10,000 children miss out on their first-choice primary

ALMOST 10,000 children failed to get a place at their first-choice primary school despite a drop in applications partly caused by families fleeing London, new figures reveal.

Overall, 89 per cent of parents who applied for their children to start in a reception class in September were allocated their top preference school. This is an increase of 0.6 per cent from last year’s figures.

But at the same time the number of applications dropped by 2.2 per cent. Experts said this was caused by the falling birth rate, and families leaving London due to Brexit, the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis.

Despite there being fewer children needing places, today’s figures show there is still heavy demand for the most popular schools, which remain over-subscribed.

Families were today finding out which school their children will start at in September. They are allowed to list six schools in order of preference.

Data from the Pan London Admissions Board, which coordinates school admissions in the capital, reveals:

• About 98 per cent of children were offered a place at one of their preferred schools. This percentage has not changed since last year despite the number of applications dropping.

• A total of 89 per cent (76,064 children) were allocated their first choice.

• Around 97 per cent of children were offered a place at one of their top three schools — up 0.1 per cent on last year.

• Some 85,336 children applied for a place in Reception — a 2.2 per cent decrease on last year.

• And 1,540 children did not get a place at any of their preferred schools.

The board said: “Application numbers vary across boroughs and are affected by a number of reasons, including the falling birth rate ... Other important factors impacting application numbers include migration, such as families moving due to changes in their circumstances and working patterns, along with the effect of the UK leaving the EU in some areas.”