School admissions in Chester
How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. 22 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.
Chester in figures
For Reception places in September 2026, families named the 39 schools in Chester first 930 times for 927 places: 1.00 first choices per place, against 1.00 across the Cheshire West and Chester authority's 123 schools. 9 of the 39 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, 7 schools here gave their last places on distance, from 0.25 miles (Belgrave Primary School) to 4.56 miles (Huxley CofE Primary School).
For Year 7 places in September 2026, families named the 6 schools in Chester first 985 times for 991 places: 0.99 first choices per place, against 0.98 across the Cheshire West and Chester authority's 19 schools. One of the 6 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, 2 schools here gave their last places on distance, from 3.37 miles (Upton-by-Chester High School) to 4.96 miles (Christleton High School).
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
39 schools. 9 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
6 schools. 1 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places | Cutoff distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Bishops' Blue Coat Church of England High School | 1.08 | 202 | 0.745 miles |
| Christleton High School | 0.98 | 219 | 4.959 miles |
| Upton-by-Chester High School | 0.97 | 292 | 3.367 miles |
| The Catholic High School, Chester | 0.97 | 72 | not published |
| Queen's Park High School | 0.97 | 128 | not published |
| Blacon High School, A Specialist Sports College | 0.95 | 78 | 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.