Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will amend the School Admissions Code to allow schools to take into account the length of time a child has been on a waiting list in instances when that length of time has been longer than one year and that child matches that school's admissions criteria.

The Department for Education currently has no plans to amend the School Admissions Code in this respect.

It is government policy that all school places must be allocated in accordance with each school's oversubscription criteria. Such criteria are determined following consultation with the local community and reflect local needs.