Secondary school places
Applications have been processed. Offer emails were sent on Monday 2 March 2026.
You must apply for a secondary school place for your child to start year 7 at secondary school. You will need to do this when your child is in year 6 at primary school.
If your child is already at secondary school and you want to move them to a different school you must apply for an in year admission.
What to do
You can name up to 4 school preferences on your secondary school application.
To help you choose the schools to add to your application:
- read our advice about choosing a school
- find information about open days from the school's website or contact the school
- read our guide to secondary admissions for 2026 (PDF, 2.1 MB)
- view the Kent School’s app for a map of all mainstream schools in Kent with accessibility information.
Applications for 2026
For children starting year 7 in September 2026 applications opened on Monday 1 September and closed on Friday 31 October 2025.
Applications are processed between 1 November 2025 and 1 March 2026.
If you have not applied and are a Kent resident email kentonlineadmissions@kent.gov.uk with your child’s:
- name
- date of birth
- full address
- current school.
We will then advise you of the next steps.
If you have applied but your circumstances have changed and you need to amend your application, email kentonlineadmissions@kent.gov.uk so we can help you.
Additional information
Some schools may need you to complete an additional form called a Supplementary Information Form (SIF).
Contact the school(s) to obtain the form(s) and once completed return the form directly to them.
Cranbrook School
Cranbrook School is the only school in Kent with year 9 entry. Applications closed on Friday 31 October 2025.
University Technical Colleges (UTCs)
University Technical Colleges cater for children from year 10 onwards.
Special educational needs and disabilities children
Most children with special educational needs and disabilities can attend mainstream schools, whether or not they have an education health and care (EHC) plan.
If your child has an EHC plan their school placement will be arranged by the SEN Team.
Find out more about applying for a school place for your SEND child.
Free schools
There are no new free schools opening in 2026.
If you provided an email address on your application, we emailed you on Monday 2 March 2026 to tell you which school you have been offered.
Offer emails were sent to the email address you provided on your application.
Due to data protection restrictions, we cannot send the offer to another email address without approval from the original email account. If you have changed email address, make sure you can still access the original one to receive your offer. Or view your offer online.
If you need to reset your password you must use the email address you registered with.
Email kentonlineadmissions@kent.gov.uk if you have any questions.