Parents who want to send their child to one of the new primary schools in Bradford next year are being urged to apply now for a reception place.

Information booklets and application forms are now available from primary schools in the district and these should be filled in and returned to the preferred school before the end of January 2000.

Under the previous system, parents could simply ring a school and ask for their child's name to be put on a waiting list for a place. But now all parents of three and four-year-olds, whether they have already put this child's name down at a certain school, must fill in an application form.

As part of Bradford's school reorganisation, eight new primary schools will be opened in former middle schools across the district.

Councillor Susanne Rooney, Bradford Council's education chairman, said: "The new arrangements will help improve the allocation procedure because the previous system of using lists kept by schools could easily become out of date.

"The application forms give parents the opportunity to state the reasons why they want a particular school. Parents are welcome to apply to more than one school but they should list the others they have applied to and return the forms to the schools by January 31, 2000.

"This applies to all parents whose child was born between September 1, 1995, and August 31, 1996."

The eight new primary schools are Burley Primary, Newhall Primary, Bierley, Drummond Primary, Manningham, Knowleswood Primary, Holme Wood, Lower Fields Primary, East Bowling, Waverley Primary, Great Horton, Worth Valley Primary, Keighley, and Wycliffe CE Primary, Shipley.

Anyone who wants more information should contact the schools admission officers on Bradford 751775/6.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.