"Buying and selling a home can be a stressful process at the best of times. But doing it at the same time as changing your child’s school and trying to get in the right catchment area ahead of the application deadline is doubly so"
- Frederick Jones - Upstix
With national primary school offer day just around the corner, all eyes will once again be on school catchment areas. With this in mind, property buying company, Upstix has compiled a list of useful data points that show you everything you need to know to beat school catchment crowds.
If you’re looking to move into the catchment of a great state primary school, make sure you are clear on the time it can take for properties in that area to be snapped up and sold. Homes within the catchment of this year’s top 20 English primary schools can move at very differing paces, with as much as 3.5 months between the fastest and the slowest.
It takes an average of 160 days to sell a property within England's top 20 primary school catchments. But how fast you need to move as a buyer to avoid missing out really depends on where you are buying.
The fastest selling primary school catchment is Standish with a sale time of just 112 days, compared to the slowest of 222 days in West London.
| Top 20 Primary Schools | Area | Postcode | Average property price | Average days to sell (first listed to latest SSTC) |
| Christ Church Primary School, Hampstead | London | NW3 1JH | £1,374,741 | 180 |
| South Farnham School | Farnham | GU9 8DY | £536,053 | 137 |
| St James' Roman Catholic Primary School | Orpington | BR5 1BL | £478,211 | 138 |
| Fox Primary School | London | W8 7PP | £2,403,764 | 199 |
| Redhill Primary School | Derby | DE72 3SF | £299,434 | 170 |
| St Vincent's Catholic Primary School | Altringham | WA15 8EY | £562,588 | 119 |
| Ark Conway Primary Academy | London | W12 0QT | £736,693 | 174 |
| Boutcher Church of England Primary School | London | SE1 3BW | £678,349 | 179 |
| Wood End School | Harpenden | AL5 3EF | £972,981 | 155 |
| Abacus Belsize Primary School | London | N1C 4PF | £1,322,643 | 156 |
| St Mary's CofE Primary School | London | E17 9HJ | £574,860 | 192 |
| Barnes Primary School | London | SW13 0QQ | £1,499,357 | 142 |
| Lowbrook Academy | Maidenhead | SL6 3AR | £590,956 | 159 |
| Deer Park School | Twickenham | TW1 2EF | £932,285 | 162 |
| Standish St Wilfrid's Church of England Primary Academy | Standish | WN6 0XB | £238,027 | 112 |
| St Mary's Primary School, Dilwyn | Hereford | HR4 8HR | £310,532 | 145 |
| Sheringdale Primary School | London | SW18 5TR | £800,154 | 156 |
| Hampden Gurney CofE Primary School | London | W1H 5HA | £1,463,329 | 222 |
| Tollgate Primary School | London | E13 8SA | £395,080 | 192 |
| Yardley Primary School | London | E4 7PH | £541,435 | 166 |
“Buying and selling a home can be a stressful process at the best of times. But doing it at the same time as changing your child’s school and trying to get in the right catchment area ahead of the application deadline is doubly so," comments Upstix CEO, Fred Jones, "Time is money for parents looking to make a catchment area move, particularly as the recent changes to VAT on private school fees are driving up demand for places at the top state primary schools.
He concluded, “Homes in the catchment areas for the highest performing schools tend to go quickly even without this current surge in demand. For those looking to sell their house to make a strategic move, speed is key to avoid holding up your new purchase and missing the deadline. With our instant cash buying proposition, Upstix can help parents sell in days and be in the best position to buy their new home in time to enrol their kids in the school they want.”
