Deadline for secondary school places in Harborough is the end of the month

Parents and carers across Harborough are being reminded that they have until the end of this week to apply for their child’s secondary school place.

Applications for next year’s intake need to be made by Saturday October 31.

You can find a range of information via Leicestershire County Council's website www.leicestershire.gov.uk/admissions to help you kickstart the application process and submit preferences for schools.

This includes an interactive guide to education, packed with advice to help you successfully apply for a child’s school place.

Cllr Deborah Taylor, the county council’s cabinet member for children and families, said: “Choosing which schools to apply for is one of the most important decisions a family can make.

“We are committed to working with parents and carers to support them as they make this choice.

“Last year over 95 per cent of Leicestershire parents secured their child a place at a preferred school.

“So we want to remind parents to maximise their opportunities by applying for three schools, including their catchment school.”

She added: “There is no automatic entry for any school.

“So it is very important for applications to be submitted before the closing date of Saturday October 31.”

Parents unable to apply online can download a form from the website, fill it in and post it by the closing date.

Alternatively, they may call the Customer Service Centre on 0116 305 6684 and request a form to be sent out.

Nearly 7,400 applications were received for an autumn 2020 start, of which:

89.2 per cent (6604) secured their first choice (90.72 per cent in 2019)

5.1 per cent (380) secured their second choice (5.01 per cent in 2019)

1.2 per cent (95) secured their third choice (0.76 per cent in 2019)

95.6 per cent (7079) secured one of their top three choices (96.49 per cent in 2019).