Schools in Dewsbury
Dewsbury's 31 schools form part of Kirklees Council's coordinated admissions system, with 19 primaries and 4 secondaries serving a post-industrial West Yorkshire town that spans Savile Town, Thornhill and Shaw Cross. Kirklees uses a distance-based oversubscription tie-breaker for community schools, with measurements taken as straight-line distances from the child's home address to the school's main entrance.
Secondary choice in Dewsbury is influenced by the town's proximity to Batley and Heckmondwike, giving families reasonable travel access to secondary schools across a wider Kirklees catchment. Parents of children with siblings already at a school benefit from the sibling priority that Kirklees applies before distance - making early decisions about primary school placement especially consequential for longer-term secondary options.
School demand in Dewsbury
Across the 29 schools in Dewsbury with published capacity data, the average fill rate is 88%. 9 of them are currently at or above their published admission number, and at those schools catchment distance is likely to decide places at the next intake.
11 schools in Dewsbury have a religious character, so faith criteria sit alongside catchment distance in their admissions policies.
14 of the schools in Dewsbury are academies that set their own admissions criteria independently of Kirklees, so check each school's policy directly rather than assuming the council default applies.
10 of the schools in Dewsbury have a current Ofsted rating, of which 7 are rated Good or Outstanding. Demand and catchment distance tend to be tightest at the highest-rated schools.
Primary schools in Dewsbury: 4 oversubscribed (19)
Carlton Junior and Infant School
Primary · Community school
Dewsbury · WF13 2DQ
Shaw Cross Infant and Nursery School
Primary · Community school
Dewsbury · WF12 7HP
Westmoor Primary School
Primary · Community school
Dewsbury · WF13 4EW
Pentland Infant and Nursery School
Primary · Community school
Dewsbury · WF12 9JR
Ravensthorpe Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Dewsbury · WF13 3AS
Savile Town Church of England Voluntary Controlled Infant and Nursery School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Dewsbury · WF12 9LY
Thornhill Lees Church of England Voluntary Controlled Infant and Nursery School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Dewsbury · WF12 9DL
Bywell Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Dewsbury · WF12 7LX
Headfield Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School
Primary · Voluntary controlled school
Dewsbury · WF12 9PD
Overthorpe CofE Academy
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Dewsbury · WF12 0BH
Boothroyd Primary Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF13 3QE
Diamond Wood Community Academy
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Dewsbury · WF13 3AD
Orchard Primary Academy
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Dewsbury · WF12 8QT
Thornhill Junior and Infant School
Primary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF12 0QT
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF13 4HY
St Paulinus Catholic Primary Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF13 3QE
Eastborough Academy
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Dewsbury · WF13 1NS
Earlsheaton Infant School
Primary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF12 8JF
St John-s CE Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF13 2LP
Secondary Schools in Dewsbury (4)
Westborough High School
Secondary · Foundation school
Dewsbury · WF13 2JE
Manor Croft Academy
Secondary · Academy sponsor led
Dewsbury · WF12 7DW
St John Fisher Catholic Voluntary Academy
Secondary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF13 4LL
Thornhill Community Academy, A Share Academy
Secondary · Academy converter
Dewsbury · WF12 0HE
Other Schools in Dewsbury (8)
Flatts Nursery School
Nursery · Local authority nursery school
Dewsbury · WF13 2SU
Madni Academy
Not applicable · Other independent school
Dewsbury · WF12 9AY
The Branch Christian School
Not applicable · Other independent school
Dewsbury · WF13 4LA
Ravenshall School
Not applicable · Community special school
Dewsbury · WF12 9EE
Al-Furqaan Preparatory School
Not applicable · Other independent school
Dewsbury · WF13 2JR
Paradise Primary School
Not applicable · Other independent school
Dewsbury · WF12 9BB
Ethos College
Not applicable · Academy alternative provision converter
Dewsbury · WF13 4QS
Rida Boys High School
Not applicable · Other independent school
Dewsbury · WF12 9NQ
Catchment area boundaries for schools in Dewsbury are set by Kirklees and updated each year. The "last distance offered", how far the furthest successful applicant lived, changes annually based on the number of applications received.