any priority, but not all addresses will have such priority
      the link to the online application form

    In your discussions with families can you please remind them to:

    • use all 5 preferences, using only use 1 or 2 preferences decreases the chances of being offered a place at a preferred school;
    • 1st preference first isn’t allowed, – schools don’t know the preference order families provide;
    • any supplementary information needs to be provided by the closing date (this applies if a child is previously looked after, is seeking admission under exceptional needs or if a family wish to apply for their child to be admitted out of chronological age group)
    • use the child’s actual permanent address. Using that of a friend, relatives, childminder or renting a property to gain a school place are all considered fraud and places can be withdrawn.