Most students offered first choice secondary school, council says

The majority of families were offered their first choice secondary school in Brighton and Hove this year, the council said.
Cllr Daniel ChapmanCllr Daniel Chapman
Cllr Daniel Chapman

More than 84 per cent (1,161 pupils) got their first choice school for September 2018, with eight per cent (97 pupils) getting their second choice and three per cent (74 pupils) getting their third preference.

But five per cent (137 students) weren’t given any of their three choices. The council said in these instances the families were offered places at the nearest school to their home that had places available.

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A council spokesperson said: “In most cases the reason these families weren’t offered one of their preferences was either because they had failed to meet the applications deadline, or because they didn’t apply for their catchment area school, or both schools if they were in a dual catchment area.”

Cllr Dan Chapman, chairman of the council’s children, young people and skills committee, said: “Secondary pupil numbers are currently increasing, with demand up by more than 50 places this year.

“I’m delighted that despite this we have managed to offer 46 more families their preferred school, and seen a drop in the number who weren’t offered any of their preferences.

“Clearly this has been helped by the recent decisions for some schools to admit more pupils as of this September.

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“The total number of places available will increase again in September 2019 when Dorothy Stringer will also start taking extra pupils.

“We are acutely aware of the pressures in the Dorothy Stringer/Varndean catchment area, and with this in mind we are helping fund the expansions of both schools to meet the demand for extra places in the next few years.

“This was a big factor in our decision that the benefits of leaving the catchment areas as they are outweighed the possible benefits of the changes that had been proposed.”

Are you happy with your child’s secondary school offer? Let us know by emailing [email protected] or tweeting @BrightonIndy.

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