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Holcombe Grammar School[1]

Grammar · Secondary · ages 11–18

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Headline results

Attainment 8
A8 60 59.8 2025/26[2]
A-level average grade
AL C+ C+ 2024/25[3]

Results

GCSE (key stage 4)

Attainment 8
59.8 2025/26[2]
Grade 5+ in English & maths
81.6% 2025/26[2]
Grade 7+ in English & maths
27.7% 2025/26[2]
Progress 8
+0.15 2023/24[4]
Progress 8, 2025/26
Not calculated[5]
Progress 8, 2024/25
Not calculated[5]
Earlier years
Year Attainment 8 Grade 5+ in English & maths Grade 7+ in English & maths Progress 8
2024/25 62.4[6] 84.7%[6]
2023/24 59.9[4] 86.1%[4] +0.15[4]
2022/23 57.9[7] 82%[7] +0.06[7]
2021/22 62.6[8] 90%[8] +0.29[8]

A level (16–18)

A-level average grade
C+ 2024/25[3]
AAB or better, at least two in facilitating subjects
9.7% 2024/25[3]
All results, 2020/21
Not published (exams cancelled, COVID-19)[9]
All results, 2019/20
Not published (exams cancelled, COVID-19)[9]
Earlier years
Year A-level average grade AAB or better, at least two in facilitating subjects
2023/24 C[10] 7.4%[10]
2022/23 C+[11] 15%[11]
2021/22 B-[12] 9.6%[12]
2018/19 C[13] 8%[13]

Destinations after GCSEs

Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment
97% 2022/23[14]
School sixth form
73% 2022/23[14]
Sixth-form college
3% 2022/23[14]
Further education college
16% 2022/23[14]
Apprenticeship
3% 2022/23[14]
Employment
1% 2022/23[14]
Earlier leavers
Left in Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment School sixth form Sixth-form college Further education college Apprenticeship Employment
2021/22 97%[15] 82%[15] 0%[15] 9%[15] 3%[15] 2%[15]
2020/21 98%[16] 90%[16] 0%[16] 8%[16] 1%[16] 0%[16]
2019/20 100%[17] 90%[17] 0%[17] 8%[17] 1%[17] 2%[17]
2018/19 96%[18] 74%[18] 1%[18] 18%[18] 2%[18] 0%[18]

Destinations after 16–18 study

Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment
88% 2022/23[19]
Education
67% 2022/23[19]
Apprenticeship
5% 2022/23[19]
Employment
16% 2022/23[19]
Earlier leavers
Left in Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment Education Apprenticeship Employment
2021/22 95%[20] 58%[20] 10%[20] 26%[20]
2020/21 93%[21] 59%[21] 6%[21] 28%[21]
2019/20 90%[22] 63%[22] 7%[22] 21%[22]
2018/19 94%[23] 66%[23] 13%[23] 16%[23]

Higher education after 16–18 study

Progressed to higher education
64% 2021/22[24]
Top third of most selective universities
19% 2021/22[24]
Russell Group universities
25% 2019/20[25]
Oxford or Cambridge
4% 2019/20[25]
Earlier leavers
Left in Progressed to higher education Top third of most selective universities Russell Group universities Oxford or Cambridge
2020/21 73%[26] 28%[26]
2019/20 80%[25] 29%[25] 25%[25] 4%[25]
2018/19 69%[27] 10%[27] 5%[27] 1%[27]
2017/18 69%[28] 22%[28] 19%[28] 0%[28]

Shares of the pupils who left in the year shown. Russell Group and Oxford or Cambridge figures were published for leavers up to 2019/20 only.

