Applying for a secondary school place in England follows a set national timetable, with the key deadline falling on 31 October and offers going out on 1 March. Missing any stage — especially the October deadline — significantly reduces your chances of securing a preferred school, so knowing the full sequence well in advance is essential.
What is the overall timeline from start to finish?
The process runs across the autumn and spring of your child's Year 6. Below is the standard timetable for September entry.
| Month | Stage |
|---|---|
| May–July (Year 5 or early Year 6) | Research schools; request prospectuses |
| September–October (Year 6) | Attend open evenings and open days |
| September (Year 6) | Local authority (LA) online application system opens |
| 31 October (Year 6) | National closing date for secondary school applications |
| October–November | LA co-ordinates all applications using each school's oversubscription criteria |
| 1 March | National Offer Day — offers sent by email and letter |
| Mid-March | Deadline to accept or decline the offer |
| March onwards | Waiting lists begin to move |
| April onwards | Lodge appeal (if the offered school is not your preference) |
| May–June | Appeal hearings held (within 40 school days of the appeal being lodged) |
| Summer | Ongoing waiting list movement until the start of term |
| September | Child starts Year 7 |
When should parents start researching schools?
The most useful research starts at least a year before the October deadline — so during Year 5 or the summer before Year 6. By the time open evenings arrive in September and October of Year 6, you should already have a shortlist of schools you want to visit, because open evenings are busy and dates clash. Leaving it until September often means missing the evening for your top-choice school.
Useful research sources at this stage include school websites, Ofsted reports (available on the gov.uk website), school performance tables, and conversations with parents of children already attending the school.
How does the application form work?
Secondary school applications in England are submitted to your local authority (LA), not directly to the schools. The LA runs a co-ordinated admissions system. The online form is often called the Common Application Form (CAF) or the secondary transfer form. You will typically be asked to rank up to three, four, or six schools in order of preference (the number varies by LA).
A critical point that many parents misunderstand: listing a school as your first preference does NOT increase your chances of being offered a place there. Each school applies its own oversubscription criteria (distance, siblings, faith criteria, catchment) independently of the order in which you ranked schools. The equal preference system means you are considered for all your preferences simultaneously, and you will receive the highest-ranked offer you qualify for.
What happens after the 31 October deadline?
Between November and February, each LA co-ordinates applications on behalf of all the schools in its area, applying each school's published oversubscription criteria. Schools never see how a parent ranked them relative to other schools — they only receive a list of applicants who named them, and apply their criteria to that list.
No parent action is required during this period, though it is worth checking that your application was successfully received. The LA will send an acknowledgement.
What is National Offer Day?
1 March is the nationally agreed date on which secondary school offers are sent to all applicants. Most LAs now send offers by email, and a letter arrives shortly after. The offer states which school your child has been offered a place at — this is the highest-ranked school on your preference list that has a place available for your child under its admissions criteria.
If none of your preferred schools can offer a place, the LA will offer the nearest school with a vacancy.
What should parents do if they do not get the school they wanted?
You have two routes that can run simultaneously:
- Accept the offered place — this secures a school place and does not prevent you from waiting for or appealing for another
- Join the waiting list for any preferred school that did not offer a place — contact the LA and the school directly to confirm you are on the list; waiting lists must be maintained in oversubscription criteria order, not arrival order
- Lodge an appeal — you have the right to appeal against any refused admission; appeals must usually be lodged within 20 school days of the initial refusal and are heard by an independent appeal panel
Running all three at once is sensible. A waiting list place may come through before an appeal is heard, and an appeal can succeed even on a waiting list.
Do selective school applications follow the same timeline?
Mostly yes, but with additional steps at the start. Grammar school entrance tests (the 11 plus) are typically sat in September or October of Year 6 — before the main application deadline. Results usually arrive in October or November, in time for parents to make informed choices on the common application form. Some independent schools and grammar schools have their own supplementary information forms (SIFs) that must be completed in addition to the LA form.
Frequently asked questions
Can I apply to schools in a different local authority?
Yes. You apply through your own LA but can name schools in any LA as preferences. The co-ordinating LA will pass your child's application to the relevant school's LA for consideration. This is common near LA boundaries.
What if I move house after submitting the application?
Contact your LA immediately. For distance-based or catchment-based oversubscription criteria, the address used is typically your home address at the time the LA processes offers (around January). Moving after the deadline but before offers are made may affect which criteria apply to your child. Do not use a temporary address to gain an advantage — this is fraud and can result in a place being withdrawn even after it has been offered.
Is 31 October a hard deadline?
Yes. Applications received after 31 October are treated as late applications. Late applicants are still considered, but only after all on-time applicants have been assessed against the school's oversubscription criteria. In oversubscribed schools, this effectively means late applicants are very unlikely to receive their preferred offer on National Offer Day.
Can the offered school be changed before September?
Yes — if you accept a place but then secure a higher-preferred school through a waiting list or appeal success, you can decline the original offer and accept the new one. Up to the point of starting school, the place remains yours to manage. Once your child starts at a school in September, moving school becomes an in-year transfer process, which is a separate and often more difficult procedure.
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