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<p>My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education wrote to all directors
of children’s services on 1 April 2022 asking them to assist refugees from Ukraine
in finding school places as quickly as possible. The department followed this up with
a similar message to every local authority admission officer on 4 April 2022.</p><p>
</p><p>Admission authorities in England must always apply their published admission
arrangements. There are no exceptions for Ukrainians or children of any other nationality.</p><p>
</p><p>Local authorities in England do not have additional school admission obligations
in relation to refugees from Ukraine, they have the same right to a school place as
any other child resident in the UK. Local authorities in England have a duty to provide
sufficient school places for children living in their area. Parents have a duty to
ensure any of their children who are of compulsory school age receive a suitable education.</p><p>
</p><p>It is not necessary to have a fixed home address in order to be allocated a
school and admission authorities would be in breach of their legal obligations if
they refused admission on this basis. The school admissions code states that admission
arrangements must be clear about how a child’s home address will be determined.</p><p>
</p><p>The department provides advice, in Ukrainian and Russian, to parents on finding
a school place in the Ukraine welcome pack, similar to the advice we provide Hong
Kong British National (Overseas) and Afghan migrants. The department have also recently
updated our website giving advice to local authorities and schools on the admission
rights of foreign nationals.</p>
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