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Spare school places have risen to their highest level since records began, as applications for primary and secondary places continue to fall.

The number of available primary and secondary places across England exceeded applications by 192,791 for September 2026, analysis of new shows.

This figure is up from 187,377 last year; spare places have increased by 15.7 per cent since 2023-24.

The figures come as pupil numbers continue to fall across the country, affecting school budgets.

The increase in spare places this year has been largely driven by a rise in spare secondary places, analysis shows.

Available secondary places exceeded applications by 60,553 this year, up from 54,140 in the previous year - an 11.8 per cent rise.

The number of spare secondary places has now risen by 24,633 since 2023-24, when available places exceeded applications by 35,920.

There was a peak in primary school applications in 2016, which translated to a secondary school peak in 2023, when 619,991 applications were received.

There have been year-on-year decreases in both secondary applications and available places, but applications have fallen proportionally more quickly than places, according to the DfE.

Unfilled capacity in primary

This year available primary school places exceeded applications by 132,238.

This was down slightly from 133,237 last year, but remains far above the lowest levels since data collection began.

In 2014-15, available primary places exceeded applications by 65,649. This means the spare capacity in primary schools has more than doubled in 12 years.

The number of pupils requiring a Reception place in primary schools has been falling in recent years, the DfE said.

Primary applications peaked at 641,572 in 2016-17, while the number of places available reached a high of 713,090 in 2019-20.

The latest figures show primary applications fell by 1.6 per cent this year, while the number of available places fell by 1.4 per cent.

North West has most spare places

The North West had the highest number of spare places overall in 2026-27, with available primary and secondary places exceeding applications by 27,981.

This was followed by the South East, where there were 24,728 more places than applications.

Inner London had the lowest total, with 10,239 spare places.

The biggest year-on-year rise was in the East Midlands, where spare places increased from 18,808 to 20,424 (a rise of 8.6 per cent).

In the West Midlands, spare places rose by 1,064 to 19,933.

The North West also saw the sharpest annual increase in spare secondary school places.

Available secondary places exceeded applications by 9,322 in the region this year, up from 7,562 last year (an increase of 23 per cent).

Outer London was the only region in England where secondary spare places fell, dropping slightly from 3,517 to 3,468.

The North West also had the highest number of spare primary places this year, with 18,659.

The South East had 16,934, while Yorkshire and the Humber had 15,102 and the East Midlands 14,963.

Offer rates remain high

The proportion of families getting one of their preferred schools has reached a record high, according to the DfE.

In London, families can choose up to six preferences, while across the rest of England, there are three choices.

In both primary and secondary, 97.5 per cent of applicants received an offer at one of their preferred schools, up 0.1 percentage points on last year.

Primary pupils were more likely than secondary students to get their first-choice school.

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