Best Schools in Scarborough

How many schools are there in Scarborough?

Scarborough has 34 open schools: 21 state primary, 6 state secondary or all-through, 1 independent, 4 special and 2 others.

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Which schools in Scarborough are rated Outstanding?

2 schools in Scarborough were rated Outstanding at their most recent graded Ofsted inspection: Childhaven Community Nursery School and Springhead School. Counting Good as well, 76% of the 29 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.

Childhaven Community Nursery SchoolSpringhead School

Source: Ofsted

Which secondary schools in Scarborough get the best GCSE results?

Of the 6 schools in Scarborough with 2026 GCSE results, the highest Attainment 8 scores - the average grade across a pupil's best eight GCSEs - were at Scalby Academy, with an Attainment 8 score of 49.9 and 66% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; Scarborough University Technical College, with an Attainment 8 score of 49.6 and 60% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; and St Augustine's Catholic School - a Catholic voluntary academy, with an Attainment 8 score of 43.6 and 39% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above. Progress 8, the DfE's value-added measure, was not published for 2026.

Scalby AcademyScarborough University Technical CollegeSt Augustine's Catholic School - a Catholic voluntary academy

Source: DfE school performance data

Which primary schools in Scarborough have the best SATs results?

Of the 18 primary schools in Scarborough with 2025 Key Stage 2 results, the highest shares of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading and maths were at St Martin's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Scarborough (95% in reading, 85% in maths); Thomas Hinderwell Primary Academy (92% in reading, 88% in maths); and Hertford Vale Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Staxton (91% in reading, 82% in maths). Small schools can swing a long way from one year to the next, because each pupil is a large share of the result.

St Martin's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, ScarboroughThomas Hinderwell Primary AcademyHertford Vale Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Staxton

Source: DfE school performance data

Are there grammar schools in Scarborough?

No. None of the state secondary schools in Scarborough selects pupils by ability, so every state secondary here is comprehensive.

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Do schools in Scarborough have catchment areas?

Most state schools in Scarborough have no fixed catchment boundary. When a school is oversubscribed, North Yorkshire 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 Scarborough?

Apply to North Yorkshire 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.