Nine in ten pupils offered place at preferred primary school

Fidure is improvement on last year, West Berkshire Council figures show

NINE in 10 children in West Berkshire were offered a place at their preferred primary school, council figures reveal.

The statistics show that 89.63 per cent of parents were able to breathe a sigh of relief, with their child being offered a place at their first-choice school for the next school year.

The figure is a marginal improvement on last year when 89.29 per cent of youngsters secured a place at their preferred school.

According to the figures, 5.89 per cent were offered their second-choice school and 2.27 per cent their third.

In total, more than 97 per cent of children will be attending one of their preferred schools come September.

Since 2012, the number of first year primary school places in West Berkshire has increased by eight per cent from (1,886 to 2,038), while the number of those offered their first choice has also steadily risen from 84.34 per cent.

The figures for West Berkshire are above those seen in neighbouring Reading, where 77.5 per cent of children were offered their first-choice school.