School admission rules

Admission policies and arrangements for admission to primary and secondary schools

If a school does not have enough places for everyone who applies, the admission rules for that school will be used to decide who will get a place.

When school places are allocated by us, only one school place will be offered, even if your child meets the admission rules for more than one school. This avoids some children receiving no offer of a school place while others receive several.

Every school has a set of rules, known as the 'admissions arrangements' or ' oversubscription' criteria. Schools that are oversubscribed will follow these rules when allocating places. Admissions criteria are set by the school's admission authority. Oxfordshire County Council set the rules for community and voluntary controlled schools while governing bodies or academy trusts determine rules for other types of school.

The School Admissions Code came into force in September 2021.

The School Admissions Appeals Code came into force on 1 February 2012.

School admission rules 2025-26

School admission rules 2024-25

School admission rules 2023-24