Reception Application Deadline 15 January 2027: Your Checklist

The primary deadline gets less attention than the October secondary one, but it decides the next seven years of your child's school days. This checklist covers what to do between now and 15 January 2027. It is based on the School Admissions Code 2021 and on how councils run their coordinated schemes.

• Now to 15 January 2027: applications open on your council's website.
• 15 January 2027: the national closing date. Some councils close at a set time, so check yours.
• 16 April 2027: national offer day for primary places.
• September 2027: your child starts Reception, or later in the year if you defer.

Most schools in England admit by priority criteria: looked-after children first, then usually siblings, sometimes faith or a catchment area, and distance from home. The distance the last place went to (the last distance offered) moves every year, and for many primaries it is about a mile or less.

Look up each school's last distance offered and catchment for your address, and read its admission arrangements. A school that is nearest isn't always one you'll get into.

Councils let you name three to six schools, depending on the council. Offers use an equal-preference system: each school first decides whether your child qualifies for a place under its own criteria, without knowing where you ranked it. If more than one school could offer a place, you get the one you ranked highest. So ranking a school first never costs you a place elsewhere.

Fill every preference. Include at least one school where your child is very likely to get in on distance or catchment. If none of your schools can offer a place, the council will offer one wherever there's space, and that could be some distance away.

Some schools, especially faith schools, ask for a supplementary information form as well as your council application. These usually go straight to the school, and often to the same deadline. Missing one can cost you priority under the faith criteria.

Your child doesn't have to be in school until the term after their fifth birthday. You can take up an offered place later in the school year, or part-time until then. If your child is summer-born (born between 1 April and 31 August), you can ask to start Reception a year later, in September 2028. Make that request to the admission authority with your application. It decides each case, so ask your council how it handles them.

You can join waiting lists, which stay open until at least 31 December 2027, and appeal. Reception and infant classes are limited by law to 30 pupils per teacher, so infant class size appeals succeed only on narrow grounds. That's another reason to check each school's real cut-off before you rank it. See what to do if you missed out on a primary school offer.