1, 2, 3 Steps to Joining St Chris | The Admissions Process

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Step Two – Entrance Assessments

Nursery and Junior School

Nursery to Reception
Children entering St Chris in the Nursery or Reception are expected to have the necessary social and developmental skills to be able to access the Early Years Curriculum. These will be observed during a Stay and Play Taster Session, where parents stay with their child. These sessions are one hour long and are spent in the Nursery with the children's peer group. These sessions allow children and parents to decide whether it is the right environment for them and for the school to assess your child in our environment.
Year 1 to Year 5
Children are invited to a Taster Day (half a day in Year 1, a full day in Years 2 to 5) where they will join their peers in class. Children will be informally assessed throughout the day with particular attention to English and mathematics. Staff observations, school reports and references will all be taken into consideration.
Year 6
For children joining in Year 6, the process will be the same as for those from Years 1 to 5, with the addition of an online Cognitive Ability Test (CAT) as a bench-marking assessment; this will be arranged for a separate time so as to not impact the taster experience. Staff observations, school reports and references will all be taken into consideration.

Senior School

Year 7 to Year 10
Applicants for the Senior School are invited to an Assessment Day in the school year before they start, which either takes place in February each year for September entry or on a normal school day for entry at other points.   The purpose of the Assessment Day is for the School to determine an applicant’s current academic level for when they arrive at St Chris and for us to get to know them. However, equally as important is that the day is an opportunity for your child to get to know us, to experience spending some time at St Chris, to get to know others in their intended year group, and to have an enjoyable and interactive day. As part of the Assessment Day applicants will: Undertake an online Cognitive Ability Test (CAT4) Take part in taster lessons to give them a taste of life in the classroom and to enable them to experience learning at St Chris Undertake an informal interview with a senior member of staff for us to get to know them, and for them to get to know us
Sixth Form
Sixth Form applicants are invited for an interview with the Head or Deputy Head. Normally we would consider the candidate’s projected or actual GCSE results. Generally, we expect candidates to obtain at least five GCSEs at grade 5 and above to follow an AS/A level programme, with at least grade 6 in the subjects selected for studying at A level, or in relevant subjects where a student is starting a subject from scratch (such as Psychology or Business Studies). We reserve the right to alter these expectations on a case-by-case basis. Those not undertaking GCSEs will need to show suitable ability.

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Step Three – Offer

Offers are made in writing with a deadline for the acceptance of a place.  A signed Acceptance Form and the payment of the Admissions deposit by the deadline secures a place. There are also additional forms to complete to ensure we have the required information for when your child starts at St Chris (for example, medical information). Full details of all information required are in the offer letter.

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Waiting Lists

Where a year group is oversubscribed, we run a waiting list. We arrange our waiting list in the order of date of registration and give priority to:

• Siblings of children who are already at the School or who have a sibling joining the School in the same admissions cycle
• A child who has requested a weekly/full boarding placement
• A child whose parent is a member of staff employed by St Chris

In line with the School’s coeducational status, waiting lists are separated by gender to ensure our coeducational balance is maintained.

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In-Year Places

Applicants for an in-year place should check first with the Admissions Department as to the availability of places. Where a place is available, the usual Registration and Assessment process applies as per the points above.

For in-year places the School will also request that a candidate comes in to spend one or more Taster Days (Junior School) or a Taster Week (Senior School) with us before we progress to the offer stage. 

Our Admissions Department will follow the process as outlined above and this will not be altered for individual circumstances. Under no circumstances should parents expect or request that the normal application process is changed or accelerated.

The admissions process exists to ensure that you, your child, and the School are confident that we are the right fit for each other. Although we are not in a position to remove a stage or accelerate the process, we will do our very best to accomodate individual circumstances.

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Boarding

Please visit the International Admissions pages to find out more about making an application as an international student, or the Boarding pages for more information about life as a St Chris boarder.

Applicants for boarding places will also be considered based on their suitability to board, with further information requested by the Registrar if necessary. The Head of Boarding will be fully consulted before an offer is made. 

For international students who require a Child Student visa, the registration process is the same, but instead of the usual school assessment, we organise an online English language test through Bespoke English Language Testing. Following a successful English test, students have an online interview with the Head, Rich Jones.

Where a student requires additional support for the development of their English language skills, we will inform parents and agents at the offer stage, and there may be an additional charge for this.

 

Book a tour

International admissions

joining as an iNternational student

Boarding

 

Interested in a place at St Chris for your child?

Visit the Admissions Portal