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What order should I put schools on the application form?

Put schools in the order you genuinely prefer them. This planner explains why, and checks that you have a safe option.

  • September 2027 entry
  • Advice only: no chances are predicted

The short answer

Rank schools in your genuine order of preference, grammar schools included, whether or not you know the 11+ result yet. Admissions in England use equal preference: each school ranks applications by its own published rules and cannot favour a child because of where the parents ranked it. Your council then offers the highest school on your list that has a place for your child.

So there is no tactical order. The one thing to get right is to include at least one school where you are confident of a place.

Plan your order

Add the grammar schools and other schools you are considering, say whether each 11+ result is known and whether you live in each priority area, and the planner suggests an order with the reason for each place. It works in your browser and nothing you enter is sent anywhere.

What this planner does not do

It does not estimate your chance of a place at any school. That depends on how many children apply, their scores and where they live, which nobody knows until offer day. Read each school's admission arrangements for its oversubscription rules.

The rules behind the advice

  1. 1

    Schools must not give extra priority to a child because of the order in which the parents ranked them, and 'first preference first' rules are banned. A school ranks every application against its own published criteria, so placing it higher on the form does not raise your chance of a place there, and placing it lower does not reduce it.

    School Admissions Code 2021, paragraph 1.9(c)

    Checked 1 October 2026. Source: Department for Education, School Admissions Code (opens in a new tab)

  2. 2

    Your council collects every school's decision. If more than one of your schools could offer a place, you are offered the one you ranked highest, and you receive one offer on National Offer Day.

    School Admissions Code 2021, paragraphs 15(e) and 2.11

    Checked 1 October 2026. Source: Department for Education, School Admissions Code (opens in a new tab)

  3. 3

    You apply to the council where you live, and you can name at least three schools; many councils allow more. You can include state schools in other council areas on the same form.

    School Admissions Code 2021, paragraph 15(d)

    Checked 1 October 2026. Source: Department for Education, School Admissions Code (opens in a new tab)

  4. 4

    If none of the schools you named can offer a place, the council must offer a place at another school that has room. That can be a school you did not choose.

    School Admissions Code 2021, paragraph 2.11

    Checked 1 October 2026. Source: Department for Education, School Admissions Code (opens in a new tab)

  5. 5

    You apply for a grammar school place by naming it on your home council's application form, and you should list the schools in your genuine order of preference.

    CSSE Information Guide, 2027 entry, page 13

    Checked 1 October 2026. Source: Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex, CSSE Information Guide: 2027 Entry (opens in a new tab)

  6. 6

    A grammar school does not have to offer a place to a child who has not reached its required standard. Parents have the right to appeal when a school refuses a place, so a school you might appeal for needs to be on your form for there to be a refusal to appeal against.

    School Admissions Code 2021, paragraphs 1.18 and 15(f)

    Checked 1 October 2026. Source: Department for Education, School Admissions Code (opens in a new tab)

The deadline

Apply through your home council by 31 October (a Saturday this year; check your council's deadline, as some accept applications until the next working day).

That is the national closing date for secondary school applications for September 2027 entry. You apply to the council where you live, even for schools in another area.

Some councils publish their own closing date. Check yours on the council website:

  • Kent Test: Kent secondary-school application deadline, 2 November 2026

Checked 1 October 2026. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The School Admissions (Admission Arrangements and Co-ordination of Admission Arrangements) (England) Regulations 2012, Schedule 2 (opens in a new tab); GOV.UK, School admissions: how to apply (opens in a new tab)

Frequently asked questions

Does putting a grammar school first reduce my chances elsewhere?

No. Under the School Admissions Code schools must not give priority based on the order parents rank them, so each school considers your application on its own rules. Your council then offers the highest-ranked school that has a place for your child.

Should I name a grammar school if my child did not qualify?

A school normally cannot offer a place unless your child meets its qualification rules. If you may appeal, check the school's guidance: you usually need to apply and be refused a place first. Listing it does not change how your other schools assess the application.

Does the planner predict my chance of a place?

No. It applies the published rules to what you tell it and checks that you have included a school where you are confident of a place. It makes no estimate of any school's allocation.

Related tools

Not offered a place you wanted? Read what the appeal figures can and cannot tell you.

This is general information, not legal advice. Your council's published scheme and each school's determined admission arrangements are the rules that apply to your application.