Secondary school admission appeals heard by council (number), England
The number of admission appeals for secondary school places heard by an appeals panel, for each local authority in England as the Department for Education publishes them, with its regions and England, in the latest two reporting years, from the Department for Education.
England
27,084
2026
Latest check failed – showing figures verified against source 7 November 2026, 06:55 UTC- 2026
- 2025
Source: Department for Education. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence.
In order
Ranked by the hub 2026
Every place, the highest figure first. The number before each is the hub's own position in the list, not the publisher's: equal figures share one, marked =.
- 1Kent1,948
- 2Bradford707
- 3Birmingham674
- 4Lancashire667
- 5Liverpool614
- 6Gloucestershire562
- 7Lincolnshire548
- 8Buckinghamshire537
- 9Leeds533
- 10Hertfordshire515
- 11Trafford513
- 12Medway489
- 13Manchester476
- 14Slough438
- 15Wolverhampton428
- 16Wirral414
- 17Essex406
- 18Nottinghamshire403
- 19Surrey372
- 20West Sussex362
- 21Leicester358
- 22Walsall339
- 23West Northamptonshire330
- 24Kingston upon Hull, City of314
- 25Cambridgeshire306
- 26Nottingham304
- 27Coventry298
- 28Bolton288
- 29Hampshire285
- 30Sandwell278
- 31Stockport272
- 32Oldham270
- 33Kirklees253
- 34Sheffield, its area before 1 April 2025249
- 35Warwickshire233
- 36Staffordshire231
- 37Sefton226
- 38Derby219
- 39Tower Hamlets216
- 40Tameside213
- =41Barnet196
- =41Ealing196
- 43Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole185
- =44North Tyneside184
- =44Oxfordshire184
- 46Southwark182
- 47Greenwich178
- =48Bexley175
- =48Telford and Wrekin175
- 50Newham170
- =51East Sussex169
- =51Sutton169
- 53Portsmouth166
- 54Bromley162
- 55Redbridge161
- =56Leicestershire159
- =56Wigan159
- =58Rotherham155
- =58Wakefield155
- 60Doncaster154
- 61Bristol, City of153
- 62Derbyshire152
- 63Luton151
- 64North Yorkshire148
- 65Brighton and Hove143
- 66Havering137
- 67Stoke-on-Trent135
- =68North Northamptonshire134
- =68Worcestershire134
- =70Brent131
- =70Newcastle upon Tyne131
- =72Central Bedfordshire129
- =72Milton Keynes129
- 74Suffolk128
- 75Hillingdon127
- 76Dudley123
- 77Knowsley118
- 78Southampton114
- 79Hounslow112
- 80Blackpool107
- 81Solihull105
- 82Norfolk102
- =83Enfield100
- =83Rochdale100
- =83Thurrock100
- 86Somerset99
- =87Blackburn with Darwen96
- =87Torbay96
- =89Southend-on-Sea95
- =89Wandsworth95
- 91Peterborough93
- 92South Tyneside90
- 93Bury84
- 94Salford81
- =95Barnsley, its area before 1 April 202578
- =95Middlesbrough78
- 97Barking and Dagenham74
- =98Sunderland69
- =98Wiltshire69
- 100Bedford68
- =101County Durham66
- =101Windsor and Maidenhead66
- =103Haringey65
- =103Islington65
- 105Gateshead64
- 106Warrington63
- 107Lambeth61
- 108Shropshire60
- 109Dorset58
- =110Hackney56
- =110Harrow56
- =110St. Helens56
- 113Wokingham55
- =114Hammersmith and Fulham54
- =114Northumberland54
- 116Plymouth53
- 117Swindon52
- 118Hartlepool51
- =119Cumberland49
- =119Reading49
- =119South Gloucestershire49
- =119Waltham Forest49
- 123Devon48
- 124Cornwall46
- 125Cheshire West and Chester45
- 126Redcar and Cleveland43
- 127Lewisham41
- 128West Berkshire40
- =129Bath and North East Somerset39
- =129Croydon39
- =129Merton39
- 132Calderdale38
- =133Richmond upon Thames37
- =133Westminster37
- 135Kensington and Chelsea35
- 136Herefordshire, County of34
- =137Bracknell Forest33
- =137Westmorland and Furness33
- 139Kingston upon Thames31
- 140York30
- =141Cheshire East27
- =141Halton27
- =143Isle of Wight26
- =143North Somerset26
- 145Darlington23
- 146Stockton-on-Tees22
- =147Camden18
- =147North Lincolnshire18
- =149East Riding of Yorkshire14
- =149North East Lincolnshire14
- =151City of London0
- =151Isles of Scilly0
- =151Rutland0
No figure published for Barnsley (given under its old code, E08000016), Sheffield (given under its old code, E08000019).
