School admissions in Torquay
How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. None of these schools has 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.
Torquay in figures
For Reception places in September 2026, families named the 17 schools in Torquay first 549 times for 526 places: 1.04 first choices per place, against 1.01 across the Torbay authority's 31 schools. 4 of the 17 had more first choices than places.
For Year 7 places in September 2026, families named the 5 schools in Torquay first 1,078 times for 990 places: 1.09 first choices per place, against 1.07 across the Torbay authority's 8 schools. 4 of the 5 had more first choices than places.
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
17 schools. 4 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places |
|---|---|---|
| Preston Primary School | 1.60 | 45 |
| Ilsham Church of England Academy | 1.32 | 25 |
| Shiphay Learning Academy | 1.13 | 30 |
| St Margaret's Academy | 1.03 | 34 |
| Lift Barton Hill | 1.00 | 56 |
| Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Primary School | 1.00 | 11 |
| Priory Roman Catholic Primary School, Torquay | 1.00 | 11 |
| St Marychurch Church of England Primary and Nursery School | 1.00 | 16 |
| Upton St James CofE Primary School | 1.00 | 7 |
| All Saints Babbacombe CofE Primary School | 0.96 | 28 |
| Homelands Primary School | 0.96 | 28 |
| Ellacombe Church of England Academy | 0.96 | 27 |
| Sherwell Valley Primary School | 0.96 | 77 |
| Torre Church of England Academy | 0.95 | 39 |
| Watcombe Primary School | 0.93 | 27 |
| Warberry CofE Academy | 0.91 | 22 |
| Cockington Primary School | 0.88 | 43 |
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. 4 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places |
|---|---|---|
| Torquay Academy | 1.37 | 250 |
| Torquay Boys' Grammar School | 1.30 | 166 |
| Torquay Girls' Grammar School | 1.29 | 191 |
| The Spires College | 1.03 | 194 |
| St Cuthbert Mayne School | 0.40 | 189 |
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.