First school preference offers rise in Herefordshire

The number of Herefordshire parents to be offered their first school preference for their child has risen compared to last year.

Parents across the county will find out today which primary school their child will be attending in September 2019.

Herefordshire Council has made a total of 1,697 offers of places in primary schools across the county with 96% (1,631) of them being the first preference.

The council made 42 second preference offers which amounts to just 2.5% of the total.

While nine third preference offers, which is 0.5% of the total, were made.

The balance of places offered, which is 15 or 1%, were to parents whose preferences could not be met and their offer was for the nearest school to their home address with available spaces.

A council spokesperson said: “In comparison to last year, more parents got their first school preference (96% compared to 94.2% in 2018) or a place in one of their three preferences (99% compared to 98.1% in 2018).

“As in previous years, Herefordshire schools continue to be a net importer of pupils, with more pupils from neighbouring counties requesting places in the county’s schools than Herefordshire pupils requesting places in other counties.

“There are currently 10 Herefordshire primary schools with waiting lists and 64 have available spaces.

“The council has continued to promote its online application service this year, which was used by 92.6% of families compared to 90.1% last year, which is an increase of 2.5%.”