Children start reception in the September after they turn 4. Parents of children in a Cardiff school nursery will receive details of the application process.
You can apply for a place at any primary school in Cardiff.
Every area of Cardiff is served by a:
- Welsh-medium primary school,
- English-medium primary school,
- Church in Wales (CiW) primary school, and
- Catholic (RC) primary school.
You do not need to speak English or Welsh or practice a particular faith to apply for any of these schools.
You can find details of your nearest schools and catchment areas using the nearest schools tab. The distances are direct distances so may not be safe walking routes.
We run coordinated admissions with 21 schools. For a place at St John Lloyd RC Primary School, you will need to apply directly to the school.
Variation of determined Admissions Arrangements 2026 to 2027
We have been made aware of an error in our admission arrangements for St Mellons Church in Wales Primary School. The previous arrangements gave priority to learners who live within the Old St Mellons community. The boundaries of this area differed to the Council's catchment area.
Under the Admissions Code, we must refer this to Welsh Ministers for agreement. If they agree the varied arrangements, the Old St Mellons community will be the catchment area for St Mellons Church in Wales Primary School.
School place offer day
From Thursday 16 April 2026, we will send you a letter for primary school places starting in September 2026 by email and post.
View the summary of the allocation of places (PDF, 96 KB)
You will receive either:
- a place at your first preference school,
- a place at a lower preference school, or
- no offer.
If you have received an offer for a place at one of your preferred schools, you must respond to the offer by Thursday 30 April 2026.
View a copy of the first preference offer letter (PDF, 158 KB).
If you have received an offer for a place at your lower preference school, this means your first preference does not have enough places available. Even if you are not sure about the lower preference offered, we strongly recommend you accept this offer and stay on the waiting list for your higher preference school. You still have the right to appeal, even if you accept a lower offer.
View a copy of the lower preference offer letter (PDF, 221 KB).
If you have received no offer, this means none of your preferences have enough places available. There are still alternative places available in other Cardiff schools for your child. We will have sent you a list of schools where there are spaces available.
View a copy of no offer letter (PDF, 126 KB).
Responding to the offer letter
You must respond to the offer by 30 April 2026.
You can respond by:
- logging in to the school applications system, or
- emailing [email protected]. Please make sure you include the child's name and date of birth.
Login to the school applications system
If you do not respond to the offer by Thursday 30 April 2026, we will assume you no longer want that place and your offer may be withdrawn.
If you accept the offer, the school will contact you with information about the admissions arrangements.
If you have missed the application date
Applications have closed. If you have missed the deadline to apply for a place starting in September 2026, please complete a late application.
Complete a late application form
You can apply for faith schools directly with the school.
Welsh-medium education
Welsh-medium education is available to everyone, no matter what language you speak at home.
All kinds of families take advantage of Welsh-medium education:
- families who do not speak Welsh and those who do,
- families from all kinds of ethnic and religious backgrounds,
- families from Wales and those who have moved here from elsewhere.
Benefits of Welsh-medium education
Welsh-medium education lets children become fully fluent in both English and Welsh.
It can give your child additional opportunities, experiences and skills.
Find more information on Welsh-medium education.
The application process
| Date | Step in the application process |
|---|---|
| 10 November 2025 | Application process for starting Reception in September 2026 begins. |
| 12 January 2026 | Closing date for applications. After this date, you will need to complete a late application form. |
| February to April 2026 | All applications are processed and assessed against the Admission Criteria. We will check and verify your address and any supporting information you have given us. |
| 16 April 2026 | Offer day. We will send you an email or a letter if you have asked for your offer to be sent by post. Decisions can also be given over the phone after 10am on the offer day. |
| 30 April 2026 | Closing date for you to accept or refuse the place we have offered. We reserve the right to withdraw offers that have not been responded to by this date. This is also the closing date for late applications. |
| May 2026 | Second round (late) applications processed and assessed. |
| June 2026 | Second round results sent out via post. All following rounds are processed on a monthly basis from now on. |
| September 2026 | Children start primary school. |
Coordinated admissions
We run coordinated admissions with:
- All Saints CiW Primary School
- Bishop Childs CiW Primary School
- Christ The King RC Primary School
- Holy Family RC Primary School
- Llandaff CiW Primary School
- St Alban's RC Primary School
- St Bernadette's RC Primary School
- St Cadoc's Catholic Primary School
- St Cuthbert's RC Primary School
- St David's CiW Primary School
- St Fagan's CiW Primary School
- St Francis RC Primary School
- St Joseph's RC Primary School
- St Mary The Virgin CiW Primary School
- St Mary's Catholic Primary School
- St Monica's CiW Primary School
- St Patrick's RC Primary School
- St Paul's CiW Primary School
- St Peter's RC Primary School
- St Philip Evans RC Primary School
- Tredegarville CiW Primary School
Contact us
If you have a question or would like more information, please contact us.
Tel: 029 2087 2087
