More than 98 per cent of parents in Hampshire (14,312) have been offered a place for their child at one of their three preferences for a secondary school in September 2024.

Of those who applied for a Year 7 place for September 2024 by the application deadline, 90.71 per cent (13,232) have been offered a place at their first preference school. The County Council received 14,587 on-time applications this year – a decrease of 306 on-time applications compared to the number received for places in September 2023 (14,893).

Councillor Steve Forster, the County Council’s Executive Member for Education, said: “My thanks go out to our hardworking School Admissions Team for another successful outcome, as they continue to deliver well above the national average for finding places at parents’ preferred schools. Today’s figures show that despite rising pressure in many areas with new housing developments, we are successfully managing demand.

“For those parents and carers who have not secured a place at one of their preferred secondary school this year, I would urge them to please visit our website for advice and guidance on their options.”

Pupils who did not secure a place at one of their preferences have been allocated a place at their catchment school or the next nearest school with a place available. Parents have the right to appeal against any refusal in these situations and their child’s name will be added to the waiting list for their preferred schools. Places can become available via the waiting list for various reasons including parents changing their mind, or families moving home.

Parents who applied online have been notified of their offers by email. They can also view their offer by logging into the secure, online portal using the same log-in details provided when making their online application. Those parents who applied on paper have been notified by email if an email address was provided in their application form. Or by post where no email address was provided and should receive their letters in two to three days.

A set of Frequently Asked Questions to help with parents’ queries has been published on the Admissions webpages. This includes information on school transport assistance which may be available in certain circumstances. Where the national eligibility criteria are met (application deadline 31 May).

The Admissions Team is now busy processing main round infant, junior and primary school applications with school place offers due to go out to parents on 16 April 2024.

The breakdown of the 2024 secondary admission figures is as follows:

Total applications 1st preference offered 2nd preference offered 3rd preference offered Other offers
14,587 (2023: 14,893) 13,232 871 209 275
Percentage 90.71% (2023: 90.34%) 5.97% (2023: 5.69%) 1.43% (2023: 1.40%) 1.89%