{"id":159,"date":"2015-01-12T15:56:48","date_gmt":"2015-01-12T15:56:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/beta.devon.gov.uk\/educationandchildren\/?page_id=159"},"modified":"2026-03-02T09:19:57","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T09:19:57","slug":"apply-for-a-secondary-school-place","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/education\/school-admissions\/apply-for-a-secondary-school-place\/","title":{"rendered":"Apply for a secondary place"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Applications for your child to start in year 7 at secondary school in September 2026 opened on 1 September 2025 and closed on 31 October 2025.&nbsp; Please see the Late applications tab for further details.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Applications for your child to start in year 10 at a studio school or university technical college (UTC), or at a middle or high school elsewhere in the country, and for transfers into a new sixth form at year 12, also open between these dates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The date that all allocations of school places are announced in England is known as&nbsp;<strong>\u2018Offer day\u2019<\/strong>. For September 2026 secondary school starters this will be on&nbsp;<strong>2 March 2026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"accordion-tabs-block\"><ul class=\"accordion\" id=\"block_acf-block-69a5563962aa9\" data-responsive-accordion-tabs=\"accordion medium-accordion large-accordion\" data-allow-all-closed=\"true\" data-multi-expand=\"true\"><li id=\"item-69a5563962aa9-0\" class=\"accordion-item\" data-accordion-item=\"\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"accordion-title\">Before you apply<\/a><div class=\"accordion-content\" data-tab-content><p>Before you apply we encourage you to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/document\/the-step-by-step-guide-to-normal-round-admissions-in-september-2026\/\">step-by-step guide to normal round admissions<\/a> for the type of school you are applying to, including:\n<ul>\n<li>year 7 secondary school applications<\/li>\n<li>year 10 studio school or university technical college applications<\/li>\n<li>middle or high school applications elsewhere in the country<\/li>\n<li>transfer to a sixth form at a new school<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>read the <a href=\"https:\/\/devoncc.sharepoint.com\/:b:\/s\/PublicDocs\/Education\/EaiSnzAK4JNMmLS_gpb8MGAB7f74JgV5oLBiar0kxaRlug?e=fHHS0A\" rel=\"noopener\">guidance on using the citizens portal <\/a><\/li>\n<li>view information about schools on our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/schools\/school\/\">school information pages<\/a><\/li>\n<li>have a look to see when schools are holding open days, evenings or tours &#8211; schools hold open evenings throughout September and October and details of these can be found on their own websites<\/li>\n<li>find out what different schools have to offer your child<\/li>\n<li>know <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/education\/school-admissions\/school-designated-areas\">which school is designated<\/a> for your child\u2019s address<\/li>\n<li>understand what equally ranked preferences mean &#8211; it enables you to apply for the schools you most want without affecting your chances of a place at other schools<\/li>\n<li>be aware of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/education\/school-and-college-transport\">school transport policy<\/a> \u2013 it is important that you understand who will\u00a0be responsible for transport before applying to a school and before accepting a place<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/education\/school-admissions\/allocation-day-faqs\">view frequently asked questions about what happened in previous admissions rounds<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You can apply for any state-funded school in England or Wales.<\/p>\n<p>You must apply to the local authority\u00a0where your child lives. Residents of\u00a0Plymouth, Torbay, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset should apply to their\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/education\/school-admissions\/other-local-authority-contact-details\/\">local authority<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>We will not\u00a0assume that you want a place at a particular school &#8211; even if you have an older child who already attends\u00a0or you live nearby.<\/p>\n<p>The Admissions Team can be contacted at <a href=\"mailto:admissions@devon.gov.uk\">admissions@devon.gov.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><li id=\"item-69a5563962aa9-1\" class=\"accordion-item\" data-accordion-item=\"\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"accordion-title\">Apply now<\/a><div class=\"accordion-content\" data-tab-content><p>The application system to apply for year 7 in September 2026 is now closed. The closing date is 31 October each year. You can apply after this date but applications made after this date will be considered late and may be at a disadvantage. Please see the \u2018Late applications\u2019 tab for more information.