Special Reasons Tab

Special reasons are factors not listed within the DfE defined Oversubscription Criteria that are used to rank applicants for a particular receiver. The Special Reasons page enables you to configure special reason codes so that they can then be used to rank students.

The Administration | Applications | Special Reasons tab is used to define special reasons for use in the application process. Up to three special reasons can be used to determine the ranking of students.

Each special reason is assigned a code and a weight that determines the status of the special reason. Students are ranked according to the weight of the special reasons that apply to them.

A special reason may be a consideration, such as medical reasons, or any other factor not listed within the DfE defined Oversubscription Criteria. Within each special reason a group of codes can be chosen, such as a list of medical reasons, all with weightings assigned. The offer processes rank students according to the special reason and then by the weighting of the codes within the reason, with the highest weighted code within Special Reason 1 being the highest priority.

You can Add new codes or Edit existing ones by clicking on the relevant link. Click Add Code again if you want to add more than one code before saving.

Enter a three digit code and a description for each special reason and then assign a weight:

Next, enter the number of points (up to a maximum of 99) that are used to determine the status of the special reason. The higher the number of points, the greater the priority of the special reason. Multiple special reasons may be given the same weight.

Online Labels for Special Reasons

When special reasons are selected for sub groups (via Process | Transfer Groups | Sub Groups), you can define user-friendly labels for any special reasons that are to be made available to online applicants. These labels should avoid the use of any jargon, internal codes and abbreviations.

Welsh Local Authorities can define their online labels in both Welsh and English.