Mainstream School Applications (Primary and Secondary)

A school year runs from August to June. For example:

• August 2026 to June 2027 = School Year 2026/27
• August 2027 to June 2028 = School Year 2027/28

To work out which school year to apply for, identify the date you wish your child to start school.

Once a child reaches school age, their date of birth determines the year group they are eligible to attend.

To find the correct stage, look at the age your child will reach between 1 March and the end of the following February that includes the August start date of the school year you are applying for.

Primary School

Secondary School

Deferring Entry to Primary 1 (P1)

Children who turn five between the second day of the school year in August and the end of February may delay starting P1 until the following August.

If you wish to defer your child's entry to school, you must apply for an additional year of Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) to be considered for nursery funding and a nursery place during the deferred year.

Requesting an Additional Year of ELC

Children who turn five between 1 March and the first day of the school year in August would normally start P1 that August.

Parents may still request an additional year of Early Learning and Childcare, but each application will be considered individually by the School Placement Panel and may be refused.

Please refer to the Additional Year of Early Learning and Childcare Policy and Procedure for further information.

Early Admission to P1

The Council is not required to provide school education for children who are not yet of school age. However, parents may apply for Early Admission to P1.

Please refer to the Early Admission to P1 Policy and Procedure for details of how to apply.

Repeating a School Year

In exceptional circumstances, a child already attending primary or secondary school may be considered to repeat a year group.

Please refer to the relevant policy and procedure for further information.

Applications for the Current School Year

If the school year has already started, applications can be submitted throughout the year.

Schools aim to issue decisions as quickly as possible. However, two months is the legal timescale for a decision to be made.

Applications for the Next School Year

Primary 1 (P1)

Primary 2 to Primary 7

Secondary 1 (S1)

Secondary 2 to Secondary 6

Applying Before 15 March (P1 and S1 August Intake)

Parents and carers of:

• Children attending a West Lothian Council nursery, partner provider or funded childminder, and
• Pupils attending a West Lothian Council primary school who are transferring to S1

will receive information directly when applications open.

Information will also be published on the Council's website, social media channels and other communication platforms.

Applying After 15 March

Applications received after 15 March will be considered after all on-time applications have been processed.

Parents should be aware that places at their preferred school may be limited or unavailable by this stage.

Decision Dates

No decisions for on-time P1 and S1 applications will be issued before the closing date of 15 March.

The School Placement Panel will meet after that date and decisions will be issued as soon as possible, no later than the end of April.

Primary 1 (P1) and Secondary 1 (S1) August Intake Applications

Applications are considered by the School Placement Panel, which is made up of senior Council officers.

Parents and carers do not attend these meetings.

If Places Are Available

If there are sufficient places at the requested school, applications will normally be approved.

If There Are More Applications Than Places

Where demand exceeds the number of available places, the School Placement Panel will consider:

• All information provided in the application form
• The Council's Placing in Schools Guidelines
• Any supporting information supplied by parents or carers
• The overall pattern of applications across West Lothian

Parents should ensure that they provide all information they believe is relevant to their application.

The Council also has discretion to admit a child to a school in special circumstances.

For applications submitted by 15 March, decisions will be issued by the end of April before the August intake.

Applications submitted after 15 March but before the start of the new school year will be considered under delegated authority by the Head of Service (Education). The Pupil Placement Team will issue a decision as soon as possible and no later than two months after the application is received.

All Other School Applications

Applications for all other year groups are considered by the Head Teacher of the requested school.

Schools will issue decisions as soon as possible and no later than two months from the date the application is received.

Applications submitted during school holiday periods may not be considered until the start of the next school term.

We ask parent/carers to read the Policy and Procedure document and the Privacy Notice before completing an application form.

The Policy and Procedure documents for both Primary and Secondary have been combined into

• Mainstream Schools - Background Information
• Mainstream Schools - General Information
• Mainstream Schools -Additional Information

The Privacy Notices are

• Privacy notice - primary school application (PDF, 493 KB)(opens new window)
• Privacy notice - secondary school application (PDF, 492 KB)(opens new window)

To apply complete an application on the Admit Portal

Start a School Admission Application on Admit Portal (opens new window)

Please note only one account on ADMIT is required -

• if you have more than one child - there is an 'Add Child' function to add a further child(ren) to the same account and the 'Switch Child' option is used to move between each child's record on that account
• if other parent/carer(s) to have access  - there is a 'Trustee' function to invite other parent/carer to create an account so they can see the child's record/applications.  Other parent/carer must not create an account without a Trustee invite as this will just create a duplicate child record with no access to information on the other child record.