BRADFORD has the eighth most competitive catchment areas in the country for outstanding school places, according to a new study.

It comes as part of new research from mortgage broker Mojo Mortgages that shows which areas of the country offer the best and worst chances for pupils looking to secure a place at an outstanding primary or secondary school in September 2022.

By analysing population data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) and the latest inspection reports from Ofsted, the research has revealed the towns and cities where competition for places at outstanding schools is most and least competitive as well as what these figures mean for parents and homeowners.

To establish the odds for each location, the research looked at the number of three and 10-year olds in each town and city (likely to be applying for reception and year seven places in September 2022) and compared these to the amount of outstanding schools in the area based on Ofsted’s latest inspection reports. Locations with zero outstanding schools were not included in the study.

When combining primary and secondary places to gauge an overall view, Bradford had the eighth most competitive catchment areas with around 16,169 pupils potentially vying for places at the city’s 19 outstanding schools (851 pupils per outstanding school).

Swindon topped the list (2,905 pupils per outstanding school) ahead of Peterborough (1,536) with Bath (1,333) completing the top three in terms of competitiveness.