Families are given three choices as to which primary school they would like to send their child, but naturally parents hope to secure their first choice place.
Whilst many parents do secure their first choice school, there are always a significant number of schools which are oversubscribed when it comes to places wanted and spaces available.
With primary school place applications set to open on Monday (September 29) we’ve been looking at the Department for Education data for the city’s primary schools and looking at which schools for the latest (September 2025) intake of pupils had more first choice requests than places available.
Checkout the hardest 17 primary schools to get into for the current academic year (2025/26).
Any schools not listed means they had sufficient spaces to accommodate first choice requests.
1. Barnwell Academy
45 pupils put this school as their first choice but only 30 first choice offers were given, meaning a success rate of 66.67%. | Google
2. Rickleton Primary School
87 pupils put this school as their first choice but only 60 first choice offers were given, meaning a success rate of 68.97%. | Google
3. St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland
42 pupils put this school as their first choice but only 30 first choice offers were given, meaning a success rate of 71.43%. | Google
4. Willow Wood Community Primary School
40 pupils put this school as their first choice but only 30 first choice offers were given, meaning a success rate of 75%. | Google Photo: Google