Schools in Sunderland

92 schools with published admissions figures

The newest figures for each school. "1st prefs per place" is how many families put the school first, for each place it gave out. It measures demand, not whether a child would get a place. A dash means the figure is not available.

How the 2026 round went in Sunderland

Primary

Offered their first choice 95.0%
Of families applying for a primary place for September 2026. Against 91.0% in 2016.
Offered one of their three 98.2%
Families offered any of the schools they named.
Families who applied 2,737
Applications received for a primary place. A family naming three schools counts once.

For September 2026, 95.0% of families applying for a primary place here were offered their first choice, and 98.2% were offered one of the three schools they named.

That is 4.0 points higher than in 2016, when it was 91.0%.

The council's primary schools between them had 3,430 places for 2,737 applications. That is a total for the whole council and says nothing about any one school in it.

Secondary

Offered their first choice 92.9%
Of families applying for a secondary place for September 2026. Against 94.2% in 2016.
Offered one of their three 98.0%
Families offered any of the schools they named.
Families who applied 2,921
Applications received for a secondary place. A family naming three schools counts once.

For September 2026, 92.9% of families applying for a secondary place here were offered their first choice, and 98.0% were offered one of the three schools they named.

That is 1.2 points lower than in 2016, when it was 94.2%.

The council's secondary schools between them had 3,305 places for 2,921 applications. That is a total for the whole council and says nothing about any one school in it.

Source: Department for Education, applications and offers. The same round across England.

If a family is refused a place

In 2026, families in Sunderland lodged 121 appeals about a school place.

102 of them were heard by a panel and 76 succeeded, which is about 75 in every 100 heard.

The other 19 did not reach a panel. Most appeals that do not are withdrawn because a place comes up first.

This is a record of decisions already made. A panel hears one case at a time and decides it on what that family sets out, so these figures do not indicate what would happen in any particular appeal.

Source: Department for Education, admission appeals in England, reporting year 2026. Counts every school in this council area. The share that succeeded is taken over appeals heard by a panel, not over appeals lodged.

Secondary

School	1st prefs per place	Demand since	Latest Ofsted
Biddick Academy Washington	0.93	-	Strong standard Ofsted report card (current framework)
Castle View Enterprise Academy Sunderland	0.97	-	Good Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
Farringdon Community Academy Sunderland	0.98	-	Expected standard Ofsted report card (current framework)
Hetton Academy Houghton le Spring	0.82	-	Not judged Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
Kepier Houghton le Spring	1.11	-	Good Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
Monkwearmouth Academy Sunderland	0.90	-	Good Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
Oxclose Community Academy Washington	0.94	-	Not judged Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
Red House Academy Sunderland	0.97	-	Standards maintained Ofsted ungraded inspection
Sandhill View Academy Sunderland	0.91	-	Expected standard Ofsted report card (current framework)
Southmoor Academy Sunderland	1.00	-	School remains Good Ofsted ungraded inspection
St Aidan's Catholic Academy Sunderland	0.98	-	Not judged Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy Sunderland	1.21	-	Good Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
St Robert of Newminster Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Washington Washington	1.10	-	School remains Good Ofsted ungraded inspection
Thornhill Academy Sunderland	0.61	-	Good Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
Venerable Bede Church of England Academy Sunderland	0.89	-	Not judged Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)
Washington Academy Washington	0.97	-	Expected standard Ofsted report card (current framework)

Elsewhere

Most sought-after schools in Sunderland by first preferences per place
Schools in DH4 (11)
Schools in DH5 (9)
Schools in NE37 (7)
Schools in NE38 (14)
Schools in NE9 (13)
Schools in SR2 (12)
Schools in SR3 (11)
Schools in SR4 (11)
Schools in SR5 (12)
Schools in SR6 (10)
What data we hold