More than 96 percent of children in Bristol were offered one of their top three secondary school preferences this year. On Monday (March 3), families across the region were notified whether their child would be attending one of their preferred schools starting in September.
In Bristol, 96 percent of families who applied were given one of three preferred options. In North Somerset, this figure was 97 percent.
Bristol City Council said that 4,762 applications were received for secondary school spaces. When compared with last year, the number of applications decreased 5.9 percent from 5,061 to 4,762.
Out of the 4,762 applications, 3,851 children were offered their first choice preference, equating to 81.61 percent. It is the third year in a row where the percentage of children being offered their first choice has risen.
In total, 509 children, or 10.79 percent, were offered their second choice school and 172 children (3.64 percent) were offered their third choice. It means 96.04 percent of all young people were offered a preferred school.
Some did not receive a preference school, where the majority of families had applied for schools outside of the Local Authority, or faith schools or applied to schools which allocate places by random allocation.
Councillor Christine Townsend, chair of the children and young people policy committee, said: “The demand for places is clear, our admissions team have worked hard with schools to make sure that Bristol children receive a place from one of their preferred schools. I am happy to see that the majority of families are being offered their first choice of school, but there remains room for improvement.
“As far as possible, being mindful some schools fall on our boundaries, we all want Bristol children to be the priority for Bristol schools. There is further work to be done here with diocesan schools and some academy schools who by nature of their admissions criteria can prioritise children from other areas over Bristol children.
“We will continue to work closely with these schools and dioceses so that the needs of Bristol families come before any other consideration they might have. All other local authority levers we have will support this approach.
“We hope that parents and carers felt supported throughout the process and are excited to help their children make the move up to secondary school. Thanks must go to all teaching staff and schools who are there to encourage and support Year 6 students during this milestone.”
92 percent of children offered first choice school in North Somerset
In North Somerset, more than 97 percent of young people were offered a place in one of their three preferred secondary schools. There were a total of 2,468 applications, of which 2,280 (92.38 percent) were offered a place at their first choice school.
In total, 114 applicants were given a spot at their second preference and 22 in their third choice. Only 52 applicants were offered a place outside of the first three preferences.
Councillor Catherine Gibbons, North Somerset Council’s deputy leader and executive member for children’s services, families and lifelong learning, said: “I’m thrilled to see that almost all our young people in North Somerset were offered a place at one of their top three secondary schools.
“Processing thousands of applications and trying to match as many children as possible with their preferred schools is a significant task. I’d like to thank our council officers and our schools for all their hard work in making this possible.
“We wish all the young people starting secondary school this September the best of luck in this exciting new chapter. For next year’s applications, I encourage you to submit three preferences – including your local school – to help make the process quicker, easier and more successful.”
98.9 percent of South Gloucestershire applicants offered a preferred school choice
South Gloucestershire Council said that 98.9 percent of children received an offer from one of their three preferred secondary schools. The council confirmed to Bristol Live that 3232 on-time applications were received for South Gloucestershire residents.
In total, 2,913 children (90.1 percent) were offered their first choice school. 247 children (7.6 percent) were offered a place at their second choice school.
Only 37 children (or 1.1 percent of all applicants) were offered their third choice school. 33 children (1.0 percent) were referred by South Gloucestershire Council.
Co-leader of South Gloucestershire Council and cabinet member with responsibility for education, Councillor Ian Boulton, said: “I am grateful to all our staff and school partners for their work in enabling a high level of parental preferences to be met, which has resulted in 99 per cent of those who applied, receiving an offer for one of their top three preferences of secondary school.
“We will continue to work closely with our schools, developing local provision so that children are able to attend a school within their local community through the roll out of new school places where they are needed most.”
Any parents and carers of children who were not offered one of their top three preferences have the option to appeal the decision. To find out more information, visit your council website.