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There are 30 secondary schools in County Durham.
Apply by 31 October in your child's Year 6, for a place starting the following September. You apply to the council where you live, even if the school is in another council's area, and can usually list between 3 and 6 schools in order of preference. Offers are sent on 1 March, or the next working day.
No. None of the 30 secondary schools in County Durham selects pupils by ability.
Of the 30 secondary schools in County Durham, 11 have a sixth form. Students at a school that stops at 16 apply separately for sixth form, either at another school or at a college.
Of the 30 secondary schools in County Durham, 4 have a religious character: 4 Roman Catholic. When a faith school has more applicants than places, it can give priority to children of its faith. Many ask for a supplementary form, sometimes signed by a religious leader, so read the school's admissions policy before you apply.
On our star rating, the highest rated are Tanfield School (4.5), The Academy at Shotton Hall (4.3), Easington Academy (4.2), Durham Johnston Comprehensive School (4.1) and Belmont Community School (4.1). The rating is our own, out of 5. It combines Parent View survey results, the latest Ofsted inspection and GCSE results, with the parent survey carrying the most weight. All 30 schools here have a rating.
Only when you qualify for more than one school. Each school ranks applicants against its own admission criteria without knowing where you placed it. If you qualify for several, the council offers the one you ranked highest, so putting a popular school first does not lower your chances at your second choice.
No. Distance only matters when a school has more applicants than places, and then it offers places in the order its admission criteria set out. Children in care or adopted from care come first by law. Most schools put brothers and sisters of current pupils next, then distance or catchment area. Faith schools and grammar schools use different criteria. How far away the last place went changes every year, depending on who applies.
The council offers a place at another school with room, which may be further from home. You can accept it and still join the waiting lists for the schools you preferred. Waiting lists are ranked by the admission criteria, not by how long a child has been on them. You can also appeal to an independent panel for any school that refused you.