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Use our free interactive tool to check whether any Oldham property falls within primary or secondary school catchment zones. Oldham combines a dense urban core with the very different rural geography of Saddleworth, where villages are spread across the Pennine foothills and catchment distances behave quite differently.
Free interactive map — enter any Oldham, Chadderton, Royton or Saddleworth postcode and see exactly which catchment areas it falls within.
Saddleworth's villages — Uppermill, Delph, Greenfield and Diggle — are served by a small number of schools spread across a wide rural area. Distances there are naturally longer than in central Oldham, but demand is also strong, so a longer catchment radius does not necessarily mean an easier place.
Oldham Council is the admissions authority for community primary and secondary schools. After looked-after children, EHC-plan holders and siblings, places are normally allocated by straight-line distance from home to the school's measuring point.
Oldham has a substantial number of academies and voluntary-aided faith schools that act as their own admissions authority. In Saddleworth, the smaller number of schools relative to the area covered means catchment geography is worth checking carefully.
Oldham Council publishes annual admissions information including the furthest distance offered at each oversubscribed school. Search 'Oldham school admissions' on the Oldham Council website.
Click "Open Free Tool" above. No registration needed. Works in any browser on desktop or mobile.
Click "Add School" and search by school name or postcode. The tool locates it on the interactive map automatically.
Add the radius from the school's admissions data. You can enter distances in metres for precision.
Use "Check Address" to test any Oldham address. It will show you exactly how far inside or outside the catchment that property sits.
Our tool works for schools across Oldham and surrounding areas:
Oldham measures straight-line distance to the metre. Our tool matches that method.
See how Oldham catchments have moved year on year, in both the urban core and Saddleworth.
Plot up to 5 Oldham schools at once to compare catchment zones across very different geographies.
Generate a shareable link for your estate agent or solicitor before exchange.
In practice, yes. Saddleworth is a rural part of the borough with fewer schools spread over a much larger area, so catchment distances are naturally longer than in central Oldham even where demand is high.
Schools serving Saddleworth, Royton and parts of Chadderton tend to attract the strongest demand relative to available places.
Yes — our tool calculates distance accurately for any Oldham school. Academies and faith schools set their own criteria, so read their published policies too.
Search 'Oldham school admissions' on the Oldham Council website for the furthest distance offered at each oversubscribed school.
Our free tool works for all UK schools. We also have dedicated guides for other major cities:
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