Reception applications

Make an application to primary school

Parents of infant school children born between 1 September 2021 and 31 August 2022 need to apply for an infant or primary school place for September 2026.

The deadline for receipt of completed applications was 15 January 2026. Applications received by this date will be processed for National Offer Day on 16 April 2026.

If you miss the deadline, your application will be processed later in the year and you are far less likely to get a place at one of your preferred schools.

Before you complete an application, we recommend visiting the school you want your child to attend. Contact the school to arrange an appointment.

You can also:

• talk to other parents
• look at your catchment area
• attend open days.

Consider schools in your catchment area

Many, but not all, primary and infant schools have catchment areas.

If your child attends a catchment area school, this may give them some priority in their application, but this isn't guaranteed. 

We follow the school's published admission rules to decide priority. 

There are other factors, such as whether a child has a brother or sister at the school or whether they have special educational needs. 

Religious or faith schools could use your child's or family's religion as a deciding factor. 

You can find details of catchment areas for schools that use them on our list of schools page.

Think about how your child will get to school

Free home-to-school transport

When applying for a school place, you need consider how your child will travel to and from school each day. If you choose a school that is further away than your nearest suitable school, your child may not be eligible for free home-to-school travel support. We encourage all families to think carefully about the practicalities of the journey, including travel time, costs, and arrangements, before making a final decision.

Primary school children are eligible for free home to school travel support where:

• they attend their nearest available school (not always their catchment school) and
• the school is over two miles from their home address for 5-to-7-year olds; and over three miles for older children.

If your child attends their nearest suitable school and the walking distance is less than the above distances, we may still provide travel assistance if we have determined that there is no available walking route. 

Please Note:

If you choose a school that is further from your home than your nearest suitable school, your child will not be eligible for free home-to-school travel, even if there is no available walking route. Eligibility for travel assistance is based on the nature of the route to the nearest suitable school only, so it's important to consider this when selecting a school place.

If you are considering free home-to-school travel as part of your school application, it is very important to familiarise yourself with the nearest suitable schools to your home address. Eligibility for travel assistance is based on distance and the nature of the route to the nearest suitable school, not the school of your choice. 

Nearest available school

When assessing free transport, we do not measure the distance to the nearest school in the same way as the catchment school. So, the nearest school may not be your child's catchment school.

To find out where your nearest school is, contact us. 

List of (existing) schools

Find details for every existing state-funded Oxfordshire school on our list of schools page. You can find each school's:

• location
• contact details
• catchment area (where it has one)
• admissions rules
• history of allocation data.

How places were allocated in previous years

The catchment area is one of the ways that places at schools are decided. There are other factors, such as whether a child has a brother or sister at the school or whether they have special educational needs. Religious or faith schools could use the religion of your child or family as a deciding factor.

Find the admission rules for all state-funded secondary schools, and how places were allocated on the individual school pages.

Delaying entry to infant and primary school

Parents of summer-born children (April to August) may request to delay their application for entry to an infant and primary school. Learn how to delay reception application.

Independent school

If your child is to attend an independent school, you must tell us the school name in writing as soon as possible. 

Home educating

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

Leaving Oxfordshire

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

Where to get more information

For advice and information about applying for a primary or infant school place, contact us (School Admissions Team).

Find more detailed information about the application process for primary and infant school in our Starting school booklet (docx format, 298 KB).