School distance is not a catchment: how places work

Schools offer places by their published admission criteria, and distance is usually only one of them. Living near a school can improve your chances but does not guarantee a place, and the distance that won a place last year can change.

Checked 16 Oct 2026

How school places are decided

Every state school has admission criteria, set by the council or, for academies, free schools and many faith schools, by the school or its trust. When a school has more applicants than places, it ranks applicants by these criteria in order. Children in care or previously in care always come first. After them, a typical list might give priority to:

children with a brother or sister already at the school;
children with a medical or social need to attend that school;
children of staff;
children who live in a defined catchment area, where the school uses one;
children who live closest, measured in a stated way;
for faith schools, children of the faith; for grammar schools, children who pass the entrance test.

A child whose education, health and care plan names a school is given a place there before the criteria are applied. Criteria differ from school to school, even within one council, so read each school’s own admission arrangements.

Catchment and distance are different things

A catchment area is a fixed zone that some schools or councils draw on a map; living inside it gives priority. Many schools have no catchment area at all and use distance instead. Where there is a catchment, a family just outside it can rank below a family inside it who lives further away.

Distance is measured the way the admission arrangements say. Many use a straight line from a fixed point at the home to a fixed point at the school, such as the main gate; others use the shortest walking route. The two can differ a lot where a river, railway or main road lies in between.

Why living close does not guarantee a place

For a popular school, the furthest distance at which places were offered depends on how many children applied that year and how many had siblings or other higher priority. It can shrink sharply from one year to the next. Councils often publish last year’s figures, which help, but they describe the past, not a promise.

Councils also check that the address you apply from is your genuine home, and they can withdraw an offer made on a false or misleading application, such as one using a short-term rental or a relative’s address.

Applying in England and in Wales

In England you apply through your home council, even for schools in another council’s area. Secondary applications close on 31 October and primary on 15 January, with offers sent on 1 March and 16 April, or the next working day. If you are moving, ask the council what proof of your new address it needs and when.

Wales has its own School Admissions Code, and each council publishes its own arrangements and dates. Many Welsh councils give priority by catchment area, and Welsh-medium and faith schools have their own criteria. Check with the council for the area you are moving to.

Inspections and results

In England

Ofsted inspects state schools. Since late 2025 its inspections lead to a report card that grades several areas separately, such as achievement, attendance and behaviour, personal development and inclusion, on a scale from exceptional to urgent improvement, and says whether safeguarding is met. Older reports usually carry a single overall grade such as Outstanding, Good or Requires improvement. The two cannot be compared directly, and a school’s latest inspection may be several years old. Read them on Ofsted’s reports site.

Exam and test results are in the government’s school performance tables. Look at more than one year, because results for a single year group can swing.

In Wales

Estyn inspects schools in Wales. Its reports set out key findings and what the school should improve, but no longer give an overall grade such as Excellent or Good.

What to check before you buy for a school

Read the admission arrangements of each school you are interested in, for the year your child will apply.
Ask the council for the furthest distance offered, or the catchment map, for several recent years.
Check how each school measures distance and where its measuring point is.
Check whether siblings, a nursery or a feeder school affect priority.
Ask the council how it treats a move that happens during the application process.

Even a home very close to a school can miss out in a busy year. When you apply, listing only one school does not improve your chances of a place there.

Neighbourhood figures need similar care: see how to read crime figures.

Check it for a specific home

The Schools section of a HouseReport report lists nearby schools with their distance from the home, phase, results and inspections. The distance is not a catchment and may not match how a school measures it, so check each school’s admission arrangements with the council before you rely on it. Look up any address to see its free preview.

Look up any address

The free preview shows which of these checks the report answers for that home.