ALMOST nine out of 10 Oxfordshire children due to start secondary school in September have been offered a place at their first-choice school.

In total 88.83 per cent of pupils have received a first-preference offer – slightly higher than last year’s figure (88.64 per cent) and despite an increase in pupils transferring to secondary schools in Oxfordshire.

A further six per cent have been offered their second choice and 1.55 per cent offered their third preference. This leaves 3.17 per cent of applicants being offered a place at a school not among their stated preferences.

Overall 6848 Oxfordshire children are transferring to secondary schools this year – 229 more than in 2017.

Oxfordshire County Council’s member for Education and Public Health Hilary Hibbert-Biles said: “Oxfordshire has a strong record on school place-planning and compares very favourably with other parts of the country when it comes to making first-choice offers.”

The increase in secondary applications is expected to continue in the coming years but cllr Hibbert-Biles says the county is well prepared.

She said: “We are well-placed to meet this challenge, both through our ongoing work with existing schools to identify expansion opportunities where needed, and our role in delivering new schools where local housing growth demands their provision.”

Anyone yet to apply can do so at: http://bit.ly/2F6wXUH