Catchment areas, feeder schools and routes
What catchment means, how feeder schools work, and how to read the routes on SchoolPath.
Parents often hear that where you live, or which school your child goes to now, affects which school they can get into next. Here is what that means.
Catchment areas
A catchment area (sometimes called a feeder zone) is the area close to a school whose families the school gives priority to. It is usually based on distance from home to school.
Not every school uses one, and each school decides how in its own admission policy. Being in a catchment area can help an application, but it does not guarantee a place.
Feeder schools
A feeder school is a school whose learners get priority at another school. For example, a high school's admission policy might give priority to learners from a nearby primary school.
How to read routes on SchoolPath
SchoolPath shows routes between schools and says what kind of route each one is:
- Internal progression (solid teal line): the same school or group of schools, where children usually move up without a new application. Some through schools still ask families to confirm or apply.
- Named feeder school (dashed teal line): the receiving school's policy names this school as a feeder. We link to the evidence.
- Grade R advantage (dashed teal line): children in the school's Grade R get preference for its Grade 1.
- Parent-reported (dotted line): parents have told us this route is common. We only show it after at least two separate parents report it, and it is the least certain kind of route.
A route describes what usually happens. It is never a promise. Always read the school's current admission policy.
Tell us about a route
If you know of a route we are missing, use Report a route on the school's profile page. An admin checks every report before anything is shown.