CHILDREN coming to the end of primary education are set to learn which secondary school they will progress to.

Tomorrow is National Offer Day, when local authorities will let parents and carers know which secondary school their children have secured a place at come September.

All families who informed Oxfordshire County Council of their preferences online, by the deadline of October 31, should receive an email from the council by 2pm confirming the allocation, followed up by a letter in the post.

Successful applicants for the Swan School in Marston, which ran a separate applications process for this year only, will also be given a spot elsewhere by the council and must decide between the two.

Last week the new school's headteacher Kay Wood urged families to let them know as soon as possible if they are not planning to take up their offer of a place, so it can be re-allocated in the second round of offers in May.

The deadline for responding to school offers and adding a child's name to a school's waiting list is Thursday, March 21.

If families want to change their application or missed the October deadline, they must submit a paper application form by the same date - see the county council's website for more details.

The next round of offers will be announced on May 8.

Last year 88.83 per cent of pupils in Oxfordshire received a place at their first-preference school.

READ AGAIN: Rise in pupils getting into first-choice secondary school

Just 3.17 per cent of applicants were offered a place at a school that was not listed among their three stated preferences.

With a spike in the number of children in need of a secondary school place this year, it is possible that fewer pupils will be able to get into their chosen school.

According to the council's predictions published in 2017, there will be a 5.2 per cent rise in primary pupil numbers in Oxfordshire by 2021, and a 19.4 per cent rise in secondary school pupils.