Half term prep: Getting ready for Year 7 National Offer Day

With National Offer Day approaching on 1 March, half term is the perfect opportunity to get ahead. While most schools are focused on filling places, the smoothest transitions happen when teams prepare for what comes after offer day.

Here's how to use those few days to set yourself up for a calm transition period.

1. Get your CTF strategy sorted

You'll receive your Year 7 list from the Local Authority on 1 March, then the race begins to chase Common Transfer Files from dozens of feeder primaries - each with different response times.

This half term:

• Map out your feeder primaries and key contacts
• Identify who's responsible for CTF chasing and how you'll coordinate as a team
• Familiarise yourself with the CTF Wizard tools so you're ready to import and request CTFs the moment your LA file arrives

Once your LA file arrives on 1 March, schools using Applicaa's CTF Wizard can import their cohort and automatically send tracked requests to all feeder schools with one click – with automated follow-ups and a live dashboard showing exactly which CTFs are outstanding. Get your team aligned now so you're ready to act fast.
Read the Knowledge Base article

2. Build your data collection forms now

Between March and July, you need emergency contacts, medical details, SEN support needs, consent forms, and pastoral information from parents. The old way – paper forms or scattered Google Forms - means low response rates, manual data entry, and errors that take months to fix.

This half term:

• Decide what information you need to collect
• Set up your Applicaa data collection forms now so they're ready to send the moment offers go out
• Draft your parent communications to accompany the forms

With purpose-built data collection tools, you'll have real-time visibility on who's responded and who needs chasing, plus all data flows directly into your MIS with zero manual entry.
Read the Knowledge Base article

3. Design your transition questionnaires

Your feeder primaries hold invaluable insights - friendship groups, pastoral concerns, learning strengths, support needs. But gathering this consistently from multiple schools is notoriously difficult.

This half term:

• Draft questions for feeder schools
• Decide how primaries will submit responses (Applicaa's Transition Tool gives them one central place for all transition information)
• Create your timeline for sending forms and receiving responses

Schools collecting structured transition data report much more confident September starts.
Watch our video

4. Plan your tutor group allocation

Building balanced tutor groups is one of the most time-consuming summer tasks. Manual spreadsheet sorting means days of work trying to balance gender, SEND, feeder schools, friendship groups, and pastoral needs.

This half term:

• List your criteria for balanced groups (gender, SEND, feeder school, friendships, pastoral flags)
• Decide who's involved and when it happens
• Set up Applicaa's Sorting Hat so you can generate balanced tutor groups in minutes based on your exact criteria – saving 15-20 hours of manual work

Read the Knowledge Base article

5. Set up your parent communication plan

From March onwards: What do we need to do next? When are induction days? How do I order uniform? The same questions, repeatedly.

This half term:

• Draft standard responses to common questions
• Plan your communication timeline (welcome email, uniform details, transition days)
• Set up your induction days and transition events in Applicaa's Events area so parents can register and you can track attendance
• Configure your two-way communication tools so you can see which parents have opened emails and responded

Plan now, avoid dozens of anxious calls and emails later.
Read the Knowledge Base articles

6. Prepare your MIS data transfer process

All that carefully collected data needs to get into your MIS. Manual copying and pasting means hours of work and errors that you're still correcting in October.

This half term:

• Map out what data goes where in your MIS
• Check your Applicaa MIS integration is configured and tested
• Identify which staff members need training on the one-click transfer process

Read the Knowledge Base article

The goal: spend summer preparing, not firefighting

Schools that plan ahead in half term report a completely different summer term. Instead of drowning in scattered spreadsheets and chasing missing information, they're welcoming families, preparing teaching teams, and ensuring a confident September start.

National Offer Day is just the beginning. The schools that make transition look effortless planned for what comes next.

Want to see how Applicaa streamlines Year 7 transition?

Join a group training session - 12/26 March or 16 April - to see transition tools, CTF Wizard, and Sorting Hat in action - and hear from schools who've transformed their transition process.

📅 Book your place