Life doesn't go on hold, especially if you're a parent who is concered about getting your child into the right school.
There are many factors to weigh up when trying to decide on the right school including results, but the school's location and how accessible it is that come into play as key considerations.
Parents aren't helped by the fact that a majority of schools tend to be oversubscribed, leaving them with an anxious wait to find out where they've got a place.
Data shows that more than two thirds of applicants to some schools could miss out.
However, we've crunched the numbers to find out which schools are the hardest for your child to get a place at.
The list shows that Liverpool College is the most difficult school to get your children into, with its primary and secondary levels occupying the top two spots of the Merseyside ranking.
Seven in ten parents applying to send their children to the secondary were unsuccessful, with only 146 places and 410 applicants.
The Belvedere Academy, in Liverpool, was the next hardest secondary to get into locally, with just 33% of those who put it as a first preference getting a place.
There were 2.4 first preferences for the school, a total of 374, for each of its 155 places offered.
Liverpool schools dominate the top ten, occupying seven of the places.
Wirral, St Helens and Knowsley have one school each in the top ten, while there are none from Sefton.
Here are the ten schools in Merseyside it's most difficult to get a place at:
- Liverpool College, Secondary, Liverpool
- Liverpool College, Primary, Liverpool
- The Belvedere Academy, Secondary, Liverpool
- St Edward's College, Secondary, Liverpool
- St Hilda's Church of England School, Secondary, Liverpool
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Primary, Knowsley
King David High School, Secondary, Liverpool
Grange Valley Primary School, Primary, St Helens
St Vincent de Paul Catholic Primary School, Primary, Liverpool
Birkenhead High School Academy, Secondary, Wirral
Nationally, King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School for Boys in Birmingham is the toughest secondary school in England to get a place at.
And at primary level, Peter Gladwin Primary School in Brighton and Hove was the hardest primary to get into, with just 10% of those who put it as a first preference getting a place.