Counts follow the size of the place, so the largest places tend to come first.
Data table
163 rows
| Area | 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Kent E10000016 | 1,948 | 2,231 |
| Bradford E08000032 | 707 | 583 |
| Birmingham E08000025 | 674 | 813 |
| Lancashire E10000017 | 667 | 1,034 |
| Liverpool E08000012 | 614 | 779 |
| Gloucestershire E10000013 | 562 | 543 |
| Lincolnshire E10000019 | 548 | 627 |
| Buckinghamshire E06000060 | 537 | 496 |
| Leeds E08000035 | 533 | 589 |
| Hertfordshire E10000015 | 515 | 519 |
| Trafford E08000009 | 513 | 385 |
| Medway E06000035 | 489 | 395 |
| Manchester E08000003 | 476 | 368 |
| Slough E06000039 | 438 | 417 |
| Wolverhampton E08000031 | 428 | 357 |
| Wirral E08000015 | 414 | 477 |
| Essex E10000012 | 406 | 645 |
| Nottinghamshire E10000024 | 403 | 394 |
| Surrey E10000030 | 372 | 264 |
| West Sussex E10000032 | 362 | 353 |
| Leicester E06000016 | 358 | 350 |
| Walsall E08000030 | 339 | 353 |
| West Northamptonshire E06000062 | 330 | 335 |
| Kingston upon Hull, City of E06000010 | 314 | 278 |
| Cambridgeshire E10000003 | 306 | 304 |
| Nottingham E06000018 | 304 | 425 |
| Coventry E08000026 | 298 | 355 |
| Bolton E08000001 | 288 | 290 |
| Hampshire E10000014 | 285 | 243 |
| Sandwell E08000028 | 278 | 354 |
| Stockport E08000007 | 272 | 267 |
| Oldham E08000004 | 270 | 248 |
| Kirklees E08000034 | 253 | 288 |
| Sheffield E08000019 its area before 1 April 2025 | 249 | 139 |
| Warwickshire E10000031 | 233 | 356 |
| Staffordshire E10000028 | 231 | 289 |
| Sefton E08000014 | 226 | 124 |
| Derby E06000015 | 219 | 309 |
| Tower Hamlets E09000030 | 216 | 154 |
| Tameside E08000008 | 213 | 206 |
| Barnet E09000003 | 196 | 84 |
| Ealing E09000009 | 196 | 212 |
| Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole E06000058 | 185 | 221 |
| North Tyneside E08000022 | 184 | 77 |
| Oxfordshire E10000025 | 184 | 160 |
| Southwark E09000028 | 182 | 152 |
| Greenwich E09000011 | 178 | 217 |
| Telford and Wrekin E06000020 | 175 | 95 |
| Bexley E09000004 | 175 | 152 |
| Newham E09000025 | 170 | 157 |
| Sutton E09000029 | 169 | 194 |
| East Sussex E10000011 | 169 | 348 |
| Portsmouth E06000044 | 166 | 84 |
| Bromley E09000006 | 162 | 103 |
| Redbridge E09000026 | 161 | 167 |
| Wigan E08000010 | 159 | 192 |
| Leicestershire E10000018 | 159 | 259 |
| Rotherham E08000018 | 155 | 130 |
| Wakefield E08000036 | 155 | 104 |
| Doncaster E08000017 | 154 | 212 |
| Bristol, City of E06000023 | 153 | 218 |
| Derbyshire E10000007 | 152 | 220 |
| Luton E06000032 | 151 | 202 |
| North Yorkshire E06000065 | 148 | 100 |
| Brighton and Hove E06000043 | 143 | 121 |
| Havering E09000016 | 137 | 147 |
| Stoke-on-Trent E06000021 | 135 | 191 |
| North Northamptonshire E06000061 | 134 | 203 |
| Worcestershire E10000034 | 134 | 104 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne E08000021 | 131 | 203 |
| Brent E09000005 | 131 | 123 |
| Milton Keynes E06000042 | 129 | 224 |
| Central Bedfordshire E06000056 | 129 | 121 |
| Suffolk E10000029 | 128 | 157 |
| Hillingdon E09000017 | 127 | 77 |
| Dudley E08000027 | 123 | 127 |
| Knowsley E08000011 | 118 | 87 |
| Southampton E06000045 | 114 | 82 |
