Passports- do all your grandchildren, nephews, nieces

Oh right. It can be one of the verifying documents for the standard admissions procedure for anyone transferring in out of the normal transfer times. A standard check on birth dates etc.

Nothing to do with Brexit??

No the link cannot be verified, as the person who shared the letter, does not want to be identified. Fair enough.

Here is the text:

Dear Parents,

As you may be aware, the UK's departure from the European Union on 31 January 2020, citizens of the EEA will no longer have an automatic right to come to the UK to study and work. ******** (name of school) is under legal obligation to ensure that all its pupils have the required immigration permit throughout their studies. We are therefore taking this opportunity to review the nationality and status of all pupils ahead of the 30 June 2021 deadline.

Passport review

During first stage of review we are asking all pupils to bring their passport to school so that we can verify their status. Passports will be collected at the start of the day and copies retained. Passports will be returned at the end of the school day.

Please could you ensure that your daughter brings her passport on the following day:

(list of days for each school year).

Most children will not have passports and the poorer the families are the less likely it will be there children will have one.

Passports are expensive, £50 or more. Are schools really expecting the parents of children from poor homes where foreign travel is beyond their means to spend £50 per child to prove they are entitled to be educated in this country?

Education is intended to be free. A £50 entrance charge is not 'free'

I suspect this is a half-baked idea from an Academy chain or one head teacher.

Please could you ensure that your daughter brings her passport on the following day:
Ah, a single sex school.
Independent?

An over zealous HT.

Found this on the Govt website - apologies for the length, but what strikes met is that surely children of school age count as dependants ?

In most cases, foreign national children in the UK have the right to attend schools in England. School admission authorities must not refuse to admit a child on the basis of their nationality or immigration status nor remove them from roll on this basis. It is the responsibility of parents to check that their children have a right, under their visa entry conditions, to study at a school.

To help parents, we recommend that local authorities advise foreign nationals, who wish to apply for a state-funded school place, to check that they have a right of abode or that the conditions of their immigration status otherwise permit them to access a state-funded school. Local authorities can do this by adding a reminder to their admissions webpage and within their composite admissions prospectus.

Until 31 December 2020, all European Economic Area (‘EEA’), and Swiss national children, had the right under freedom of movement and UK immigration law, to enter the country to access a school. Any EEA or Swiss national who arrived in the UK by 31 December 2020 is eligible to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme, and continue to be able to study in schools in England as they do now if their application is successful.

Freedom of movement into the UK for EEA and Swiss citizens ended at the end of 2020. EEA (Irish citizens aside) and Swiss national children entering the UK after the end of 2020 are now treated the same as other foreign nationals. This means they will no longer have the right to enter the country to access a state-funded school unless they fall within the following immigration categories.

Children aged under 18 can enter the UK, as a dependant of a foreign national who has settled status in the UK, as a dependant of their parent(s) who are in the UK on a work visa or Student visa, or who are part of a family entering or residing in the UK under the immigration route for British National (Overseas) citizens and their dependants.

These dependant children are entitled to enter the country and can study at a state-funded or independent school once in the UK. Dependant children of a person on the BN(O) route must make an application, under the BN(O) immigration route, at the same time as their parent(s). Dependant children who do not arrive in the UK at the same time as their parents, would need to apply for a visa separately as a dependant child.

Unaccompanied children may also enter the UK to access a school. To comply with their visa terms, unaccompanied foreign national children, and young people (including such EEA and Swiss nationals entering the UK after 31 December 2020) who are entering on a Child Student visa or Student visa must, when accessing education in England, study at the independent school, sixth form college or further education college which is a licensed student sponsor that has offered them an unconditional place on a course.

Foreign nationals cannot use the 6-month Standard Visitor visa, or 11-month Short-term Study (English language) visa, to enter the UK to enrol as a pupil at a state-funded school, although some exchange programmes may be possible on the Visit route. Find out what these visas can be used for on the Standard Visitor visa page.

Find out more about visas and immigration and the EU Settlement Scheme for EEA and Swiss citizens.

Irish citizens’ right to live in the UK will not change. Irish citizens do not need to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme, but their family members, who are not Irish or UK citizens, will need to apply.

If a school is concerned that a child may not have a right to enter the country to access a state-funded school, it must not deny them a place or remove them from the school roll. Schools should advise parents to check their rights or email the Home Office’s school referrals team so they can investigate further.

Home Office referrals

If a school or local authority has concerns about a particular child’s immigration status, contact Home Office via: [email protected].

The local authority, or school admission authority, does not have to inform the child’s parents or carers that it has contacted the Home Office, however it is good practice for it to do so. The Home Office will aim to respond to the school within 48 hours.

