North Cestrian School: admissions history
How many families applied, how many places there were, and how far the last place went - every year we hold.
For September 2026 entry, 112 families put North Cestrian School as their first choice and 1047 named it as one of their preferences, for 175 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places, so in 2026 a family who put it first could expect an offer unless the school's other criteria ruled them out.
First-choice demand has risen from 63 in 2021 to 112 in 2026, while places went from 148 to 175.
Across Trafford, 81% of families were offered their first-choice secondary school for 2026 entry, and 98% were offered one of the schools they named.
In 2025, families in Trafford lodged 444 appeals against secondary school offers; 385 reached a hearing and 48 succeeded (12.5% of those heard).
Applications and offers by year
| Entry year | Places offered | First choices | Named at all | First choices per place | First choices not offered |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 175 | 112 | 1047 | 0.6 | 23 |
| 2025 | 176 | 156 | 1088 | 0.9 | 52 |
| 2024 | 170 | 156 | 1043 | 0.9 | 46 |
| 2023 | 170 | 175 | 1177 | 1.0 | 61 |
| 2022 | 168 | 132 | 985 | 0.8 | 47 |
| 2021 | 148 | 63 | 808 | 0.4 | 19 |
| 2020 | 150 | 95 | 717 | 0.6 | 15 |
| 2019 | 150 | 72 | 670 | 0.5 | 2 |
| 2018 | 155 | 89 | 719 | 0.6 | 3 |
| 2017 | 137 | 101 | 667 | 0.7 | 23 |
Source: DfE, Primary and secondary school applications and offers (school-level file). "Places offered" is the number of offers made on national offer day, which can differ from the school's published admission number.