| Hounslow E09000018 | 112 | 128 |
| Blackpool E06000009 | 107 | 103 |
| Solihull E08000029 | 105 | 220 |
| Norfolk E10000020 | 102 | 197 |
| Thurrock E06000034 | 100 | 81 |
| Rochdale E08000005 | 100 | 121 |
| Enfield E09000010 | 100 | 138 |
| Somerset E06000066 | 99 | 116 |
| Blackburn with Darwen E06000008 | 96 | 243 |
| Torbay E06000027 | 96 | 53 |
| Southend-on-Sea E06000033 | 95 | 78 |
| Wandsworth E09000032 | 95 | 70 |
| Peterborough E06000031 | 93 | 69 |
| South Tyneside E08000023 | 90 | 64 |
| Bury E08000002 | 84 | 158 |
| Salford E08000006 | 81 | 204 |
| Middlesbrough E06000002 | 78 | 120 |
| Barnsley E08000016 its area before 1 April 2025 | 78 | 121 |
| Barking and Dagenham E09000002 | 74 | 62 |
| Wiltshire E06000054 | 69 | 58 |
| Sunderland E08000024 | 69 | 41 |
| Bedford E06000055 | 68 | 133 |
| Windsor and Maidenhead E06000040 | 66 | 52 |
| County Durham E06000047 | 66 | 166 |
| Haringey E09000014 | 65 | 65 |
| Islington E09000019 | 65 | 51 |
| Gateshead E08000037 | 64 | 93 |
| Warrington E06000007 | 63 | 88 |
| Lambeth E09000022 | 61 | 93 |
| Shropshire E06000051 | 60 | 75 |
| Dorset E06000059 | 58 | 105 |
| St. Helens E08000013 | 56 | 55 |
| Hackney E09000012 | 56 | 107 |
| Harrow E09000015 | 56 | 57 |
| Wokingham E06000041 | 55 | 49 |
| Northumberland E06000057 | 54 | 115 |
| Hammersmith and Fulham E09000013 | 54 | 58 |
| Plymouth E06000026 | 53 | 57 |
| Swindon E06000030 | 52 | 52 |
| Hartlepool E06000001 | 51 | 22 |
| South Gloucestershire E06000025 | 49 | 155 |
| Reading E06000038 | 49 | 63 |
| Cumberland E06000063 | 49 | 64 |
| Waltham Forest E09000031 | 49 | 95 |
| Devon E10000008 | 48 | 26 |
| Cornwall E06000052 | 46 | 94 |
| Cheshire West and Chester E06000050 | 45 | 70 |
| Redcar and Cleveland E06000003 | 43 | 36 |
| Lewisham E09000023 | 41 | 55 |
| West Berkshire E06000037 | 40 | 48 |
| Bath and North East Somerset E06000022 | 39 | 20 |
| Croydon E09000008 | 39 | 57 |
| Merton E09000024 | 39 | 46 |
| Calderdale E08000033 | 38 | 98 |
| Richmond upon Thames E09000027 | 37 | 53 |
| Westminster E09000033 | 37 | 58 |
| Kensington and Chelsea E09000020 | 35 | 22 |
| Herefordshire, County of E06000019 | 34 | 62 |
| Bracknell Forest E06000036 | 33 | 17 |
| Westmorland and Furness E06000064 | 33 | 43 |
| Kingston upon Thames E09000021 | 31 | 36 |
| York E06000014 | 30 | 30 |
| Halton E06000006 | 27 | 112 |
| Cheshire East E06000049 | 27 | 39 |
| North Somerset E06000024 | 26 | 30 |
| Isle of Wight E06000046 | 26 | 38 |
| Darlington E06000005 | 23 | 32 |
| Stockton-on-Tees E06000004 | 22 | 80 |
| North Lincolnshire E06000013 | 18 | 40 |
| Camden E09000007 | 18 | 37 |
| East Riding of Yorkshire E06000011 | 14 | 42 |
| North East Lincolnshire E06000012 | 14 | 28 |
| Rutland E06000017 | 0 | 13 |
| Isles of Scilly E06000053 | 0 | 0 |
| City of London E09000001 | 0 | 0 |
| Barnsley E08000038 | given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000016 | given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000016 |
| Sheffield E08000039 | given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000019 | given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000019 |
| North East | 875 | 1,049 |
