THE number of school places up for grabs is a common cause of concern for parents who want their children to get into their preferred choice.

With some children missing out on their preferred choice and certain schools becoming oversubscribed, school places have been a growing issue in recent years, and one that could intensify further with the number of housebuilding developments across the borough.

Across the 53 primary schools that fall under St Helens Council's remit, data released by the Department for Education shows that 12 schools were oversubscribed for the academic year 2023/2024.

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Worked out by the number of places offered compared to the number of times the school was put as first preference, the most oversubscribed school in the borough was St Peter's CofE in Newton-le-Willows.

An Ofsted-rated 'Outstanding' school, the Birley Street school could only offer 30 places compared with the 59 pupils that had it as their first choice - meaning that it could only offer places to half the number of applicants.

The second most oversubscribed school in the borough was Eccleston Lane Ends, another Ofsted-rated 'Outstanding' school on Albany Avenue. 

Eccleston Lane Ends could only offer 28 places compared with the 46 pupils that put it as their preferred choice - meaning that 40% of those who applied did not get in.

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Other oversubscribed primary schools included Nutgrove in Thatto Heath, Grange Valley in Haydock, Eaves in Marshalls Cross, Garswood, Oakdene in Rainhill, Lyme community school in Newton-le-Willows, Parish CofE in St Helens, Robins Lane in Sutton, St Aidan's in Billinge, and Allanson Street in Parr.

In addition to the oversubscribed schools, there were a further 13 institutions that were at capacity with the number of places offered matching the number of first choice preferences.

This means that 28 primary schools were undersubscribed when comparing places offered with first-choice preferences.

List of school places offered in St Helens:

Cllr Nova Charlton, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, said: "We fully appreciate that primary school placements can be a big worry for many families in the borough, so every year our School Admissions Team works exceptionally hard with our primary schools to ensure that parents and carers are allocated one of their preferences.

"We've had an excellent track record in recent years in this regard, with more than 98% of families securing one of their preferred choices for September 2023, up from the previous year, with 94.83% getting their first choice.

"If you have any questions or concerns about your application, please contact the team by emailing schooladmissions@sthelens.gov.uk."