Aerial photo from a drone of Leyton High Street, High Road, Leyton, East London, Waltham Forest, London, UK.
People in this London borough often get their first choice of primary school (Picture: Getty Images)

When choosing a place to live, high on the list for most parents will be whether there’s a good selection of schools nearby.

But, as many will know, just because you have a desired institution in mind, doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get your kids in.

To avoid the risk of oversubscription and rejection, you might want to consider the London borough of Waltham Forest – which has been revealed to be the area where you are most likely to get your first choice of school.

Data from the Institute of Fiscal Studies found 6,057 applications were submitted for places for the upcoming academic year, and 85% were told they got their first option. Parents were informed about their child’s primary school place back in April, ahead of the start of the school year in September.

Aerial view, taken by drone, depicting the row houses and residential streets of Walthamstow in east London, UK.
The residential streets of Walthamstow, east London (Picture: Getty Images)

The borough is home to the areas Walthamstow, Leytonstone, Leyton and Chingford. You can find an extensive list of schools in these areas here.

The impressive number in the east London borough was followed closely by the borough of Enfield in north London (85%).

The London boroughs where you are most likely to get your first choice of primary school

  1. Waltham Forest (85%)
  2. Enfield (84%)
  3. Hackney, Havering and Hillingdon (83%)
  4. Tower Hamlets (82%)
  5. Ealing, Haringey and Sutton (81%)
  6. Southwark (80%)

How to apply for a primary school place

Applications open on different days in each local council area.

Children start school in the September after their fourth birthday. If your child was born between 1 September 2019 and 31 August 2020, they should start school this September.

The application window for 2024 admissions in Waltham Forest ran from 1 September 2024 until 15 January 2024. It’s important to apply as soon as you can. The window for September 2025 admissions has not been shared but it will likely follow a similar pattern.

If you live in Waltham Forest, you must apply through the local council even if you are applying for schools in a different local authority. The same applies for if you live in another borough but wish to apply to schools in Waltham Forest.

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How to appeal your child’s primary school offer

Unfortunately, your child might not get their first choice for primary school (even if they live in Waltham Forest).

If this does happen, firstly, you must not reject your first school offer. You cannot reject the first offer until you have secured another offer.

Your next steps include:

Join a waiting list – you can check if your child can be added to a waiting list for the school, or another school nearby. This can be done using the ‘waiting lists’ page on your local council’s website.

Apply for a different school – you can contact your local School Admissions team if you want to apply for a school you didn’t apply for originally. You can do this to also be added to a waiting list for a school you named as a lower preference.

Appeal – you have the right to appeal to an independent panel for a place at any of your preferred schools that haven’t offered you a place.

But even if you are appealing a decision, you are advised to accept the offer your child received so that they have a school place in case the appeal is unsuccessful.

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