| North West | 4,998 | 5,757 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 2,860 | 2,782 |
| East Midlands | 2,607 | 3,135 |
| West Midlands | 3,247 | 3,751 |
| East of England | 2,093 | 2,506 |
| London | 3,264 | 3,227 |
| South East | 5,605 | 5,685 |
| South West | 1,535 | 1,748 |
| England | 27,084 | 29,640 |
Map
2026 · 130 areas, each shaded by the fifth of the areas its figure falls in
- 0 to 41
- 41 to 68
- 68 to 131
- 131 to 213
- 213 to 707
Boundaries: Council boundaries, May 2026, from the geography spine. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.
Source and licence
- Publisher
- Department for Education
- Check it yourself
- https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/admission-appeals-in-england
- Licence
- Open Government Licence – Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence.
- Retrieved
- 7 November 2026, 06:48 UTC
- Raw files fetched
- https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/admission-appeals-in-england/2026SHA-256 0e5a044d255ed11077bd1e2866c29efc02176edcb8a0e14a2745751ef172fb4c · 556 bytes
- https://content.explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/api/data-set-files?publicationId=123461ab-50be-45d9-8523-c5241a2c9c5b&latestOnly=true&pageSize=40SHA-256 c5d87982fde1a979a602efcf6108423de076654ca51168824c62bcf73de710f7 · 3,858 bytes
- https://content.explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/api/data-set-files/0ec5e766-b9e8-404a-b932-580409f550f2SHA-256 7d7c20c5f016659070b690183f9c47db6f7d24c9845455959d1e3ebd9cb9b1e7 · 3,176 bytes
- https://content.explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/api/releases/e4b1eee9-ea7a-49a8-4d8d-08dedb56fa9e/files?fileIds=4bdf360e-4dbf-499a-d24f-08dee2754f5eSHA-256 6598746ba6550684997a2c60de677ad2a0be577338db47ab2ef75ffeb95aa15d · 142,707 bytes
- https://content.explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/api/releases/e4b1eee9-ea7a-49a8-4d8d-08dedb56fa9e/files?fileIds=b47fca01-6523-4ac8-d253-08dee2754f5eSHA-256 049fdfbb88bf993826b0ad3df9ede8b3740f68064ae0e1b3c9a5d35e8e200f74 · 9,857 bytes
- https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/methodology/admission-appeals-in-englandSHA-256 c81cc3224d4dbc1c49f8fdbfaaef7d2a64b5caa556b3a095052e43026b43db9e · 22,910 bytes
- https://www.gov.uk/api/search.json?filter_format=statistics_announcement&filter_organisations=department-for-education&count=1500&fields=title,release_timestamp,statistics_announcement_state,link,display_type,public_timestampSHA-256 234cc2570146f5481e17f33027a07a22e17285d4dc2d83aed3ebd3691dce90f7 · 110,765 bytes
- receipts.json, made by the hub and not fetched: its receipt for each file it fetchedSHA-256 65ef1125b70dff2fafbe657fec4481affe6d264caf74e5c8e4ae33506234a233 · 3,516 bytes
Verification
Latest check failed – showing figures verified against source 7 November 2026, 06:55 UTC Run at 10 November 2026, 11:33 UTC; the latest check failed, so these are the figures that matched the source in full at 7 November 2026, 06:55 UTC; they stand for up to 14 days while the failure is put right.
| Result | Check | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Pass | Provenance recorded | Department for Education; Open Government Licence; retrieved 2026-11-07T06:48:47Z; 8 raw file(s) |
