Best Schools in Gloucestershire

How many schools are there in Gloucestershire?

Gloucestershire has 328 open schools: 243 state primary, 41 state secondary or all-through, 20 independent, 19 special and 5 others.

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Which schools in Gloucestershire are rated Outstanding?

31 schools in Gloucestershire were rated Outstanding at their most recent graded Ofsted inspection: Powell's Church of England Primary School, Upton St Leonards Church of England Primary School, The Crypt School, Pate's Grammar School, Christ Church CofE Primary School and 26 more. Counting Good as well, 91% of the 270 graded schools here are rated Good or better. Ofsted stopped giving single-word overall grades in September 2024, so these are the grades from each school's last full inspection.

Powell's Church of England Primary SchoolUpton St Leonards Church of England Primary SchoolThe Crypt SchoolPate's Grammar SchoolChrist Church CofE Primary School

Source: Ofsted

Which secondary schools in Gloucestershire get the best GCSE results?

Of the 41 schools in Gloucestershire with 2026 GCSE results, the highest Attainment 8 scores - the average grade across a pupil's best eight GCSEs - were at Pate's Grammar School (selective grammar), with an Attainment 8 score of 82.4 and 99% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; Sir Thomas Rich's School (selective grammar), with an Attainment 8 score of 75.2 and 96% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; and Denmark Road High School (selective grammar), with an Attainment 8 score of 74.8 and 97% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above. Selective schools admit by ability, so their raw results are not a like-for-like comparison with comprehensives. Progress 8, the DfE's value-added measure, was not published for 2026.

Pate's Grammar SchoolSir Thomas Rich's SchoolDenmark Road High School

Source: DfE school performance data

Which primary schools in Gloucestershire have the best SATs results?

4 of the 210 primary schools in Gloucestershire with 2025 Key Stage 2 results had every pupil reach the expected standard in both reading and maths, among them Coberley Church of England Primary School, Cold Aston Church of England Primary School and Huntley Church of England Primary School. Small schools can swing a long way from one year to the next, because each pupil is a large share of the result.

Coberley Church of England Primary SchoolCold Aston Church of England Primary SchoolHuntley Church of England Primary School

Source: DfE school performance data

Are there grammar schools in Gloucestershire?

Yes. Gloucestershire has 7 state grammar schools, including Denmark Road High School, Marling School, Pate's Grammar School, Ribston Hall High School, Sir Thomas Rich's School and Stroud High School. Grammar schools admit pupils by ability through an entrance test, usually sat at the start of Year 6.

Denmark Road High SchoolMarling SchoolPate's Grammar SchoolRibston Hall High SchoolSir Thomas Rich's SchoolStroud High School

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Do schools in Gloucestershire have catchment areas?

Most state schools in Gloucestershire have no fixed catchment boundary. When a school is oversubscribed, the council allocates places on its published criteria - usually looked-after children first, then siblings, then home-to-school distance - so the practical cut-off moves each year. Each school's page here shows an estimate of its catchment radius.

How do I apply for a school place in Gloucestershire?

Apply to your council - Gloucestershire, South Gloucestershire or Worcestershire, depending on your address - through its coordinated admissions process, even for academies and faith schools. In England the closing date is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts. Independent schools run their own admissions, so apply to those directly.