Local school area research

Compare school areas before you move or apply

Find local authorities with strong schools, grammar options and admissions demand before choosing where to live, which schools to shortlist or which official admissions rules to check next.

Use area-level performance and search signals as a starting point, then check distance, catchment, priority rules, supplementary forms and travel before making application decisions.

Search areas Admissions guide Data and methodology

Best for grammar school search

Start here when selective admissions and 11+ planning are part of the decision.

Buckinghamshire Kent Sutton Barnet Trafford

Best large-city school markets

Useful for comparing many primary and secondary choices in dense urban areas.

Birmingham Manchester Leeds Bristol

Best commuter-belt areas

High-interest relocation areas where school choice often affects where families live.

Surrey Hertfordshire Essex Kent Buckinghamshire

School-aware area search

Turn area data into a realistic shortlist

Use this page to compare local authorities before choosing where to live or applying for schools. Start by selecting an area, then review school performance, admissions guidance, grammar school availability and individual school results.

Decision workflow

Use local authority data to choose where to research next

Parents usually need a practical shortlist, not another league table. Start with the constraints that affect where you can live, apply and travel, then check admissions realism for individual schools.

Useful inputs before you compare areas

Child stage

Primary, secondary, sixth form, selective, independent or in-year move.

Target place

Current postcode, target town or the streets you are considering.

Home constraints

Budget, rent or buy, commute target and travel tolerance.

School priorities

Academic results, value added, SEN, faith, grammar, mixed or single-sex.

Risk tolerance

Safe options, stretch choices and backup schools to keep in scope.

Moving home for schools

Compare authorities before you settle on target towns, streets or property searches.

Start with commuter-belt, city and grammar-area signals, then open school maps for the postcodes you are considering.

Add Rightmove context

Applying this year

Turn a local authority shortlist into deadline, preference and form checks.

Use each authority page to find official admissions links, then verify priority areas, SIFs and allocation data.

Check admissions guide

Comparing a shortlist

Move from area-level signals to school-by-school tradeoffs.

Compare performance, context and inspection signals side by side before deciding which schools to visit first.

Compare schools

High-demand school areas

Popular local authorities for school search

These areas are prioritised because they have large numbers of schools, strong parent search demand, selective or grammar school interest, or high relocation activity.

20 of 20 areas

Search local authority or townRegionSort by

Min Attainment 8Min schoolsGrammar schools

Birmingham

West Midlands

Rank 1

Best for grammar-school search

394

Schools

43.9

Attainment 8

55.7%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Huge population, many schools, strong parent search volume

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Birmingham Compare schools Rankings

Kent

South East

Rank 2

Best for grammar-school search

583

Schools

43.0

Attainment 8

55.1%

English & maths 5+

114

Grammar schools

Large county, grammar schools, admissions/catchment interest

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Kent Compare schools Rankings

Essex

East of England

Rank 3

Best for grammar-school search

534

Schools

43.3

Attainment 8

55.6%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Large county, commuter towns, school-selection demand

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Essex Compare schools Rankings

Surrey

South East

Rank 4

Best for grammar-school search

371

Schools

44.2

Attainment 8

58.8%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Affluent relocation area, high school-comparison intent

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Surrey Compare schools Rankings

Hertfordshire

East of England

Rank 5

Best for grammar-school search

499

Schools

46.2

Attainment 8

61.2%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

London commuter belt, many families, selective/strong schools interest

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Hertfordshire Compare schools Rankings

Manchester

North West

Rank 6

Best for grammar-school search

175

Schools

45.3

Attainment 8

58.0%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Large city, many schools, high search demand

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Manchester Compare schools Rankings

Leeds

Yorkshire and The Humber

Rank 7

Best for grammar-school search

271

Schools

41.0

Attainment 8

54.0%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Large city, strong regional traffic opportunity

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Leeds Compare schools Rankings

Lancashire

North West

Rank 8

Best for grammar-school search

579

Schools

40.9

Attainment 8

52.5%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Large county, many schools and towns

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Lancashire Compare schools Rankings

