More Pupils Offered School Places Of Their Choice

Cllr Andy Pellew

The vast majority of children in Cambridgeshire will be starting Reception in September in their first choice primary school, according to new figures.

A total of 91.57% of children applying for a place in Reception this September by the deadline have been allocated a place at their first choice school. This is an increase on last year's 90.6%.

A further 6.06% have been offered a place at their second or third choice primary school, while fewer than 2.5% could not be offered any of their preferences.

This increase has been achieved by Cambridgeshire County Council's Admissions Team, despite the continuing pressure on primary school places throughout the county.

These latest figures come after it was revealed that 94.7% of students had been offered a place at their first choice secondary school in September; a rise of 5.3% on the previous year. A further 3.45% were offered a place at their second or third choice, while just 1.85% could not be offered any of their preferences.

A total of 6704 children requested places at Cambridgeshire primary schools this year, with 5715 applying for secondary school. The number of applications made online also increased.

Local County Councillor Andy Pellew said: "It's a credit to the hard work the County Councils' Admissions Team have put in that this years numbers show such an improvement over the previous year especially given the emerging demographic pressures across the County and specifically here in Cambridge City".