Starting secondary school (Year 7)

Children currently in Year 6 at a primary or junior school, or born between 1 September 2013 and 31 August 2014, are able to start Year 7 in a secondary school in September 2025.

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Before you fill in this form

You won't be able to save this form to complete later, so please allow yourself 10-15 minutes to fill in the form. You will need to provide:

  • Proof of address

Apply for a school place

Late applications

Offers will be made to late applicants on the following basis:

Application received between Offer made
1 November - 31 December 2024 W/C 10 March 2025
1 January - 28 February 2025 W/C 17 March 2025
1 March - 31 March 2025 W/C 14 April 2025
1 April - 30 April 2025 W/C 12 May 2025
1 May - 31 May 2025 W/C 16 June 2025
1 June - 30 June 2025 W/C 7 July 2025
1 July - 14 July 2025 W/C 21 July 2025
15 July - 31 July 2025 W/C 11 August 2025
1 August - 11 August 2025 W/C 18 August 2025
12 August - 18 August 2025 W/C 25 August 2025
19 August - 31 August 2025 W/C 1 September 2025
From 1 September 2025 onwards Managed as per in-year timescales

Secondary school year groups

Secondary schools provide education for children between 11 and 16 years of age. The National Curriculum organises the year groups as follows:

Age School year Key stage
Between 11 and 12 7 3
Between 12 and 13 8 3
Between 13 and 14 9 3
Between 14 and 15 10 4
Between 15 and 16 11 4

An important part of this process is enabling them to get the best possible results at key stage 3 of the National Curriculum and the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) - the examination courses taken during years 10 and 11.

For main round applications, the school place offered will be for a full time place starting from 1 September 2025. Find out more about how to apply for a school place.

If you want to change schools part-way through the academic year, you will need to complete an in-year transfer application.

2025/26 admissions

You can now read information on the process for 'main round' admission into Year 7 for the 2025/26 academic year:

Other useful information