School admissions in Leyland
How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. 11 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.
Leyland in figures
For Reception places in September 2026, families named the 14 schools in Leyland first 395 times for 391 places: 1.01 first choices per place, against 1.00 across the Lancashire authority's 472 schools. 5 of the 14 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, 6 schools here gave their last places on distance, from 0.50 miles (Moss Side Primary School) to 2.40 miles (Bretherton Endowed Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School).
For Year 7 places in September 2026, families named the 5 schools in Leyland first 782 times for 812 places: 0.96 first choices per place, against 1.01 across the Lancashire authority's 80 schools. 3 of the 5 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, one school here gave its last places on distance: St Mary's Catholic High School, to 0.10 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
14 schools. 5 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places | Cutoff distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trinity and St Michael's VA CofE/Methodist Primary School | 1.27 | 30 | not published |
| St Catherine's Catholic Primary School | 1.17 | 30 | not published |
| Farington Primary School | 1.13 | 30 | 0.83 miles |
| Leyland St James Church of England Primary School | 1.11 | 28 | 1 miles |
| Lancaster Lane Primary and Pre-School | 1.03 | 29 | 1.9 miles |
| Bretherton Endowed Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School | 1.00 | 15 | 2.4 miles |
| Leyland St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School | 1.00 | 16 | not published |
| Moss Side Primary School | 1.00 | 30 | 0.5 miles |
| Seven Stars Primary School | 0.97 | 30 | 1.16 miles |
| Leyland Methodist Infant School | 0.95 | 44 | not published |
| Northbrook Primary Academy | 0.93 | 15 | not published |
| Lever House Primary School | 0.88 | 43 | not published |
| Farington Moss St. Paul's C.E. Primary School | 0.87 | 30 | not published |
| St Anne's Catholic Primary School | 0.81 | 21 | 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.
Year 7 places, September 2026
5 schools. 3 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places | Cutoff distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Mary's Catholic High School | 1.24 | 160 | 0.1 miles |
| Balshaw's Church of England High School | 1.12 | 179 | not published |
| Bishop Rawstorne Church of England Academy | 1.06 | 179 | not published |
| Academy@Worden | 0.70 | 174 | not published |
| Wellfield Academy | 0.59 | 120 | 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.