School admissions in Bury St Edmunds
How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. 20 of these schools also have a published admissions cutoff distance. Sorted by first preferences per place. We don't invent rankings: the order is arithmetic on a published figure, not a view about which school is better.
Bury St Edmunds in figures
For Reception places in September 2026, families named the 35 schools in Bury St Edmunds first 1,028 times for 1,015 places: 1.01 first choices per place, against 1.00 across the Suffolk authority's 248 schools. 8 of the 35 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, 8 schools here gave their last places on distance, from 0.55 miles (The Pines Primary School) to 6.34 miles (Great Barton Church of England Primary Academy).
For Year 7 places in September 2026, families named the 5 schools in Bury St Edmunds first 904 times for 876 places: 1.03 first choices per place, against 0.99 across the Suffolk authority's 43 schools. 2 of the 5 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, one school here gave its last places on distance: King Edward VI CEVC School, to 5.19 miles.
Totals for the schools listed on this page. Applications and offers on national offer day, DfE; last-offer distances as the council published them.
Reception places, September 2026
35 schools. 8 received more first preferences than they had places.
First preferences per place is the number of families naming the school first, divided by its published admission number. Above 1.00 means more first choices than places. It is not a ranking and not a measure of quality: a popular school can be easy to get into and a quiet one hard, because places are allocated by each school's own criteria, siblings and faith and banding first, with distance often the last tie-breaker. Applications and offers on national offer day, DfE.
Year 7 places, September 2026
5 schools. 2 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places | Cutoff distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Benedict's Catholic School | 1.43 | 167 | 1.123 miles |
| King Edward VI CEVC School | 1.00 | 225 | 5.19 miles |
| Thurston Community College | 0.98 | 277 | not published |
| Sybil Andrews Academy | 0.93 | 109 | not published |
| Bury St Edmunds County High School | 0.68 | 98 | not published |
First preferences per place is the number of families naming the school first, divided by its published admission number. Above 1.00 means more first choices than places. It is not a ranking and not a measure of quality: a popular school can be easy to get into and a quiet one hard, because places are allocated by each school's own criteria, siblings and faith and banding first, with distance often the last tie-breaker. Applications and offers on national offer day, DfE.