Lancashire local authority: school places and applications
87% of families in Lancashire local authority were offered their first-choice secondary school for September 2026, against 84% across England. 91% got their first-choice primary (England: 92%). Lancashire local authority is responsible for 690 schools in North West.
Reception applications and offers in Lancashire local authority
Families applying through Lancashire local authority for a primary school place, by the September the children start. The council tells the DfE how many families were offered their first choice, one of their top three, or no school at all.
| Starting | Applications | First choice | England | One of top three | No offer | Offered a school in another council |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | 12,122 | 91.3% | 92.4% | 98.3% | 0.1% | 1.7% |
| September 2025 | 12,136 | 93.0% | 92.6% | 98.8% | 0.1% | 1.7% |
| September 2024 | 12,290 | 94.0% | 93.2% | 99.1% | 0.0% | 1.6% |
| September 2023 | 12,629 | 92.4% | 92.5% | 98.9% | 0.0% | 1.8% |
| September 2022 | 12,452 | 92.5% | 92.2% | 98.6% | 0.0% | 1.7% |
| September 2021 | 12,762 | 91.6% | 91.8% | 98.7% | 0.1% | 1.7% |
| September 2020 | 13,450 | 88.5% | 90.2% | 97.1% | 0.1% | 1.2% |
| September 2019 | 13,262 | 90.4% | 90.6% | 97.9% | 0.1% | 1.4% |
Year 7 applications and offers in Lancashire local authority
Families applying through Lancashire local authority for a secondary school place, by the September the children start. The council tells the DfE how many families were offered their first choice, one of their top three, or no school at all.
| Starting | Applications | First choice | England | One of top three | No offer | Offered a school in another council |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | 13,782 | 87.1% | 83.6% | 97.2% | 0.3% | 3.7% |
| September 2025 | 13,820 | 86.3% | 83.5% | 96.8% | 0.1% | 3.9% |
| September 2024 | 14,224 | 86.1% | 82.9% | 96.9% | 0.1% | 4.2% |
| September 2023 | 14,210 | 87.2% | 82.6% | 96.6% | 0.1% | 3.7% |
| September 2022 | 14,078 | 86.1% | 83.3% | 95.9% | 0.2% | 3.9% |
| September 2021 | 13,883 | 86.2% | 81.1% | 96.3% | 0.2% | 4.3% |
| September 2020 | 13,872 | 83.6% | 82.2% | 95.3% | 0.2% | 4.2% |
| September 2019 | 13,878 | 83.7% | 80.9% | 95.3% | 0.2% | 4.1% |
Source: DfE, Primary and secondary school applications and offers. These are council-wide figures; how hard an individual school is to get into is on each school's page.
Primary schools in Lancashire local authority compared with England
| Lancashire | England average | |
|---|---|---|
| State-funded primary schools | 480 | – |
| Rated Good or better by Ofsted | 69% | 80% |
| Reading, writing and maths at the expected standard (%), average school (2025) | 60.8 | 63.2 |
| Sessions missed to absence (2024/25) | 5.0% | 5.2% |
Secondary schools in Lancashire local authority compared with England
| Lancashire | England average | |
|---|---|---|
| State-funded secondary schools | 80 | – |
| Rated Good or better by Ofsted | 58% | 72% |
| Attainment 8, average school (2026) | 46.3 | 47.3 |
| Sessions missed to absence (2024/25) | 8.4% | 8.6% |
Averages are across schools, not pupils, so every school counts equally. Ofsted shares use each school's latest published grade.
Expected primary pupil numbers in Lancashire local authority
Lancashire local authority expects primary numbers to fall by 2.0% between 2024/25 and 2029/30.
| School year | Primary pupils | Reception pupils |
|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 (actual) | 95,720 | 12,621 |
| 2025/26 (forecast) | 95,338 | 12,390 |
| 2026/27 (forecast) | 95,297 | 13,050 |
| 2027/28 (forecast) | 94,549 | 12,524 |
| 2028/29 (forecast) | 94,062 | 12,526 |
| 2029/30 (forecast) | 93,785 | 12,526 |
Expected secondary pupil numbers in Lancashire local authority
Lancashire local authority expects secondary numbers to fall by 1.4% between 2024/25 and 2031/32.
| School year | Secondary pupils | Year 7 pupils |
|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 (actual) | 72,484 | 14,206 |
| 2025/26 (forecast) | 72,845 | 14,140 |
| 2026/27 (forecast) | 73,340 | 14,268 |
| 2027/28 (forecast) | 73,562 | 14,343 |
| 2028/29 (forecast) | 73,438 | 13,973 |
| 2029/30 (forecast) | 72,936 | 13,693 |
| 2030/31 (forecast) | 72,512 | 13,711 |
| 2031/32 (forecast) | 71,453 | 13,242 |
Source: council forecasts submitted to the DfE school capacity survey (SCAP). Forecasts are estimates and are revised each year.
Schools by town in Lancashire local authority
Ranked schools, with Ofsted ratings and results, for each town in Lancashire local authority:
- Preston 179 schools
- West Lancashire 71 schools
- Burnley 63 schools
- Chorley 57 schools
- South Ribble 57 schools
- Wyre 56 schools
- Pendle 55 schools
- Hyndburn 46 schools
- Ribble Valley 45 schools
- Lancaster 39 schools
- Fylde 37 schools
- Accrington 35 schools
- Ormskirk 31 schools
- Rossendale 28 schools
- Nelson 27 schools
- Skelmersdale 26 schools
- Clitheroe 24 schools
- Leyland 24 schools
- Carnforth 18 schools
- Morecambe 18 schools
- Colne 15 schools
- Poulton-Le-Fylde 15 schools
- Lytham St Annes 13 schools
- Thornton-Cleveleys 12 schools
- Bacup 10 schools
- Fleetwood 10 schools
- Barnoldswick 8 schools