Most sought-after schools in York

Ordered by how many families put the school first, for each place it gave out.

This list is sorted by one number: first preferences per place. For each school it is the number of families who named it first, divided by the number of offers it made, in the newest year we hold. A higher number means more families wanted a place than there were places.

This is not a list of the best schools. It does not measure how good a school is, how happy the children are, or how well they do. It also does not tell you whether a child would get a place: that depends on where you live, the year, and the council's rules. It only shows how many people applied.

#	School	First preferences per place	Newest intake	Latest Ofsted
1	Lord Deramore's Primary School York, primary	2.44	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
2	All Saints Catholic School York York, secondary	1.32	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
3	St Lawrence's Church of England Primary School York, primary	1.29	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
4	St Oswald's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School York, primary	1.21	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
5	Huntington School York, secondary	1.17	2026	School remains Outstanding (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
6	Acomb Primary School York, primary	1.16	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
7	Rufforth Primary School York, primary	1.13	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
8	Ralph Butterfield Primary School York, primary	1.11	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
9	Dringhouses Primary School York, primary	1.09	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
10	Clifton With Rawcliffe Primary School York, primary	1.07	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
11	St Wilfrid's Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary Academy York, primary	1.07	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
12	Woodthorpe Primary School York, primary	1.07	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
13	Fulford School York, secondary	1.06	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
14	Archbishop Holgate's School, A Church of England Academy York, secondary	1.04	2026	Strong standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
15	Bishopthorpe Infant School York, primary	1.00	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
16	Burton Green Primary School York, primary	1.00	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
17	Heworth Church of England Primary School York, primary	1.00	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
18	Huntington Primary Academy York, primary	1.00	2026	Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
19	Knavesmire Primary School York, primary	1.00	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
20	New Earswick Primary School York, primary	1.00	2026	Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
21	Skelton Primary School York, primary	1.00	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
22	Tang Hall Primary Academy York, primary	1.00	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
23	Yearsley Grove Primary School York, primary	1.00	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
24	Carr Infant School York, primary	0.98	2026	Urgent improvement (Ofsted report card (current framework))
25	Poppleton Ousebank Primary School York, primary	0.98	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
26	Robert Wilkinson Primary Academy York, primary	0.98	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
27	Copmanthorpe Primary School York, primary	0.97	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
28	Haxby Road Primary Academy York, primary	0.97	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
29	Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary Academy York, primary	0.97	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
30	Scarcroft Primary School York, primary	0.97	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
31	Wigginton Primary School York, primary	0.97	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
32	Poppleton Road Primary School York, primary	0.96	2026	Needs attention (Ofsted report card (current framework))
33	Wheldrake with Thorganby Church of England Primary School York, primary	0.96	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
34	Westfield Primary Community School York, primary	0.95	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
35	York High School York, secondary	0.95	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
36	Dunnington Church of England Primary School York, primary	0.94	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
37	Park Grove Primary Academy York, primary	0.94	2026	Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
38	St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School York, primary	0.93	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
39	Elvington Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School York, primary	0.92	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
40	Headlands Primary School York, primary	0.92	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
41	Hempland Primary School York, primary	0.92	2026	Strong standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
42	St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School York, primary	0.92	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
43	Millthorpe School York, secondary	0.91	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
44	Saint Barnabas Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School York, primary	0.91	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
45	Clifton Green Primary School York, primary	0.90	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
46	Vale of York Academy York, secondary	0.89	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
47	Lakeside Primary Academy York, primary	0.88	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
48	Manor Church of England Academy York, secondary	0.88	2026	Strong standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
49	Hob Moor Community Primary Academy York, primary	0.85	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
50	St Aelred's Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary Academy York, primary	0.85	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
51	Joseph Rowntree School York, secondary	0.83	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
52	Osbaldwick Primary Academy York, primary	0.83	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
53	Fishergate Primary School York, primary	0.77	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
54	St George's Catholic Primary School - a Catholic Voluntary Academy York, primary	0.64	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
55	Badger Hill Primary Academy York, primary	0.47	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)

Figures from the Department for Education, applications and offers. 55 schools in York have a published per-place figure. Schools with too few places for the figure to mean anything are left off. All schools in York · How we compare schools.