<\/p>\n<p>If you cannot apply online, please contact the Education helpline on <a href=\"tel:03451551019\">0345 155 1019<\/a> and ask for a paper copy of the form to be sent to you.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><li id=\"item-69a5563962aa9-2\" class=\"accordion-item\" data-accordion-item=\"\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"accordion-title\">Late applications<\/a><div class=\"accordion-content\" data-tab-content><p>Applications close on 31 October each year. If you apply after this date, the application will be considered late unless you can demonstrate that you were unable to apply on time, for example, because of illness or a house move. For illness to be taken into account, it must have prevented an application being made.<\/p>\n<p>If the reason you give is accepted and you are able to apply by the date when applications are processed by us, your application will be considered to have been made on time.<\/p>\n<p>Remember:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>you cannot apply online after the closing date.\u00a0To apply after this time please contact us on <a href=\"tel:03451551019\">0345 155 1019<\/a><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>if your application is late, places at the schools you\u00a0prefer may already have been filled \u2013 no places are held\u00a0in reserve<\/li>\n<li>if your application is late you may be responsible for transport to and from a school further away from your home<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/li><li id=\"item-69a5563962aa9-3\" class=\"accordion-item\" data-accordion-item=\"\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"accordion-title\">Offer day<\/a><div class=\"accordion-content\" data-tab-content><p>We will email your child\u2019s offer of a school place on\u00a0<strong>Monday 2 March 2026<\/strong>.\u00a0Please make sure your email address is kept up to date.<\/p>\n<p>If you applied online, you can also <a href=\"https:\/\/oneonline.devon.gov.uk\/CCSCitizenPortal_LIVE\/Account\/Login?ReturnUrl=%2FCCSCitizenPortal_LIVE%2F\" rel=\"noopener\">log into your online account<\/a> from\u00a0<strong>10 am on<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>2\u00a0March<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>2026<\/strong>\u00a0to view the school allocated.<\/p>\n<p>Please note, if your child has an education health and care plan (EHCP) and your preference was for a special or independent school, your named case officer should have made contact to confirm the placement agreed for September. The allocated school should also be named in Section I of the most recent EHCP, and you can view this by logging on to <a href=\"https:\/\/ehchub.devon.gov.uk\/\" rel=\"noopener\">the EHC Hub<\/a>. If you have any queries regarding placement for your child with an EHCP, please contact your named case officer, or email <a href=\"mailto:specialeducation@devon.gov.uk\">specialeducation@devon.gov.uk<\/a>\u00a0and someone will contact you.<\/p>\n<p>We will offer your child one secondary\u00a0school place. If a place was available at more than one of your preferences, the offer will be for the\u00a0school that can offer a place which was your highest preference.<\/p>\n<p>If none of your preferred\u00a0schools could offer a place, we\u00a0will make an offer at another school. This may be the school designated for your address if it has a vacancy remaining or the closest school to your child\u2019s home with a vacancy.<\/p>\n<p>Please find the <a href=\"https:\/\/devoncc.sharepoint.com\/:x:\/s\/PublicDocs\/Education\/IQBZyx4kiUt9TaSlpuswF_HMAeweeiSpomSujcuDfw4GCoU?e=fyTTxE\" rel=\"noopener\">Allocation Breakdown for each Secondary School<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/devoncc.sharepoint.com\/:w:\/s\/PublicDocs\/Education\/IQAx4-PFx-hrS5U_--8d8NzBAQrt8srugXK5iGGmvGOmCLE?e=PH5OjT\" rel=\"noopener\">Oversubscription Criteria<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/education\/school-admissions\/allocation-day-faqs\">View our frequently asked questions here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>What happens next<\/h3>\n<p>If you are happy with the school place offered to your child you do not need to do anything else, other than confirm you want the place to the school itself.<\/p>\n<p>If you are not happy with the offer, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/education\/school-admissions\/school-admission-appeals\/\">find out how to appeal<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Apply for your child to start in year 7 at secondary school, year 10 at a studio school or UTC or a middle or high school<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":615,"parent":65430,"menu_order":6,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-159","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-26 05:48:22","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=159"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/159\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73480,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/159\/revisions\/73480"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/65430"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/children-families-education\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}