Transfer Process - School Open Days/Evenings 19/20

The Christmas tree has been taken down and the decorations packed away. The new school term begins and it’s going to be a very busy January for Year 7 pupils and their parents. Why? Because the secondary school transfer process begins in earnest! You and your child will probably have discussed this already but January is the month to action your thoughts. Primary Times guides you through the process. In reality, although January is the time for you and your child to become actively involved, post-primary schools will already have been working on planning their 2020 intake from October past. That is when they review and revise their admissions policies and submit them to the Education Authority. All post-primary school must have their 2020 prospectuses published by 21st December at the latest, so you could potentially seek these out Time to transfer to read over the Christmas holiday. If not, they should be available to download or in hard copy by the start of the new school term. Your primary school may have a selection of prospectuses available to view in the school. Your primary school must give you a transfer booklet, which details the local schools and their admissions criteria and the forms you need to complete and return to them. The primary school must return all completed forms to the Education Authority by 5th February, so it’s essential you have your form returned to the school well in advance of that date. Of course, between receiving your transfer booklet and submitting your completed form comes the important business of school open evenings. As you’ll see from the school notices here, open evenings are running right through January, so the timetable is tight and you may find that some dates may clash. Even so, open evenings provide a crucial opportunity to find out more about the schools your child is interested in. These evenings allow you to hear from the principal, talk directly to teachers and students, see the facilities and can impart an instinctive ‘feel’ for the school that neither a website nor a prospectus can deliver. We’ve laid out the whole process for you as clearly as possible, as well as some tips of making the most of open night opportunities

5th February 2020 is the deadline for completed transfer forms to be received by The Education Authority.

29th May 2020 is the date that the letter will be sent from the education and library board informing the parents which school the child has been offered a place at.

School Open Day Evening Dates

Ballyclare Secondary School - Open Evening Thursday 9th January 2020 Principal’s address @6.30pm, 7.15pm & 8.00pm

Belfast Royal Academy - Open Night Wednesday 8th and Thursday 9th January 2020 Principal's talk 6.45pm - 9.00pm

Carrickfergus Academy - Open Night Thursday 9th January 2020 6.30pm - 9pm Junior Campus Downshire Road

Carrickfergus Grammar School - Open Evening Thursday 23rd January 2020 Principal’s address 8.30pm

Downey House School- Open Day Wednesday 11th December 2020 10.00 - 11.30am & 5.30 - 7.00pm

Dundonald High School - Open Day Saturday 11th January 2020 10am - 1pm Principal’s address at 10am, 11am & 12pm

Methodist College - Open Evenings Thursday 9th & Friday 10th January 2020 Principal’s Presentation in the College’s Assembly Hall at 6.30pm & 8.30pm

St Louise’s College - Open Night Thursday 9th January 2020 Principal’s Address @ 4.30pm & 6.30pm

St Marys Christian Brothers Grammar School - Open Evening Thursday 16th January 2020 7.00pm

Victoria College - Senior School Open Morning Saturday 11th January 2020 10am - 1pm

Wellington College - Open Evenings Thursday 9th January & Monday 13th January 2020 Principal's Address 7pm & 8pm