Record numbers of applications were made to top-performing Catholic secondary schools this year, with hundreds of pupils denied places.
At the London Oratory in west London, for example, around 900 applied for only 160 places, up from 800 applicants last year.
Meanwhile the Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School, also in west London, received its highest ever number of applications: 864 for 120 places. At least seven applications have been made for each place since 2011, and the number of those applying has been rising since 2009.
In the Archdiocese of Southwark, a spokesman for the Education Commission confirmed that applications for Catholic schools also appeared to be up, according to figures made available for individual schools this week.
“First overall impressions are that the number of applications were up on the previous year and that, with a few exceptions, all the secondary schools in the diocese are oversubscribed, but not necessarily with Catholic children,” the spokesman said.
The national figures for applications to Catholic schools are not yet available.
Across all schools, latest reports say that the number of secondary-school pupils failing to achieve places at their preferred institution is increasing. Because of heightened demand, at least four-in-10 children in parts of London have only been given places at their second, third or even sixth choice schools for September.
In Birmingham, 30 per cent of pupils missed out on their first choice, up from 26 per cent last year.
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