Question 1

What does an Ofsted rating actually mean?

Accepted Answer

Until September 2024 Ofsted gave each state school a single overall grade — Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement or Inadequate — based on a graded inspection. From September 2024 Ofsted stopped awarding one overall word and now publishes report cards that grade separate areas such as quality of education, behaviour and leadership. A grade is a snapshot from the inspection date and can be several years old, so always read the full report, which we link to on every profile.

Question 2

What is the difference between a community school, an academy and a free school?

Accepted Answer

Community schools are run by the local authority, which also coordinates their admissions. Academies and free schools are state-funded but run by an academy trust rather than the council, and they set their own admissions within the national School Admissions Code. Free schools are simply academies that were newly set up rather than converted. All three are free to attend.

Question 3

How do school catchment areas and admissions priorities work?

Accepted Answer

When a state school has more applicants than places, it ranks them using published oversubscription criteria. Typical priorities are looked-after children first, then siblings already at the school, then children living closest, often measured by straight-line distance from home to school. A catchment area is the zone from which a school usually admits, but living in it does not guarantee a place.

Question 4

What is the 11-plus and which schools use it?

Accepted Answer

The 11-plus is a selective entrance test taken in Year 6, mainly for grammar schools. It usually covers English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning. Only grammar schools and a small number of partially selective schools use it; most state secondary schools are non-selective and do not test academic ability.

Question 5

Are grammar schools and academies free to attend?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Grammar schools, academies, free schools, community and faith schools are all state-funded and free for families. Only independent (private) schools charge fees.

Question 6

When does my child move from primary to secondary school?

Accepted Answer

Children in England move from primary to secondary school at age 11, from the end of Year 6 into Year 7. You apply during the autumn term of Year 6, and the national closing date for secondary applications is 31 October. For primary and infant places the closing date is 15 January.

Question 7

How do I apply for a state school place?

Accepted Answer

Applications for state schools are made through your local authority, not through the school or through SchoolFinder. You list your preferred schools in order on one form by the national closing date. Each profile shows the local authority responsible so you know where to apply. Independent schools handle their own admissions directly.

Question 8

Can I appeal if my child does not get a place at my preferred school?

Accepted Answer

Yes. If you are refused a place you have the right to appeal to an independent appeal panel, and the offer letter explains how and by when. You can accept a place at another school while you wait for the appeal to be heard, and you can also ask to join the preferred school’s waiting list.

Question 9

What is a faith school and can non-religious families apply?

Accepted Answer

A faith school is a state-funded school with a religious character, such as Church of England or Roman Catholic. Any family can apply, but when the school is oversubscribed it may give priority to children of that faith using published criteria, so non-religious applicants can be lower down the list. Faith schools are free and are not academically selective.

Question 10

How should I compare schools beyond the Ofsted grade?

Accepted Answer

Look at the whole picture: visit the school and trust your impression, check exam and SATs results on the Department for Education’s Compare School Performance service, and weigh travel time, the school’s ethos, pastoral care, and support for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Use SchoolFinder to shortlist and compare, then confirm the details that matter most to your child.

Question 11

Where does SchoolFinder get its school data from?

Accepted Answer

Every school listed on SchoolFinder comes from the Department for Education’s Get Information about Schools (GIAS) register, combined with Ofsted’s published management information on state-funded school inspections. Both datasets are official UK government open data published under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Question 12

How many schools are listed?

Accepted Answer

SchoolFinder covers state-funded and independent Primary, Secondary and all-through schools that are currently open in England — over 22,000 schools in total. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are not covered yet.

Question 13

How do I find schools near me?

Accepted Answer

Type a full postcode, an outcode such as SW11, a town or a city into the search box. SchoolFinder converts that into a location and shows every school within your chosen radius, sorted by distance. You can then filter by phase, Ofsted rating, school type, faith character and local authority.

Question 14

Are Ofsted ratings up to date?

Accepted Answer

Ratings come from Ofsted’s latest published management information release. Ofsted stopped awarding single-word overall effectiveness grades in September 2024 and now publishes report cards with separate evaluation areas, so newer inspections show those area grades rather than one overall word. Schools inspected before that change still show their last overall grade. Always check the school’s own Ofsted report for the definitive picture — we link to it on every profile.

Question 15

Why can’t I see exam results or league table data?

Accepted Answer

We only publish figures we can source directly from official DfE releases. Key Stage 2 and GCSE performance measures are not currently included in the SchoolFinder dataset, so we link out to the Department for Education’s Compare School Performance service instead of showing numbers we cannot verify.

Question 16

Does a school’s Ofsted rating tell me everything?

Accepted Answer

No. Inspection grades are a snapshot taken on particular days and can be several years old. Use them alongside a school visit, its admissions criteria, travel time, pastoral provision and how your child feels about the place.

Question 17

Is SchoolFinder free for parents?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Searching, comparing and reading school profiles is completely free for families, and always will be. The service is funded by optional paid listings for schools.

Question 18

How do I apply for a school place?

Accepted Answer

Applications for state schools are made through your local authority, not through the school or through SchoolFinder. Each profile shows the local authority responsible so you know where to apply. Independent schools handle their own admissions directly.

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