School admissions dates 2026/27
Application deadlines and offer days for children starting school in 2027, for each UK nation. These are the dates set in law or published by the admissions body, not your chances of a place.
Checked against the sources below on 26 September 2026.
Key dates at a glance
- Saturday 31 October 2026DeadlineEngland: Application deadline · Secondary (Year 7), September 2027
- Friday 15 January 2027DeadlineEngland: Application deadline · Primary (Reception), September 2027
- Monday 1 March 2027OffersEngland: National offer day · Secondary (Year 7), September 2027
- Monday 1 March 2027OffersWales: Offer day · Secondary (Year 7), September 2027
- Monday 15 March 2027DeadlineScotland: Placing request by · Placing requests for P1 or S1, August 2027
- Friday 16 April 2027OffersEngland: National offer day · Primary (Reception), September 2027
- Friday 16 April 2027OffersWales: Offer day · Primary (Reception), September 2027
- Friday 30 April 2027DecisionScotland: Council decision by · Placing requests for P1 or S1, August 2027
England
One application through the council where you live, listing schools in order of preference. Deadlines and offer days are the same for every council.
Secondary (Year 7), September 2027
- Applications usually open
- Tuesday 1 September 2026Usual date
- Application deadline
- Saturday 31 October 2026Set in law
- National offer day
- Monday 1 March 2027Set in law
31 October 2026 is a Saturday. Check your council's online system for its closing time.
Primary (Reception), September 2027
- Applications open
- September 2026, date set by your council
- Application deadline
- Friday 15 January 2027Set in law
- National offer day
- Friday 16 April 2027Set in law
Children born 1 September 2022 to 31 August 2023 usually start Reception in September 2027.
Sources:
Wales
Apply through your council. Offer days are set in law; each council sets its own closing date.
Secondary (Year 7), September 2027
- Application deadline
- Set by your council
- Offer day
- Monday 1 March 2027Set in law
Primary (Reception), September 2027
- Application deadline
- Set by your council
- Offer day
- Friday 16 April 2027Set in law
Sources:
Scotland
Children get a place at their catchment school: you register (enrol) with the council for P1, and move to the catchment secondary for S1. For any other school you make a placing request.
Placing requests for P1 or S1, August 2027
- P1 registration
- Dates set by your council
- Placing request by
- Monday 15 March 2027Set in law
- Council decision by
- Friday 30 April 2027Set in law
A request made after 15 March gets a decision within two months. No decision in time counts as a refusal, which you can appeal.
Sources:
Northern Ireland
One online application to the Education Authority (EA Connect). The September 2027 timetable is not published yet, so last cycle's dates are shown as a guide.
Post-primary (Year 8), September 2027
- Key dates published
- Mid-December 2026 (Education Authority)
- Last cycle: applications opened
- Tuesday 27 January 2026Last cycle
- Last cycle: deadline (12 noon)
- Thursday 19 February 2026Last cycle
- Last cycle: outcomes issued
- Saturday 9 May 2026Last cycle
For children born 2 July 2015 to 1 July 2016.
Primary 1, September 2027
- Key dates published
- Not yet published (Education Authority)
- Last cycle: applications opened
- Wednesday 7 January 2026Last cycle
- Last cycle: deadline (12 noon)
- Wednesday 21 January 2026Last cycle
- Last cycle: outcomes issued
- Monday 23 March 2026Last cycle
Sources:
Good to know
- You apply through the council (education authority) where you live, even for schools in another council area.
- Independent schools set their own dates: apply to the school directly.
- Moving mid-year is an in-year application, with no national deadline.
- Find schools near an address with school search.