| Pass | Raw files match recorded SHA-256 | 8 of 8 files intact |
| Pass | Re-parsing raw files reproduces figures | 326 of 326 figures and the headline reproduced; the meta's observations and release and accreditation and contract_sha256 and register_rows_sha256 and main match |
| Pass | Figures are finite numbers | 326 figures, 0 invalid |
| Fail | Live source matches every figure | re-read failed: Stop: held at freshness: the next release is now 'provisional' on '2027-08-31T23:59:59.000+01:00' |
| Not run | Second official route | No independent second route to these figures is published; the live re-fetch is the check. |
| Pass | Source page answers | https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/admission-appeals-in-england – HTTP 200 |
Notes
- All received appeals are described as being lodged. The appeals will be considered by a panel hearing unless they are withdrawn by the parent/carer – this is described as being heard. The heard appeals can be rejected or upheld (that is, successful).
- Reporting year 2026 counts appeals lodged by 1 September 2025 and reporting year 2025 those lodged by 1 September 2024: “In order to allow us to report on the current academic year, only appeals lodged by 1 September and relating to entry into the start of the academic year (for any year group) are collected. Appeals relating to applications for ‘in year’ entry, where a pupil moves during the course of the academic year, are not included.” (the DfE's methodology).
- How the appeals are collected: “Local authorities provide aggregate appeal data for all of their community and voluntary controlled schools via the school admission appeals data collection (APAD), returned to the department each January in relation to appeals submitted by the previous 1 September. Foundation, voluntary aided and academy schools submit their own appeal data via the spring school census (admissions appeals module), also held in January. All LAs are required in principle to provide a return for all of their mainstream community and voluntary controlled schools via the school admission appeals data collection (also known as APAD).” (the DfE's methodology). The figures are given by local authority as the Department for Education publishes them.
- Counts are of appeals heard by an appeals panel. In addition, parents can lodge appeals for more than one school but only require a single school place.
- For all all through schools, any appeals received relating to entry into years reception to 6 have been counted as primary appeals, and appeals relating to years 7 upwards as secondary appeals.
- “From 2026, the Isles of Scilly is included as a local authority with no appeals heard.” (the DfE's methodology). The 2026 release's file also gives it for 2025, with no appeals heard.
- Barnsley and Sheffield are given under their codes from before 1 April 2025, as the Department for Education gives them.
- The Department for Education publishes these as accredited official statistics. Its data is released under the Open Government Licence, as its data guidance says; it names no version.