School Open Days Calendar 2026/27 — What to Ask & How to Prepare

Typical Open Day Calendar by School Type

Open day timing follows the admissions cycle. Here is the typical schedule for the 2026/27 academic year:

What to Look for During a School Visit

It's easy to be dazzled by a polished presentation, so keep a clear mental checklist of what to observe. Focus on these key areas:

Questions to Ask Teachers and Senior Leaders

Open days often feature a talk by the headteacher followed by a tour. Both are opportunities to ask meaningful questions. Avoid questions with obvious answers (“Do you have a uniform?”) and focus on these instead:

• What are your average class sizes, and do they vary between year groups?
• How do you set homework, and roughly how much should parents expect per evening?
• How do you handle bullying when it happens? Can you walk me through a recent example (without names)?
• How do you communicate with parents day-to-day? Is there a parent portal or app?
• What feedback did your most recent Ofsted inspection give, and what have you changed since?
• How do you support children who are falling behind, or those who need more challenge?
• What does your transition programme look like for new joiners? (Especially important for Year 7.)
• How do you handle mobile phones and screen time during the school day?
• What percentage of your staff have been here for more than three years? (Staff retention is a strong indicator of school culture.)

Questions to Ask Students

Student guides are usually selected because they're confident and positive about the school, but you can still learn a lot from them. Listen to what they say unprompted as much as what they answer directly.

• What do you enjoy most about this school?
• If you could change one thing, what would it be?
• What's lunchtime like? Where do you go, and what do you do?
• Do you feel safe here? Who would you go to if you had a problem?
• What clubs or activities do you do after school?

Pay attention to how students speak about their teachers. Genuine warmth and respect — rather than rehearsed lines — is a strong signal that the school culture is healthy.

Virtual Open Days vs In-Person Visits

Since 2020, many schools have added virtual open day options — recorded video tours, live-streamed headteacher talks, and virtual Q&A sessions. These are genuinely useful, especially for an initial shortlisting exercise or if you cannot attend in person due to work or childcare commitments.

However, virtual tours cannot fully replace an in-person visit. You cannot gauge atmosphere through a screen. You cannot hear the noise level in the dining hall, smell the science labs, or watch how students behave when they don't think anyone is looking. If at all possible, use virtual open days to create a shortlist, then visit your top three to five choices in person.

Open Day Preparation Checklist

Arriving prepared makes a significant difference to how much you get out of the visit. Use this checklist before each open day:

How to Find School Open Day Information

Open day dates are published in several places. The most reliable source is the school's own website — most schools post dates on their admissions page from the summer term onwards. Your local authority also publishes a composite prospectus (usually available from September) that lists all open day dates for state schools in the area.

You can also find school details and admissions information on Classpot's school pages, which include links to each school's website, Ofsted reports, and contact details. For a broader understanding of the admissions process, see our school admissions timeline guide.

Local parent forums, Facebook groups, and community noticeboards often share open day dates too. Some schools also advertise in local newspapers or distribute flyers through feeder schools.

After the Visit: Making Your Decision

After each open day, write up your notes while the visit is fresh. Score each school against the criteria that matter most to your family — academic rigour, pastoral care, distance, extracurricular activities, or SEN provision. Discuss the visit with your child and give their opinion genuine weight, especially for secondary school.

Remember that your preference list order matters. Place schools in genuine order of preference, not by perceived likelihood of admission. The equal preference system used by most local authorities means your first choice is considered before your second, so there is no tactical advantage in listing a “safe” school first.

If you are choosing a primary school, our guide to choosing a primary school covers the full decision-making process in more detail.

Frequently Asked Questions

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