The Holmesdale School[1]

Secondary · ages 11–18

Headline results

Attainment 8: A8 40 39.7 2025/26[2]

Results

GCSE (key stage 4)

Attainment 8: 39.7 2025/26[2]
Grade 5+ in English & maths: 22.1% 2025/26[2]
Grade 7+ in English & maths: 3.9% 2025/26[2]
Progress 8: -0.52 2023/24[3]
Progress 8, 2025/26: Not calculated[4]
Progress 8, 2024/25: Not calculated[4]

Earlier years
Year	Attainment 8	Grade 5+ in English & maths	Progress 8
2024/25	41.6[5]	35%[5]
2023/24	35.7[3]	22%[3]	-0.52[3]
2022/23	38.6[6]	29%[6]	-0.06[6]

A level (16–18)

A-level average grade: E- 2024/25[7]

Destinations after GCSEs

Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment: 84% 2022/23[8]
School sixth form: 41% 2022/23[8]
Sixth-form college: 0% 2022/23[8]
Further education college: 33% 2022/23[8]
Apprenticeship: 4% 2022/23[8]
Employment: 4% 2022/23[8]

Destinations after 16–18 study

Sustained education, apprenticeship or employment: 82% 2022/23[9]
Education: 27% 2022/23[9]
Apprenticeship: 5% 2022/23[9]
Employment: 50% 2022/23[9]

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: 1 Apr 2025[10]
Type: Academy First Section 5[10]
Report published: 14 May 2025[10]
Personal development: Good[10]
Quality of education: Good[10]
Behaviour and attitudes: Good[10]
Safeguarding is effective?: Yes[10]
Sixth form provision (where applicable): Good[10]
Effectiveness of leadership and management: Good[10]

Competition to get in

Applications and offers, Year 7

Applications per place: 1.5 Entry Sept 2026[11]
Applications (any preference): 221 Entry Sept 2026[11]
First preferences: 104 Entry Sept 2026[11]
Places offered: 151 Entry Sept 2026[11]
First preferences per place: 0.7 Entry Sept 2026[11]

Earlier years
Entry	Applications	First preferences	Places offered	Per place	First preferences per place
Entry Sept 2025	224[11]	100[11]	161[11]	1.4[11]	0.6[11]
Entry Sept 2024	242[11]	93[11]	188[11]	1.3[11]	0.5[11]
Entry Sept 2023	204[11]	79[11]	177[11]	1.2[11]	0.4[11]

Character & practicalities

Type: Academy sponsor led[1]
Ages: 11–18[1]
Boys / girls: Mixed[1]
Admissions: Non-selective[1]
Sixth form: Yes[1]
Boarding: No boarders[1]
Capacity: 959[1]
Trust: SWALE ACADEMIES TRUST[1]
Local authority: Kent[1]
Website: https://www.holmesdale.kent.sch.uk [1]
District: Tonbridge and Malling [12]
Postcode: ME6 5HS[1]
URN: 147897[1]

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

Pupils

Number on roll: 597 2024/25[13]
English as an additional language: 3% 2024/25[13]
SEN support: 12.4% 2024/25[13]
EHC plan: 1.8% 2024/25[13]
Free school meals in the last 6 years: 36.5% 2024/25[13]

Pupils' ethnicity 2025/26

White: 91.3%[14]
Mixed: 3.5%[14]
Asian: 1.7%[14]
Black: 2.8%[14]
Any other ethnic group: 0.7%[14]
Unclassified: 0.2%[14]

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

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.
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.
Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2023/24, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
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.
Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 final. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS5 (16-18) final. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: KS4 destinations. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: 16-18 destinations. Period 2022/23, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
Ofsted: State-funded schools inspections and outcomes. Period 2024/25. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
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.
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.
Department for Education: Compare School Performance download: School census. Period 2024/25, final. Publication page. Data file. Licence: OGL-3.0.
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.