Making a secondary school application and the admissions process

Page Contents

Introduction
Allocation of school places
Making your application
Your offer of a school place
Appealing a school place offer
Home to school travel assistance

Introduction

Before applying make sure you have read the information on the following pages.

You may need to provide additional information on your application. This could be based on your circumstances, or for particular schools which may need a Supplementary Information Form (SIF).

Please note: It is strongly recommended that you name your catchment school as one of your preferences. Your catchment school is the school most likely to offer your child a place.

Allocation of school places

Published Admission Number (PAN)

Each school has a Published Admission Number (PAN). This is the maximum number of pupils that can be admitted each year. The PAN is determined by the accommodation available at a school. There is a national formula to calculate how many children can go to a school without causing overcrowding.

Many schools receive more applications than they can accommodate. To decide which children to offer places to, different categories of students are prioritised. The order of these categories are known as the school’s over-subscription criteria (see below).

Over-subscription criteria

These describe how schools offer places to students when there are not enough places for everyone who applies. Different schools have different criteria. It is important that you check the admission arrangements for all the schools that you wish to apply for.

The Cambridgeshire Directory lists the PAN and the over-subscription criteria

You can also view how places were allocated in the previous year. This gives an idea how likely your child may be to get a place. For example, some schools may be full by the time they reach their third over-subscription criteria.

How places are allocated and your preferences considered

All preferences are treated equally. This means we will look to see if a place is available for your child at each school you have listed. We will offer you a place at your highest preference school that has a place available.

Where necessary we exchange details of applications with other Local Authorities. We will co-ordinate offers of places so each child is only offered one school place.

Step 1 - First preference

If we can meet your first preference, we will offer your child a place at that school.

You will not be considered for any lower preference schools and will not be placed on their waiting lists and there is no right to appeal for lower preference schools you are not considered for.

Step 2 - Second preference

If we cannot meet your first preference but can meet your second preference, we will offer your child a place at that school.

Your child’s name will then be added to the waiting list of your first preference school, and you will be offered your right of appeal.

Step 3 - Third preference

If we cannot meet your second preference, but can meet your third preference, we will offer your child a place at that school.

Your child’s name will be added to the waiting lists for your first and second preference schools, and you will be offered your right of appeal.

Designated by the School Admissions team

If we cannot meet any of your preferences, we will offer your child a place at your catchment school if;

you have not already expressed it as a preference; and
following the allocation of all preferences, there are still places available

If a place is not available at your catchment school, a place will be offered at the nearest alternative school where a place is available. If you did not express a preference for your catchment school, your child will not receive travel assistance to any alternative school offered as a part of the admissions process.

Your child’s name will be added to the waiting list for all of your preferred schools and you will be offered your right of appeal.

Children are placed on the list according to the school’s over-subscription criteria. The date of applications does not influence the order of the waiting list. Your child will remain on a waiting list, until:

you are offered a place by an independent appeal panel;
a place becomes available;
you are offered a place at a school you have ranked as a higher preference but were previously refused due to over-subscription; or
you submit a new application that does not name the school as a preference or ranks it as a lower preference than a school we are able to offer you a place at.

Helen lives in Cambridge and applies for the following three schools;

St Bede’s IC School
Witchford Village College
Comberton Village College

Comberton Village College is Helen’s catchment school, but she currently has a sibling attending Witchford Village College.

Helen’s first preference is St Bede’s. The school is over-subscribed. When the over-subscription criteria were applied, places could only be offered as far as children who met the religious criteria. Helen met the lowest criterion for St Bede’s and was not offered a place. Her name was placed on the school’s waiting list.

Helen met the sibling criterion for Witchford Village College, her second preference. The school was able to offer places to all children who met the sibling criterion so Helen was offered a place.

Helen would also have qualified for a place at her catchment school, Comberton Village College. This was her third preference. However, she had already received an offer from a school which was her second preference. It was not necessary to offer her a place at Comberton Village College.

Helen will not be eligible for home to school transport, as her catchment school was not given the chance to 'offer' or 'decline' a place for Helen.

Making your application

Please apply online using our Late application form (Only complete if your child is moving into Yr 7 for September 2025)

You will be able to print your application after you submit.
You will receive notification of offer that will be sent out via post on the 25th of April 2025.

Secondary 2025 late applications

You can apply online using free WiFi and computers at Cambridgeshire libraries.
You can apply on paper, and return this to your child’s current school, or send it to us. Please call us on 0345 045 1370 for a form.

Paper applications

If you apply using a paper form you cannot receive your offer by email. You will have to wait to receive your offer in the post.

We recommend that all paper application forms are posted by “signed-for” recorded delivery, and that you get proof of postage. We accept no responsibility, and will make no exceptions, for applications that do not reach us and are not posted by this method. Do not send original documents.

You can also hand the application in to your child’s current school, for them to scan and email to us. If you do, please request a confirmation receipt.

If you have already made an online application for your child, you must not also submit a paper form. If we receive both a paper and an online application, the application with the most recent date (last one received) will be the application that is processed.

Your offer of a school place

The date you receive your offer and how it is received will vary. The email/letter you receive will detail the steps you need to take to accept or decline the offer made.

Did you know...

In March 2024, of families who applied for secondary school places:

87.7% were offered a place at their first preference school;
95.6% were offered a place at one of their three preferred schools;
4.4% were not offered a place at any of their preferred schools.

Appealing a school place offer

Information on appealing a school place will be included with your offer of a school place. You can also find out all about the appeals process on our school place appeals page.

Home to school travel assistance

Information on home to school travel assistance will be included with your offer of a school place. You can also find out more on our home to school travel assistance page.

Please note: If your application is incomplete, or incorrect, it will be delayed. It could also be cancelled. You will need to confirm you have read and understood all three secondary admissions webpages when submitting your application form.