Applications for secondary school places to start in September 2025 open today (Monday 23, September 2024), and families are reminded that applying on time and providing five school preferences can increase their chances of getting a place at one of their preferred schools.
Cardiff Council’s Admissions Team have provided simple step-by-step advice and guidance in the form of 7 tips, to help families who are applying for a school place in Cardiff.
The information is available online and through an animation aimed at children and families, helping to explain how the admissions process works and the importance of using all five preferences available.
Should a family choose to only put one school option for example, they are greatly limiting their chances of securing a preferred school.
It also covers things like:
- the importance of applying on time, by the published application deadline
- the benefits of exploring all the schools in the child’s area by visiting their websites and reading their Estyn reports
- making sure the application form includes essential information such as if the child has a sibling at the school or any additional learning, medical or social needs.
Cabinet Member for Education, Cllr Sarah Merry said: “Our goal remains to ensure that every family in Cardiff has access to the necessary information, support, and understanding to avoid being at a disadvantage when applying for a school place.
“We want to remind families that listing only one school on their application doesn’t improve the likelihood of being accepted there. In fact, by not using all five available options, families may reduce their chances of securing a place at one of their preferred schools.
“To ensure that the school application process is fair and accessible to all, several initiatives are in place, aimed at promoting a more equitable system for allocating school places in Cardiff. One of these is our ongoing ‘7 Tips Admissions’ campaign, which offers clear guidance and support, making the admissions process more transparent and straightforward so that every family has an equal opportunity to secure a place at one of their preferred schools.”
Cardiff Council has a well-established co-ordinated admissions arrangement and now all 12 of the city’s community high schools and five partner schools, Whitchurch High School, St Teilo’s Church in Wales High School, Corpus Christi Catholic High School, Mary Immaculate High School and The Bishop of Llandaff High School have joined the scheme, which enables parents to submit their preferred schools all on one online application. You may also need to submit an additional form and/ or further details directly to your preferred school (or schools) and should check the school’s admissions policy on their website for further details.
Cllr Merry added: “Cardiff’s coordinated admissions helps to simplify the process of applying for a school place by allowing parents to state their order of preferred schools on one application. This provides a better chance of securing a preferred school in the first round of admissions.
“The system also prevents parents from receiving multiple offers, which would otherwise stop other children being offered these places, helping to eliminate unnecessary stress for the families that otherwise would not secure a place and helping to ensure a fairer and easier way of applying for school places.” The 7 tips School Admissions campaign supports Cardiff’s commitment to becoming the UK’s first UNICEF UK Child Friendly City, placing the rights and voices of children and young people at the heart of Cardiff’s policies, strategies and services.
Welsh-medium education is available to everyone regardless of whether Welsh or English is spoken at home. Cardiff also has a nationally acclaimed Welsh Immersion Unit, operating since 2010, successfully supporting more than 400 learners with no previous Welsh language to become fluent and transfer into our Welsh-medium schools part way through their education journey.
If any families are in doubt about any aspect of the process, they can access support from our staff based at Council Hubs across the city or by calling C2C on 029 20872087.
Applications for applying for a secondary place in September 2025 close on Monday 18th November 2024.
To apply for a school place please go to:
