Net capacity assessment programme for primary schools
Source: gov.uk (2025-11-21)

Find out about the net capacity assessment (NCA) programme, when school site visits will take place and how to read your NCA report.

Overview

From September 2025, the Department for Education’s (DfE’s) NCA programme will ensure that accurate and up-to-date information on pupil capacity is available for government-funded primary schools in England.

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) will visit primary schools to collect data on pupil capacity.

VOA will:
- measure rooms
- record room types
- use the NCA tool and methodology to calculate the number of pupils a school can accommodate, based on the size and use of the spaces available
NCA reports will be shared with:
- schools
- local authorities
- dioceses
- multi-academy trusts
Benefits

The benefits of the NCA programme include:
- identification of spare capacity where demand for places is high
- more effective use of space and curriculum planning
- independent verification of capacity for admissions and appeals
- accurate information to help respond to new policies and developments, such as breakfast clubs and additional childcare places
Guidance

Further guidance can be found in the NCA programme guide (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/691301898c90b927c818ad54/Net_capacity_assessment_programme_guide.pdf) (PDF, 358 KB, 12 pages) and How to read your NCA report (mainstream schools) (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/68c98f9f1eabc899da708466/How_to_read_your_net_capacity_assessment_report_-_mainstream_schools_.pdf) (PDF, 234 KB, 3 pages).

Scheduled school site visits

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) will visit schools in England between September 2025 and March 2029. We have published the list of schools to be visited in the first two tranches between September 2025 and March 2026. We will publish a full tranche list before April 2026. Following this we will publish an up to date list of schools by tranche once a year.

Find out the dates of school site visits using the tranche list (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69159fc49d50fc2fe81616fb/NCA_for_primary_schools_tranche_one.xlsx) (MS Excel Spreadsheet, 71.6 KB).

NCA tool and area guidelines

DfE has also published:
- the tool used to carry out NCA (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/net-capacity-assessment-tool)
- guidelines on the area of school buildings and grounds, and the number of pupil places available (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/area-guidelines-and-net-capacity)
NCA programme for secondary schools and special schools

The primary school programme follows the successful 2023 to 2025 programme that ensured that accurate, up-to-date information on pupil capacity is available for government-funded mainstream secondary schools and special schools.

Guidance on how to read your NCA report for the secondary and special school phase is available for:
- mainstream schools (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/68caa0345e09a4a59af0bfdf/How_to_read_your_net_capacity_assessment_report_-_mainstream_schools_June_2025_version.pdf) (PDF, 219 KB, 3 pages)
- special schools (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6839e0a89c65cc8cdbae65dc/How_to_read_your_net_capacity_assessment_report_-_special_schools.pdf) (PDF, 218 KB, 3 pages)