Can we join IPS? 

Your right to attend your designated neighbourhood school

Student intake is a difficult and sometimes emotional topic for all schools to manage.  To help you understand our process here are some facts (things we cannot change) and guidelines:

  • Our school has an enrolment ceiling (maximum) based on our size and facilities.

  • Our school has a defined catchment area from where we must accept enrolments (Click here to see if we are your closest school).

  • Our school has to manage student intake within our ceiling which may include denying enrolment to students from outside our catchment area.

To determine the closest government school to your residential address you can use the same tool we do. 

Eligible children and young persons have the right to be admitted to their designated neighbourhood government school, regardless of capacity. Accordingly, all students that reside within the area of a designated neighbourhood school (referred to as a ‘school zone’) must be offered a place when seeking enrolment.

A student’s designated neighbourhood school is the school that is nearest the student’s permanent address as determined by the school zone. The Find My School website provides guidance on which school zone a student’s permanent residence is located within.

Enrolments at Ivanhoe Primary are high, resulting in the following general guidelines the school considers when reviewing enrolment requests from outside our catchment area:

  • Priority will be given where siblings are already enrolled at the school.

  • We first process catchment area enrolments and then consider the overall class sizes to determine if enrolments will be accepted from outside the catchment area.

  • International fee paying students are not accepted at this time.

Please refer to the Department of Education Victoria Placement Policy for more information. 

This section of the Department’s enrolment guidelines outlines the obligations on Victorian government schools in relation to placement of students and is referred to as the Placement Policy. For information on verifying a student’s permanent address, refer to: Determining permanent residence.

The Department’s Placement Policy embeds the legal entitlement for students to enrol at their designated neighbourhood school, and to enrol at another school if there is sufficient accommodation. Click here

How to Enrol

Foundation enrolments for 2025 are open (for children who will be 5 years old by April 30th in the enrolment year).

Enrolment forms are available from the link below or through the school office. Phone our friendly Admin team on 9499 1880.

Requirements for enrolment:

  • Your child must be 5 or older by April 30th in the enrolment year.

  • Check to see if IPS is your closest government school (Find my school).

  • You need to complete & lodge the Enrolment Form with the school. 

  • We will need a copy of your child's birth and immunisation certificates (must be received prior to the start of the school year).

  • If transferring from another school please bring educational information such as school reports, assessment information and any other relevant files from your child's previous school.

Any changes in enrolment information should be reported to the office as soon as possible, especially Emergency Contacts, Change of Address / Contact Details, etc.