School admissions in Whitley Bay
How heavily each school was applied to for September 2026 entry, from the applications and offers every admissions authority reports to the DfE. 5 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.
Whitley Bay in figures
For Reception places in September 2026, families named the 13 schools in Whitley Bay first 485 times for 481 places: 1.01 first choices per place. 5 of the 13 had more first choices than places. For 2026 entry, one school here gave its last places on distance: South Wellfield First School, to 1.20 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
13 schools. 5 received more first preferences than they had places.
| School | First preferences per place | Places | Cutoff distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Wellfield First School | 1.17 | 60 | 1.2 miles |
| Seaton Sluice First School | 1.11 | 27 | not published |
| Langley First School | 1.06 | 47 | not published |
| Whitley Lodge First School | 1.05 | 44 | not published |
| Rockcliffe First School | 1.03 | 30 | 0.45 miles |
| New Hartley First School | 1.00 | 18 | not published |
| Marine Park First School | 0.98 | 59 | not published |
| Seaton Delaval First School | 0.97 | 29 | not published |
| Coquet Park First School | 0.96 | 26 | not published |
| Holywell Village First School | 0.96 | 26 | not published |
| Appletree Gardens First School | 0.95 | 40 | not published |
| Star of the Sea Catholic Primary School, Whitley Bay | 0.93 | 28 | not published |
| Southridge First School | 0.85 | 47 | 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.