Hampshire

South East

Rank 9

Best for grammar-school search

513

Schools

39.4

Attainment 8

50.7%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Large county, family relocation/search demand

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Hampshire Compare schools Rankings

Buckinghamshire

South East

Rank 10

High-performing selective area

230

Schools

50.0

Attainment 8

65.6%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Grammar-school area, very high admissions/search intent

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Buckinghamshire Compare schools Rankings

Barnet

Outer London

Rank 11

High-performing selective area

124

Schools

56.2

Attainment 8

73.7%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

London + grammar schools + high parent demand

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Barnet Compare schools Rankings

Sutton

Outer London

Rank 12

High-performing selective area

Schools

55.2

Attainment 8

72.3%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

London + grammar schools + very strong school-quality search intent

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Sutton Compare schools Rankings

Redbridge

Outer London

Rank 13

High-performing selective area

Schools

50.4

Attainment 8

68.6%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

London + grammar schools + high family demand

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Redbridge Compare schools Rankings

Bromley

Outer London

Rank 14

Best for grammar-school search

Schools

45.2

Attainment 8

59.2%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

London + grammar schools + affluent family area

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Bromley Compare schools Rankings

Kingston upon Thames

Outer London

Rank 15

High-performing selective area

Schools

55.1

Attainment 8

74.0%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

London + selective/admissions interest

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Kingston upon Thames Compare schools Rankings

Bexley

Outer London

Rank 16

Best for grammar-school search

Schools

44.0

Attainment 8

56.3%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

London + grammar schools

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Bexley Compare schools Rankings

Trafford

North West

Rank 17

High-performing selective area

Schools

51.2

Attainment 8

66.8%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Grammar schools, affluent Manchester commuter area

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Trafford Compare schools Rankings

Gloucestershire

South West

Rank 18

Best for grammar-school search

295

Schools

49.5

Attainment 8

65.3%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Grammar schools, strong school-selection intent

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Gloucestershire Compare schools Rankings

Bristol, City of

South West

Rank 19

Best for grammar-school search

134

Schools

38.7

Attainment 8

50.1%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Large city, competitive school places

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Bristol, City of Compare schools Rankings

Nottinghamshire

East Midlands

Rank 20

Best for grammar-school search

323

Schools

43.7

Attainment 8

57.2%

English & maths 5+

Grammar schools

Large county, school capacity/search interest

Stretch and selective-entry checks

Strong candidates often need 11+ timing, priority rules and backup schools checked early.

Confirm 11+ registration and test dates

Check priority area, sibling and distance rules

Keep non-selective backup schools in the shortlist

View schools in Nottinghamshire Compare schools Rankings

Admissions realism

Check the risks that rankings cannot answer

Previous allocation distance

Check the last offered distance or allocation band where the local authority publishes it.

PAN and oversubscription

Look for places available, applications received and rules used when a school has more applicants than places.

Priority area and forms

Confirm catchment, sibling, faith, selective-entry and Supplementary Information Form requirements.

Travel and backup options

Compare realistic journeys and keep at least one credible alternative in the same authority search.

Compare areas

Local authority comparisons parents often make

Compare schools

Birmingham vs Kent

Large school markets with very different admissions and grammar-school patterns.

Open Birmingham Open Kent

Surrey vs Hertfordshire

Popular commuter-belt relocation areas with strong parent search demand.

Open Surrey Open Hertfordshire

Barnet vs Sutton

London boroughs where selective-school interest is a major part of the search.

Open Barnet Open Sutton

Buckinghamshire vs Gloucestershire

Grammar-school-heavy areas worth comparing before 11+ registration deadlines.

Open Buckinghamshire Open Gloucestershire

Admissions rules still decide realism

Local authorities coordinate applications for most state-funded schools, but individual admission rules can still vary by school type, distance, siblings, faith criteria, selective entry and supplementary forms.

Area averages are only a starting point

Authority averages are shaped by the mix of primary, secondary, selective, comprehensive and independent schools in the area. Use them to choose where to research, then compare individual schools.

Home searches need school context

Shortlist two or three local authorities, check school availability by phase, review admissions pressure, then open school profiles and rankings for the streets or towns you are considering.