Grammar schools in the UK
What is a grammar school?
A grammar school is a state-funded secondary school that selects its pupils based on academic ability. Selection is based on performance in an entrance exam, commonly known as the 11-plus, which all grammar school applicants must sit. Academic standards at grammar schools are often higher than at non-selective state schools, which explains why many parents see a place as the educational holy grail.
There are currently 163 grammars located in 36 English local authorities, with around 167,000 pupils between them. Northern Ireland has a further 67, but there are none in Wales or Scotland. Not all are the bastions of academic excellence that their reputation suggests, but the majority turn out impressive results and the best are on a par with some of the country’s best-performing private schools.
It stands to reason that any school that can choose academically high performers at 11 is more likely to achieve good academic outcomes by the time GCSE and A levels come around.
Almost half of all grammar schools are in what are considered ‘selective authorities’ (eg Buckinghamshire, Kent and Lincolnshire), where around one in five local children are selected for entry based on their performance in the 11-plus entrance assessment. The others are in areas such as Barnet or Kingston, each with only a handful of grammars.
Where are grammar schools in the UK?
There are some areas of England with no grammars at all (eg Norfolk and Bristol) but you don’t necessarily have to live in a particular local authority (LA) to have a chance of getting a place at one.
Can you apply to grammar schools outside your local authority?
Some schools accept applications from outside their own LA, while others, such as Reading School and Ripon Grammar School, also function as state boarding schools and are open to applicants from further afield.
However, the lure of a top academic education should be weighed up against the length of the commute, both for the sake of the child and the school community. For this reason, the majority of schools now give preference to those living in a defined catchment area (sometimes called a ‘priority admissions area’), with distance often used as a tie-breaker to decide between applicants when the school is oversubscribed.
You should always check the admissions policies of the schools you’re interested in to make sure it’s actually possible for your child to go to school there. Don’t waste your time if the prescribed admissions criteria mean a place is unattainable. Find schools which may interest you using The Good Schools Guide school search tool – filter by ticking ‘State (grammar)’ under ‘School type’.
Are all grammar schools good?
Grammar schools are ‘academically selective’ which means that, unlike other state schools, the admissions process allows them to pick and choose which pupils they admit. They do this by making every applicant sit an entrance exam, often called the 11-plus - in Northern Ireland it is called the transfer test.
It stands to reason that any school that can choose academically high performers at 11 is more likely to achieve good academic outcomes by the time GCSE and A levels come around.
However, while some grammars’ academic performance rivals that of the best private schools, there are others which are less impressive. Grammar schools follow the national curriculum (or stay very close to it) like other state schools.
How to assess a grammar school (Progress 8, open days, reviews)
The Good Schools Guide publishes a list of all English grammar schools ranked according to their Progress 8 score, and we currently feature full reviews of 97 of them. Other than reading our reviews, the best way to form an opinion on a school is to attend open days. If you can’t get to one of these designated days, many schools welcome parents on an appointment basis throughout the school term.
Why do grammar schools exist?
The term was coined in medieval times for schools which taught Latin grammar, but these days it is used as a result of the 1944 Education Act, which made provision for a tripartite system of education, open to all. The tripartite system comprised three types of school:
grammars for the academically most able
secondary technical schools for those with a technical bent
secondary moderns for everyone else
In reality, very few technical schools were opened, and so secondary moderns tended to take all the children who weren’t accepted into grammars. As a result, they became synonymous in many areas with ‘sink schools’.
In 1965, the government began phasing out grammar schools in favour of schools for all-comers, what became known as ‘comprehensive schools’. While some grammars became comprehensive, others opted to become fee-paying schools.
As a result of parental pressure and decisions at the local level, some authorities hung on to their grammar schools, with places often hard-fought for. In 1998, the government put an outright ban on new grammars being created, but many of the existing ones are now being funded to increase their intake, and several are bidding to open new ‘satellite’ campuses many miles away.
How do you know a school is a grammar school?
The term ‘grammar school’ is used today as shorthand for the more official-sounding ‘academically selective secondary school’. As a result of decades, if not centuries, of history as explained above, some schools have kept ‘grammar’ in their name even though they are not actually academically selective secondary schools (eg The Manchester Grammar School, Royal Grammar School Guildford).
It may not always be immediately obvious which schools are ‘true’ grammar schools. Similarly, not all grammars feature the word ‘grammar’ in their name. Bournemouth School and Tiffin School are just two examples. If in doubt, visit the school website. If there’s a section on school fees, you know you are looking at a private, fee-paying, school.
Why are grammar schools controversial?
Grammars divide opinion. Supporters believe they give any child bright enough to pass the 11-plus a passport to a good education and future, regardless of social class. Detractors point out that very few children from low-income backgrounds (ie those entitled to free school meals) end up going to these schools. Those who would like to abolish grammar schools describe them as elitist, divisive and damaging to the morale and self-esteem of children who see themselves as failures at the age of 11 for not passing the 11-plus assessment.
It can be of little surprise that many view them as the preserve of the middle classes – with intensive private tuition and a house in a good area as precursors to entry.
The schools themselves are keen to dispel this view and try to ensure they attract the most able children, rather than those best prepared to pass entrance exams. Many schools continually review their entry procedure and examination structure in an attempt to thwart attempts by parents to skew the system. Some, such as King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls, now reserve up to 20 per cent of places for children on pupil premium.
