School admissions in Sunderland
How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. 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.
Reception places, September 2026
45 schools. 10 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
13 schools. 3 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places | Cutoff distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christ's College | 1.29 | 89 | 0.816 miles |
| St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy | 1.21 | 208 | 0.907 miles |
| Whitburn Church of England Academy | 1.20 | 201 | not published |
| Southmoor Academy | 1.00 | 238 | 3.481 miles |
| St Aidan's Catholic Academy | 0.98 | 179 | 4.94 miles |
| Farringdon Community Academy | 0.98 | 207 | not published |
| Castle View Enterprise Academy | 0.97 | 196 | 2.915 miles |
| Red House Academy | 0.97 | 62 | not published |
| Sandhill View Academy | 0.91 | 146 | 2.259 miles |
| Monkwearmouth Academy | 0.90 | 146 | not published |
| Academy 360 | 0.90 | 116 | 2.766 miles |
| Venerable Bede Church of England Academy | 0.89 | 64 | 2.077 miles |
| Thornhill Academy | 0.61 | 83 | 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.