About Catchment Checker
Find the school catchment area for a postcode, and understand why the map a council publishes is not a promise of a place.
What is on this site
One question, "school catchment area map", answered with a checker that works on the page with no account, 3 guides on the questions around it, a data table you can cite (the figures and their method), and the sources every figure rests on.
- How to find the school catchment area map for your postcode: Which body publishes the map where you live, why an academy's may differ from the council's, and what the map does not tell you.
- How school places are actually decided when a school is oversubscribed: Oversubscription criteria in order, why distance is normally the tie-break, and why last year's furthest offer is the number to ask for.
- School waiting lists and appeals: what you are entitled to: The waiting list must stay open for at least the first term, you can stay on it after accepting elsewhere, and appeals go to an independent panel.
Reach us
Contact for a question about the site, or enquiries@catchmentchecker.co.uk. The legal terms are on Terms and Privacy.
Catchment Checker is an independent information site operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. It is not affiliated with Natural England, Defra, the Environment Agency, any local planning authority or any body named here, and nothing on it is planning, legal or ecological advice. Nutrient neutrality is a live and contested area: catchment boundaries, calculators, published guidance and the statutory framework all change, and figures here were read from gov.uk on 14 August 2026. Always confirm the current position for your site with the local planning authority and a suitably qualified consultant before relying on it.