Parents in Herefordshire are relatively spoilt for choice when seeking an “outstanding” primary school for their children this year, new data shows.

Education software firm The Access Group compared the number of children set to take up primary school places in the coming academic year, with the number in their area that have an outstanding rating from Government schools inspector Ofsted.

There are 21 such primary schools in Herefordshire out of a total of 79. With 1,677 children due to enter primary education in the county in September, that means there are just under 80 new pupils per outstanding primary school – the third-best figure in England.

Top of the table is Rutland, with 62 new pupils per outstanding primary school, followed by Essex, with 68.

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There seems little connection between this figure and the area’s wealth, with leafy Torbay on the Devon coast described as the most squeezed location for access to outstanding primary schools, at over 1,200 new pupils and just one top-rated school.

In second-last place, Dudley has 998 new pupils for each of seven outstanding primaries.

Parents have only until the end of this Sunday (January 15) to apply for a primary school place for their child.

Herefordshire Council said at the start of this month that it was still waiting for nearly 500 pupil applications to be submitted ahead of the deadline. This can be done online here.

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