Offer day for secondary school

Applied online by 31 October 2026

You can log in to see your offer and then accept or reject it online. 

You'll receive an email with the details of your child's offer. We may send a letter if we have not offered your first preference.

You need to respond to the offer by 15 March 2027.

Important: No School Required

You are advised not to select this option as it will cancel your application and leave your child without a state-funded school place.

If you select this option, we will assume that you no longer wish for a school place to be provided by the Local Authority and will take no further action.

For information on how to join a waiting list, change an application, or advise us that you are going to leave the county, home educate, or accept a place at an independent school, please see below.

Applied by paper form by 31 October 2026

We can email you a school offer if you provide an email address with your application.

If required, we will send you a letter. You'll be sent an offer letter by second-class post on 1 March. We cannot give you this information over the phone.

Respond to offer:

You can respond on the portal to accept or decline an offer, or to join the waiting list, email schoolofferresponse@oxfordshire.gov.uk. to accept or decline the offer. If you are declining the offer, you must advise us what your plans are for your child’s education, such as naming an independent school, home educating or leaving the county.

If you cannot email, please call 01865 519800 for support.

You need to respond to the offer by 15 March 2027.

How places are allocated

See our school pages for information about how places were allocated at individual schools. 

Independent school

If your child is going to attend an independent school, you must provide us with the name of the school in writing as soon as possible. Send the details to us using this contact form.

Home educating

If you are going to educate your child at home, please let us know in writing as soon as possible by contacting the Admissions Team. Contact the Elective Home Education Team for further information about home schooling.

Leaving Oxfordshire

If you are leaving the area and no longer require a school place in Oxfordshire, contact the Admissions Team as soon as possible to let us know.

Waiting lists 

If your child is refused admission to your preferred school or schools, you can add their name to the waiting list.
The deadline to add your child's name to the list is 15 March 2027.

Lists for most schools will be maintained until 21 July 2027.

We will contact you if a place becomes available and we can offer that place to your child. We recommend that you accept the offered school to ensure a place for your child in September.

Find out how to add your child to a waiting list.

Free home to school travel

If you believe your child is eligible for free home-to-school transport, you should log in to the parent portal and request free travel. The Admissions and Transport Team will respond to your request.

Please see school travel pages for information regarding:

• The Home to school Travel Policy
• Information on who is and who is not eligible for free home-to-school travel
• Information on paying for available places on home-to-school transport
• Information on exceptional requests for travel support
• Information on Post-16 travel 
• Travelling to school | Oxfordshire County Council

Appeal a decision

If your child has been refused admission to a school you listed as a preference, you can make an appeal.

Please note that appeals are very costly for schools, and additional children joining schools through successful appeals will harm the delivery of education and the efficient use of school resources. 

Please consider very carefully if you wish to proceed with an appeal.

Please note that selecting the “Waiting List and Appeal” option on the Parent Portal does not mean that an appeal has been submitted. All appeals must be lodged by following the above link.  

If you only select the “Waiting List and Appeal” option on the Parent Portal, no appeal will be registered.

The full School Admission Appeals Code 2022