Starting secondary school (Year 7)

Children currently in Year 6 at a primary or junior school, or born between 1 September 2014 and 31 August 2015, are able to start Year 7 in a secondary school in September 2026.

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Before you fill in this form

You won't be able to save this form to complete later, so please allow yourself 10-15 minutes to fill in the form. You will need to provide:

  • Proof of address

Apply for a school place

Secondary school open evenings

The following dates are available for open evenings at secondary schools in Southampton.

Date School and time
Wednesday 17 September 2025 Oasis Academy Sholing - 5-7pm
St Marks - 6-8pm
Thursday 18 September 2025 Bitterne Park - 4.30-7pm
Oasis Academy Mayfield - 5-7pm
Redbridge - 6-8pm
Wednesday 24 September 2025 Oasis Academy Lord’s Hill - 5-7pm
St Anne's - 6-8pm
Weston - 6-8pm
Woodlands - 6-8pm
Thursday 25 September 2025 Regents Park - 5-7.30pm
Wednesday 1 October 2025 Cantell - 5.30-8pm
Thursday 2 October 2025 Saint George - 5.30-8pm

Late applications

Offers will be made to late applicants on the following basis:

Application received between Offer made
1 November-31 December 2025 Week commencing 10 March 2025
1 January-28 February 2026 Week commencing 17 March 2025
1 March-31 March 2026 Week commencing 14 April 2025
1 April-30 April 2026 Week commencing 12 May 2025
1 May-31 May 2026 Week commencing 16 June 2025
1 June-30 June 2026 Week commencing 7 July 2025
1 July-14 July 2026 Week commencing 21 July 2025
15 July-31 July 2026 Week commencing 11 August 2025
1 August-11 August 2026 Week commencing 18 August 2025
12 August-18 August 2026 Week commencing 25 August 2025
19 August-31 August 2026 Week commencing 1 September 2025
From 1 September 2026 onwards Managed as per in-year timescales

Secondary school year groups

Secondary schools provide education for children between 11 and 16 years of age. The National Curriculum organises the year groups as follows:

Age School year Key stage
Between 11 and 12 7 3
Between 12 and 13 8 3
Between 13 and 14 9 3
Between 14 and 15 10 4
Between 15 and 16 11 4

An important part of this process is enabling them to get the best possible results at key stage 3 of the National Curriculum and the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) - the examination courses taken during years 10 and 11.

For main round applications, the school place offered will be for a full time place starting from 1 September 2026. Find out more about how to apply for a school place.

If you want to change schools part-way through the academic year, you will need to complete an in-year transfer application.

2026/27 admissions

You can now read information on the process for 'main round' admission into Year 7 for the 2026/27 academic year:

Other useful information