Ofsted

Latest inspection
12 Mar 2024[29]
Type
Section 8 inspection of good and outstanding schools[29]
Report published
30 Apr 2024[29]
Safeguarding is effective
Yes[29]
Outcomes for ungraded and monitoring inspections
School remains Good[29]
Earlier inspections
InspectionTypeOverall
24 Apr 2018[30] Maintained Academy and School Short inspection[30] No overall grade[30]

Competition to get in

Applications and offers, Year 7

Applications per place
5.4 Entry Sept 2026[31]
Applications (any preference)
968 Entry Sept 2026[31]
First preferences
137 Entry Sept 2026[31]
Places offered
179 Entry Sept 2026[31]
First preferences per place
0.8 Entry Sept 2026[31]
Earlier years
Entry Applications First preferences Places offered Per place First preferences per place
Entry Sept 2025 733[31] 137[31] 179[31] 4.1[31] 0.8[31]
Entry Sept 2024 632[31] 110[31] 150[31] 4.2[31] 0.7[31]
Entry Sept 2023 630[31] 134[31] 150[31] 4.2[31] 0.9[31]
Entry Sept 2022 570[31] 119[31] 148[31] 3.9[31] 0.8[31]

Admissions

Places (published admission number), 11+ entry
180 Entry Sept 2027[32]

Character & practicalities

Type
Academy converter[1]
Ages
11–18[1]
Boys / girls
Boys[1]
Admissions
Selective[1]
Sixth form
Yes[1]
Boarding
No boarders[1]
Capacity
1000[1]
Trust
THE THINKING SCHOOLS ACADEMY TRUST[1]
Local authority
Medway[1]
Website
http://www.holcombegrammar.org.uk[1]
District
Medway[33]
Postcode
ME4 6JB[1]
URN
136594[1]

School details as recorded in Get Information About Schools on 14 Oct 2026.

Pupils

Number on roll
1036 2024/25[34]
English as an additional language
9.7% 2024/25[34]
SEN support
2.7% 2024/25[34]
EHC plan
0.4% 2024/25[34]
Free school meals in the last 6 years
13.3% 2024/25[34]

Pupils' ethnicity 2025/26

White
43.4%[35]
Mixed
8.3%[35]
Asian
9.2%[35]
Black
37.7%[35]
Any other ethnic group
0.9%[35]
Unclassified
0.5%[35]

The school census's major ethnic groups as shares of the school's pupils, summed by us from the published counts. For information only: never used to rank, filter or colour schools.

Sources

  1. Department for Education: Get Information About Schools: all establishments. Period 2026-10-14, published 2026-10-14. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  2. Department for Education: Performance tables schools data (explore education statistics). Period 2025/26, provisional, published 2026-10-15. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  3. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  4. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2023/24, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  5. Department for Education: Key stage 4 performance 2024/25: data guidance. Period 2024/25. Archived copy; original. Licence: OGL-3.0.
    Quote
    It is not possible to calculate Progress 8 for academic years 2024/25 and 2025/26 due to gaps in the baseline caused by COVID-19 disruption.
  6. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  7. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  8. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  9. Department for Education: A level and other 16 to 18 results 2020/21. Period 2020/21. Archived copy; original. Licence: OGL-3.0.
    Quote
    Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the summer exam series was cancelled in both 2020 and 2021, and alternative processes were set up to award grades.
  10. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2023/24, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  11. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  12. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  13. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  14. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  15. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  16. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2020/21, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  17. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2019/20, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  18. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  19. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  20. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  21. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2020/21, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  22. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2019/20, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  23. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  24. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2021/22, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  25. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2019/20, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  26. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2020/21, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  27. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2018/19, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  28. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 progression to higher education. Period 2017/18, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  29. Ofsted: State-funded schools inspections and outcomes. Period 2023/24. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  30. Ofsted: State-funded schools inspections and outcomes. Period 2017/18. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  31. Department for Education: Primary and secondary school applications and offers: school level. Period Entry Sept 2026, final, published 2026-06-29. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  32. holcombegrammar.org.uk: holcombegrammar.org.uk — Admissions arrangements 27-28 (PDF). Period 2026-10-16. Licence: copyright-quoted.
    Quote
    The school's published admission number is 180. (p. 2)
  33. Office for National Statistics: Parish to Ward to Local Authority District (May 2026) Lookup in EW. Period 2026-05-01. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  34. Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: School census. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
  35. Department for Education: Schools, pupils and their characteristics: school level underlying data. Period 2025/26, published 2026-06-04. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.