Applicants who need to be in a certain part of the UK for their Foundation Programme, due to their current personal circumstances which meet one of the nationally agreed criterion (for example, caring responsibilities or personal health), can apply for pre-allocation to a specific foundation school.
The criteria and application forms for each pre-allocation criterion are available on our Pre-allocation microsite.
Applications for pre-allocation must be submitted during the national application window alongside the main FP application form and by the deadline, which can be found within the UKFP2026 application timeline.
National review panels meet to review and agree outcomes for all applications received.
Guidance in the following pages provides information about the application process and the national criteria. General application guidelines are also provided for applicants and supporting signatories, which they will need to adhere to when completing and supporting an application for pre-allocation. This guidance will be referred to by the national panel when they review applications, to inform decision making around whether an application should be approved or rejected.
Applicants are advised to carefully read all of the guidance provided for the application process to understand the requirements of the criterion, supporting evidence, and supporting signatories.