How to find out the school catchment area??

[Faraway20]

I remember a thread a few years ago discussing the furthest distance from a school that a child had been allocated a place from in a particular year, I've tried to Google different phrases to find out for my local schools but I'm not having any luck. Does anyone know if this info is published and where?

Usually in the local council education sections. There is a published list showing each school, the admissions categories, the number of applicants from each category and how many were placed. You can then see if siblings out of catchment are likely to get in etc

Thanks, I've had a good dig through the admissions policies for previous years and they don't list that info unfortunately .

www.locrating.com

This website has some basic information on catchments although not sure how accurate it is.

@mendandmakedo oh wow, thank you! That looks accurate from what I already know.

That link is useless for my location, it is misleading about the religious schools, banded schools and the selective schools and doesn’t highlight those.

OP look for school admissions on your LA site and what might start off with a guide on a timetable for applying, how to apply etc, there is usually details on distance offered for those schools that use that criteria. I know Kent doesn’t have a neat booklet as it is so huge but most other authorities I’ve come across do have the info.

@PettsWoodParadise I've been through every link on the council site regarding admissions back to 16/17 and they only show generic criteria and how many school places were given out, but no details on distance or how many were allocated on each criteria.

Best bet is to ask here or on local FB or other groups for info on how far away people have got in from in recent years. Even when they do publish data, that's from national offer day - the children who start in September may come from further afield.

Not completely trustworthy - eg people think we're on the edge of the catchment for a desirable school but actually DC had a EHCP naming the school, as does another kid nearby - but can give you more info on how lists go up and down, vary by band, etc.

I don't think that kind of anecdotal advice is helpful, unfortunately @Jackparlabane.
As you say yourself, children might get places because they have an EHCP or in the care system.

Also, in a low-birth year there's much less competition for places than in high birth years

Ask the Council directly to provide it. It should be information they have available.

If not on the website, try phoning the education dept at your local authority. If you are near the boundary of a local authority don't forget to look at the one next-door too.

Don't look for admissions policies, look for 'school admissions data'.
e.g. For Hants:
www.hants.gov.uk/educationandlearning/admissions/data

Your council will provide that information, but be warned some schools don't publish (i.e. faith schools) when there are other criteria that allow admission to some while excluding those children that live locally to the school.

I know loads of anecdotal stuff - I'm trying to get dd into my old school it wasn't this bloody hard back then!! But hundreds of houses have been built since and it's gone crazy. I got in from 2.5 miles away, now I'm stressing about being 1.3 miles away

You also need to be aware that usually the distance is measured from a set point (usually school front gate) to your front gate, as the crow flies, so if you're behind the school you may be further away in the admissions circle than you think.

What's the local authority - sure someone here can find you a link

If you can't find it you can submit an FoI enquiry.

Do all schools have a catchment area?

I have always phoned the school office to ask. They can point you in the direction of the admissions policy. I have always found them forthcoming about how many kids from each tier get a place. Or at least where the cut off tends to be.

Its not as obvious as you would expect.

@W00t the policy for my LA is that distance is measured by the shortest safe walking route to the front gate, rather than a straight line, which changes things I think.

I wish I had NC'd and I'd give the school names but thank you all anyway. I'm just torturing myself as we have to move house during the application window