The proportion of children gaining places at their first choice secondary school in the city has increased slightly this year.

Click here to read how some of the hundreds of parents disappointed by the school lottery reacted.

Brighton and Hove City Council figures show a small rise in the number getting their first pick, from 81.9% last year to 82% for boys and girls starting this September.

It sent out letters yesterday to 2,266 families telling them which school their children had been allocated.

Most will arrive this morning, although some received email notifications yesterday.

The council said there had also been a small increase in the proportion getting their second choice, from 10.9% to 11%, while those getting their third preference stayed at 3.6%.

That left 3.4% being directed to a school which was not one of their choices this year compared to 3.3%, when the remaining 0.3% were placed outside the city.

The council said it would not publish full figures of which schools had received the most choices until tomorrow.

At least one school was celebrating the outcomes.

Paula Sargent, headteacher of Patcham High, in Ladies Mile Road, Brighton, said: "We are very happy with our figures.

"We are full with 86% of our places being parental first choices, the highest ever figure for us. The remaining places are split evenly between second and third choices. We don't have anyone coming to us that hasn't put us down as a preference, which is brilliant news."

The Argus would like to hear parents' views on their allocations. Call 01273 544538 or email emily.elliott@theargus.co.uk.