Families in Kent will find out today which primary schools their children have been offered to join in September 2022, with nine out of ten being offered their first preference.

The parents and carers of 17,592 children who applied for a place at a Kent school will receive their offers via email or online. Of the 17,175 Kent applicants, 16,787 (97.74%) will receive one of their three named schools and 15,486 (90.07%) will be offered their first preference.

Shellina Prendergast, KCC’s Cabinet Member for Education and Skills, said: “I am delighted to see that we have managed to offer first-preference places to 90 per cent of our children, which shows the broad selection of fantastic schools that Kent offers.

Shellina Prendergast, Cabinet Member for Education and Skills

“The number of children who did not receive any of their preferences is under 2.5 per cent and, in many cases, this is because parents named fewer than three schools, which limited the options KCC could consider before assigning them an alternative.

“We appreciate this will be a disappointing and concerning time for those pupils and their families, but we would urge them not to be discouraged as this is only the first stage in the applications process.

“Many pupils will secure places through waiting lists and reallocation, and I would like to reassure parents and guardians that a specialist KCC team is on hand to help them make the most of the options available to them.

“I hope that those in that situation will arrange to visit the school where they have been offered a place and speak to the staff, so they can then make an informed decision about whether or not it is appropriate for their child.”

Parents and carers who applied online will receive an email after 4pm today, indicating which school they have been offered; the timing of the email will depend on the email service provider. Parents and carers can also log in after 5pm to view the offer online. Those who did not provide KCC with an email address will be sent notification by first class post today.

Details of what to do if a family is not happy with their allocation can be found in the correspondence from KCC or for more information go towww.kent.gov.uk/primaryadmissionsor email primaryadmissions@kent.gov.uk

1. Parents and carers will have until Wednesday, May 4,  to accept or refuse their offer and request to join waiting lists. Further information is available atwww.kent.gov.uk/primaryadmissionsand within offer emails or letters.
2. Parents and carers should lodge requests for appeal with each school’s admission authority by Tuesday, May 17. Further information is available atwww.kent.gov.uk/primaryadmissionsand within offer emails or letters.
3. KCC will reallocate places from schools’ waiting lists, sending out a second round of offers on Wednesday, June 8,.
4. From Thursday, June 9, schools will maintain their own waiting lists and parents can apply to schools directly after this date to ask to be placed on the waiting list. Parents and carers are advised to contact schools via phone or email to discuss whether site visits are possible.
5. Please see the table below for additional preference information.