More than half of Hong Kong pupils get desired Primary One spot, a 20-year high

More than half of the children set to start Primary One at Hong Kong’s public or government-subvented schools in the next academic year have secured a place at their preferred institutions, the highest success rate in about 20 years.

The Education Bureau revealed on Friday that 37,581 children had applied for discretionary places in government or aided primary schools this year for admission next September.

Among them, 19,656, or 52.3 per cent, will receive a place in these schools – a record high since 2005.

In 2024, the number of pupils securing a spot in their preferred schools stood at 49.4 per cent, or 20,644 applicants.

In 2005, among a total of 51,178 applicants, 26,032, or about 51 per cent, received a place at their preferred schools.

Competition has decreased in recent years amid a shrinking student population and the city’s declining birth rate. The number of registered births in the first seven months of this year fell by 8 per cent to 18,908, compared with 20,523 in the same period in 2024, according to the Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics released by the government in September.