Nine out of ten children have secured their first choice primary school in Somerset, figures released this morning reveal.

Most parents with a four-year-old due to start in September woke up to an email telling them which school they had been allocated this morning.

Figures revealed today by Somerset County Council show that nearly 91% of children have secured their first choice primary school for the next academic year – an increase on last year.

For September 2013, 90.68 per cent of children received their first choice primary school and 96.68 per cent of children were given at least one of their top three choices.

The results also show that 364 more students applied for primary school places this year. 5,776 applications were received for 2013, up from 5,412 the previous year.

Julia Ridge, responsible for school admissions, said: “It is great news that in the majority of cases we have been able to meet parents and carers’ preferences, despite an increase in applications overall.

"We have invested in a number of new classrooms around the county to meet the forecast increase in pupil numbers."

As revealed by the County Gazette earlier this year, the county council is spending millions of pounds trying to solve a schools admissions crisis for the September 2014 entry in the Taunton and Wellington area - see the related link on this page.

If you have a school places story to tell from this year's allocation, get in touch on 01823 365100 or email newsdesk@countygazette.co.uk