If the Home Office finds that the child’s visa does not entitle him or her to enter the country to attend a state-funded school, it will be up to the Home Office to take any further action it considers appropriate. A local authority, admission authority or school must not deny a child a place, or remove him or her from the school roll, on the basis of the Home Office’s findings.

Processing applications from parents moving to England
This advice sets out how school admission authorities and local authorities should process applications for places for children who are living in another country at the point the application is made.

Parents who are not UK or Irish nationals should check they, and their children, have a right to reside in the UK before applying for a school place in England. It is not the responsibility of the admission authority or co-ordinated local authority to check.

A school admission authority cannot refuse to admit a child until the school to which the parents have applied is full - for example, it has reached its published admission number. Parents who are moving or returning to England or the UK and who apply for a place in England must therefore have their applications for state-funded schools considered. Where a place is refused, admission authorities must offer an appeal to an independent appeals panel.

As is the case with admission authorities more generally, nothing in legislation prevents a local authority from co-ordinating an application from a family living in another country or posted overseas but moving or returning to England or the UK so that the child will be living in the area when he or she starts school.

If a local authority refuses to co-ordinate an application for a school place from parents currently living in another country but moving or returning to England, an admission authority for the school would have significant difficulty in being able to lawfully apply its admission arrangements.

We recommend that determined co-ordinated schemes follow the process set out in this advice. It is also recommended that local authority schemes and composite admissions prospectuses include details of the type of evidence parents will need to provide to establish that they either already live in the area or intend to return to it in time to take up a school place.

Applications in the normal admissions round and late applications
If an application is made from another country, local authorities should consider the application as adequate proof of an intention to move or return to the area and include it within the local authority co-ordinated process.

A local authority should not refuse an application made from overseas (or from Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands), on the grounds that the applicant does not currently live in its area. A local authority can reasonably request the evidence set out below, so the admission authority holds sufficient information to determine the application.

In-year applications
Where a local authority co-ordinates in-year applications on behalf of a school, it should not require applicants to currently live in the area (or the country) before passing the application on to the admission authority for it to consider.

Where a local authority does not co-ordinate in-year applications, and applications are made directly to the admission authorities for schools, those schools can only refuse the application based on ‘prejudice’ as defined in legislation (for example, the school is full). The relevant admission authority must not require applicants to currently live in the area before considering their applications.

Establishing ‘home’ address
It is common for admission arrangements to give some degree of priority based on where an applicant lives. In these cases, admission authorities will need an address in order to apply their admission arrangements and rank applicants for their oversubscription criteria.

Admission authorities could ask prospective movers or returners where they will be living (see paragraph 2.5 of the School Admissions Code). This might include whether parents:

own or rent a property in the area to which they intend to return or move
are UK crown servants or are in the UK military and are returning or moving to the area
have provided other compelling evidence that they are returning or moving to the area
School admission authorities and local authorities can decide what evidence they require from parents to show that they intend returning or moving to the area, but this might include :

^a mortgage or rental agreement for a property in the area
deeds for a property in the area^
a letter from an employer showing a transfer date to the area
registration with a local GP^
Admission authorities must consider all in-year applications and should not refuse an application simply because a parent or child currently lives in another country

^If a parent is unable to provide evidence of a return to the area (before the new school year for applications in the normal admissions round or for late applications, or by the start of the next term for in-year applications), admission authorities could apply a catchment area policy or distance tie-break, if they have such admission criteria, using the parents’ place of residence at the point the application is made. If this is in another country, it would give the child a lower priority for admission to most schools.

Applications from UK crown servants or military families
As set out in the School Admissions Code, admission authorities and local authorities must process applications from UK crown servants or UK military families with evidence from their employers or commanding officers that they are returning or moving to the area ahead of any move. They must accept any posting or quartering address as a ‘home’ address in the absence of any actual home address.^

When an application is made from an address in another country, the local authority and/or school may ask for evidence before the school year or term begins to confirm that the child now lives in the area. If the child does not attend school on the first day of term, the admission authority could remove the offer and allocate the place to a child on the waiting list.

Before taking this action, the local authority and admission authority should contact the parent(s) to give them an opportunity to explain why there has been a delay in taking up the place and find out when the child might begin attending

Paragraph 2.12 of the School Admissions Code states that: ‘An admission authority must not withdraw an offer unless it has been offered in error, a parent has not responded within a reasonable period of time, or it is established that the offer was obtained through a fraudulent or intentionally misleading application. Where the parent has not responded to the offer, the admission authority must give the parent a further opportunity to respond and explain that the offer may be withdrawn if they do not

^If the local authority/school does not receive a response even then, the Pupil Registration Regulations 2006 (as amended) allow it to remove the child from the roll after 20 school days. The local authority or admission authority can then allocate the vacant place to a child on the waiting list.

