The Matthew Arnold 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, 246 families put The Matthew Arnold School as their first choice and 611 named it as one of their preferences, for 192 places offered. That is 1.3 first choices for every place. 72 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
First-choice demand has risen from 165 in 2021 to 246 in 2026, while places went from 200 to 192.
Across Surrey, 81% of families were offered their first-choice secondary school for 2026 entry, and 96% were offered one of the schools they named.
In 2025, families in Surrey lodged 383 appeals against secondary school offers; 264 reached a hearing and 46 succeeded (17.4% 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 | 192 | 246 | 611 | 1.3 | 72 |
| 2025 | 187 | 252 | 578 | 1.3 | 100 |
| 2024 | 179 | 277 | 585 | 1.5 | 110 |
| 2023 | 202 | 234 | 550 | 1.2 | 50 |
| 2022 | 201 | 245 | 572 | 1.2 | 56 |
| 2021 | 200 | 165 | 435 | 0.8 | 0 |
| 2020 | 201 | 145 | 411 | 0.7 | 0 |
| 2019 | 204 | 92 | 331 | 0.5 | 0 |
| 2018 | 178 | 94 | 278 | 0.5 | 0 |
| 2017 | 187 | 104 | 262 | 0.6 | 0 |
| 2016 | 141 | 91 | 280 | 0.6 | 0 |
| 2015 | 163 | 90 | 302 | 0.6 | 0 |
| 2014 | 193 | 156 | 440 | 0.8 | 3 |
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.