Enter text

Applying for a School Place

Home to school travel support consultation
BCP Council will be consulting on proposed changes to its Home to School Transport Policy from 8 September to 7 October 2026. Parents and carers are encouraged to review the proposed policy before choosing school preferences, as the changes may affect how transport assistance is provided in some circumstances.

In-year applications

Apply for an in-year school place if your child is moving into or within the BCP area, returning to school or if you want to move them to a different school. 

you can only apply for schools within the BCP area 

you can submit one online application per academic year. If you want to make changes to an application you have already made (for example add additional preferences or change of address), please complete this change form. 

When to apply 

you can apply up to half a term before the intended start date 

  • between September 2026 - May 2027: apply for the current academic year 
  • between June 2027 - July 2027: apply for the current academic year or September 2027  
  • From August 2027: apply for September 2027 onwards only 

Already applied? 

In-year application outcomes are not available to view online. 

You will receive your offer or outcome letter by secure email. 

If you wish to make changes to an application you have already made, please complete this change form. 

Need to apply? 

• Click the link below to submit an In-year application 


Click here to make an In-year application

Starting school in 2027

Starting school for the first time in Reception class in September 2027 

  • Applications open from 1st November 2026, the deadline for on-time applications is 15th January 2027 
  • Only BCP Council residents can apply through us 
  • You can include schools outside BCP Council in your preferences 

Need to apply? 

Click the link below to submit an on-time application 

Already applied? 

Outcomes will be available to view online from National Offer Day - 16th April 2027. 

Click on the button below to view your outcome from this date 


Click here to make an application

Click here to view the outcome of your application (Opens in New Window)

Moving up in 2027

Moving up from the last year of school to the next stage of education 

  • only BCP Council residents can apply through us 
  • you can include schools outside BCP Council in your preferences 

This includes moves to: 

Junior school (Year 3) or Middle school (Year 5)  

  • Applications open from 1st November 2026, the deadline for on-time applications is 15th January 2027 
  • Outcomes will be available to view online from National Offer Day - 16th April 2027. 

 Secondary school (Year 7) or Upper/Studio school (Year 9) 

  • Applications open from 1st September 2026, the deadline for on-time applications is 31st October 2026 
  • Outcomes will be available to view online from National Offer Day - 1st March 2027. 

Need to apply? 

Click the link below to submit an application 

Already applied? 

Click the link below to view your outcome from National Offer Day (dates as above) 

Click here to make an application

Click here to view the outcome of your application (Opens in New Window)

Explanatory notes

Applications for starting school and moving up are ‘residence based’, which means that families apply through the Local Authority where they live, even if they wish to apply for schools outside the Local Authority area.

If you live within BCP Council, you need to apply through us, but can include non-BCP Council schools among your preferences. If you live outside BCP Council, you need to apply through your home Local Authority, but can include BCP Council schools.

If you are applying to move up from one stage of education to the next, make sure that the school you are applying for starts in the relevant year or has an additional intake.

If your child is in Year 2 at an Infant school, you need to apply for a Junior school which starts in Year 3 or one of the following schools which have a small intake at the start of Year 3:

  • Corpus Christi Catholic Primary School
  • Highcliffe St Mark Primary School
  • St Joseph’s Catholic VA Primary School (Christchurch)
  • St Katharine’s CE Primary School
 
 

Whilst Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council endeavours to ensure that the information on this Portal for Children Services site is correct, no warranty, express or implied, is given as to its accuracy and the Council do not accept any liability for error(s) or omission(s).