This week, the Department for Education (DfE) has published its annual admissions data for all state schools in England.  For relocating families finding a school place for their child can be one of the biggest challenges to a successful assignment making it all the more important for global mobility managers to understand the difficulties families face.

State school admissions

Parents were required to apply for secondary school places for their children in the autumn of 2015 for a place at a school starting in September 2016. The deadline for applying for a primary school place for the new 2016 autumn term was in January this year.Most local authorities ask parents to choose three-four schools in order of preference for their children, but this can vary. Local authorities then allocate school places, according to the school’s admissions criteria, in March for secondary school places and in April for primary school places.

Secondary school admission in England

The good news is that in 2016 the majority of families (84 per cent) received an offer of their first preference secondary school and 95 per cent were offered a place at one of their top three choices.Local authorities received 548,006 applications for a secondary school place, a slight increase in number on the previous year. According to the DfE figures, the number of applications in 2016 was the highest received since 2008.

Primary school admission in England

A similarly high percentage of primary school parents (88 per cent) received an offer of their first choice school and over 96 per cent received an offer of one of their top three choices.Despite a small increase in the number of primary pupils applying for a school place in 2016, the proportion of families to receive an offer of their first choice school increased slightly. But, comparable data has only been collected for two years since the introduction of primary ‘national offer day’ in 2014.

Parents least likely to be offered top choice of school in London

According to the government data, children in London are least likely to be offered their first choice school, in both secondary and primary applications.  Only 65 per cent of parents in Inner London Authorities received an offer of a school place for their number one preference of school.  Outer London applications fared better at just over 70 per cent, but only just.The worst London authorities for first choice school allocations were: Hammersmith & Fulham (52 per cent), Westminster (53 per cent) and Lambeth (57 per cent) with each borough achieving the lowest rates overall in England in 2016.The South West and North East topped the charts for the regions with the highest proportion of applicants receiving an offer of their first choice secondary school, with 91 per cent in the South West and 91 per cent in the North East.Many relocating families find themselves unable to fit into the usual admissions round of state schools and will need advice on in-year admissions. Take a look at our stree-free guide to in-year school admissions.

Relocate Global: Guide to International Education and Schools

Need to know more about the school application process in England? Relocate Global’s new Guide to International Education & Schools is an invaluable resource for HR, global managers, employers, relocation professionals and relocating parents looking for a school place for their child.

Relocate Global’s new annual Guide to International Education & Schools provides a wealth of advice to anyone searching for a new school in the UK and in an international setting, and offers insights into what it takes to make the right school choice. 

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