Safeguarding
If admission authorities or schools are concerned about the safety of children from overseas who are in private fostering arrangements, they should read the keeping children safe in education statutory guidance and act accordingly.^

Last updated 20 November 2020 + show all updates

Something doesn’t add up.

Just checked with AC, GC starting reception class September, birth certificate and proof of address of parent was needed. No passport requested.

You have to have proof of vaccinations here as well. Wonder if the Covid vaccine will be added? No vaccine, no school.

This passport issue has been knocking around for a while now. Nothing to do with Brexit either.

schoolsweek.co.uk/pupils-who-were-not-white-british-told-to-send-in-birthplace-data/

My grandchildren started school last year and one is due to start this year. No request for passport.

Also my teacher daughter informs me that her state primary never asks for a passport.

There are many single sex State Schools in the UK. Apparently the one above is in Coventry.

But there have been many other similar cases elsewhere

schoolsweek.co.uk/pupils-who-were-not-white-british-told-to-send-in-birthplace-data/

Posts crossed. So some letter specifically mentionned Brexit, others not.

Letters. My grand-children, in several schools, have not been asked. But it seems some schools around the country have been interpreting things in their own way, and letters sent, to that effect.

Thank you for the link.
It makes it quite clear that this has nothing to do with Brexit!
It is to do with amongst others, migrants and asylum seekers.

Malcolm Trobe, interim general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said schools should “sensitively” ask parents for the information and explain why it was being collected, but should not request documents. Schools that had done so should “simply make a very brief apology” and explain they had misunderstood the guidance

“ There are some very legitimate reasons behind the collection of this data,” said Trobe, who claimed it would help schools and the government understand the impact of language GCSEs on foreign nationals.

“ We have been completely assured that none of this is being passed to the Home Office. .”

The Department for Education has now reconfirmed its guidance. A spokesperson said: “The guidance is clear – there is no requirement for schools to request a child’s passport or birth certificate”. He insisted the nationality and country of birth data “should be as stated by the parent or guardian. ”.

Kali2
Once you get past the alarming headline it says:
However, School Week suggests that schools have misinterpreted the new rules, including asking for pupils passport numbers and for parents to confirm their child is not an asylum seeeker.

“Alarming” MerylStreep” or alarmist. .

Just as an aside from the point of this thread - when we do our Carer's courses, we suggest that everyone keeps their passport up to date (or acquires one) as it is the best way of proving who you are as most Bill's etc come on line now.

Er, what is the point of this thread? Or is it just another thread to prove Britain is crap?

One wonders.....

The article is from 2016 so it wasn't to do with Brexit.

Most schools have not sent those letters. But this thread is about the fact that some schools have, and some schools have interpreted rules in many different ways. The one mentionned in OP clearly did mention Brexit and new rules coming into force at the end of June.

Which made me wonder what the proportion of UK school children have passports, and how this would be repsented in terms of socio-economic, ethnic and other factors.

And which also made me wonder how I would react, or my sons- if such letters were sent home. And how some children, who do not have passports, would feel about it and the stresses involved.

Gannygangan

The article is from 2016 so it wasn't to do with Brexit.

The letter in OP is very recent, and clearly does.

Kali2 Wed 19-May-21 15:22:20
Most schools have not sent those letters. But this thread is about the fact that some schools have, and some schools have interpreted rules in many different ways
Then they clearly misinterpreting the legal requirement!
From your own link
Schools are demanding copies of pupils’ passports, and asking parents to confirm if their children are asylum seekers or refugees amid confusion over a new legal duty requiring the collection of nationality data.

Schools Week revealed in June that the Department for Education (DfE) had expanded the census details schools must collect from this month to include pupils’ nationalities and countries of birth.

The government insisted the change was driven by a “dearth of information” about how effective the education sector was for foreign nationals. Its guidance states that schools should seek birthplace data from parents, although it is not compulsory for parents to provide it

However, an investigation by Schools Week suggests that schools have misinterpreted the new rules, including asking for pupils’ passport numbers and for parents to confirm their child is not an asylum seeker

It comes during a time of heightened deportation concerns in some communities

Why must everything be laid at the door of Brexit?

Children in the UK used to be on their parents’ passports - our three were. But not any more. My granddaughter had a passport at 3 weeks old. She is a sleeping white blur in the photo. When she got to five she had to have a new passport with a new photo.

MawBe I stand corrected ?

KittyLester I’m going with the prove Britain is crap

Non. Nope. Nein. No.

Nothing to do with Brexit.

If someone anonymous has decided this is all due to Brexit they're barking up the wrong tree.

And they know it

Which is why they are keeping themselves incognito

It just isn't happening.