Priory School, Southsea
Priory School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Southsea, part of Bohunt Education Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in November 2022. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 3rd-highest of the 11 schools in Portsmouth with published results, and 2,105th of 3,298 across England. For 2026 entry it had 1.2 first-choice applications for every place. It was 99% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2022)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- In line with England
- Progress (2024)
- Well below average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 4 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Portsmouth (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Priory School in detail
Results
In 2026, pupils at Priory School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 43.4, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 41.2 in Portsmouth and 47 across England.
43% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 36% in Portsmouth and 47% in England.
That is down from 44.7 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.55: pupils made well below average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.
Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 34.2, against 48.4 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 14.2 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 28 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Art and Design.
Getting a place at Priory School
For September 2026 entry, 320 families put Priory School as their first choice and 751 named it as one of their preferences, for 264 places offered. That is 1.2 first choices for every place. 74 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Priory School are St Edmund's Catholic School (0.5 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 56); Ark Charter Academy (0.5 miles, Good, Attainment 8 39.9); The Portsmouth Academy (0.6 miles, Good, Attainment 8 34.5); and Miltoncross Academy (0.8 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 35.8).
Priory School's 2026 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.
St Edmund's Catholic SchoolArk Charter AcademyThe Portsmouth AcademyMiltoncross Academy
The trust
Priory School is one of 10 schools run by Bohunt Education Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 50.8 in 2024/25.
Where pupils go next
Of the 244 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 85% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 75% to a further education college, 3% to an apprenticeship and 3% into work.
Who goes there
35.2% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 169 pupils (13.2%) received SEN support and 39 (3.1%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is social, emotional and mental health needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Fratton Rail Station, about 240 metres away (roughly a 3-minute walk).
17 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Priory School (n-bound), 70 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 1295 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Portsmouth (499), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Priory School issued 213 suspensions, 17.1 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Priory School are Penbridge Infant School (0.3 miles), Ark Ayrton Primary Academy (0.3 miles), Bramble Infant School and Nursery (0.3 miles) and Fernhurst Junior School (0.3 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Penbridge Infant SchoolArk Ayrton Primary AcademyBramble Infant School and NurseryFernhurst Junior School
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Portsmouth published that the last place for 2025 entry went to a family 0.882 miles away (straight line). The cut-off moves every year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 4 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its November 2022 inspection.
Rated Outstanding for
Personal development, Leadership & management.
Rated Good for
Quality of education, Behaviour & attitudes.
At a Glance
35.2%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has declined from -0.44 to -0.55 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has improved from 39.3 to 43.4 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has improved from 32% to 43% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 43.4 | 43% |
| Disadvantaged(86) | - | 34.2 | 27.9% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(158) | - | 48.4 | 51.3% |
| Boys(134) | - | 43.1 | 43.3% |
| Girls(110) | - | 43.7 | 42.7% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(51) | - | 48.9 | 54.9% |
| Non mobile(228) | - | 44.1 | 43.4% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 8 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 244 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
0
Permanent exclusions
0.00%
Exclusion rate
213
Suspensions
17.08%
Suspension rate
91 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 1,247 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Priory School
Term dates
Priory School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Portsmouth's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Priory School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Priory School is in Portsmouth; for families living there:
- Portsmouth's school travel policy: Travel assistance policy for school age (5-16) children
- How to apply: apply for discretionary travel assistance
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 168
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 29
- Children hurt
- 25
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 168 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 29 serious and 138 slight.
25 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 13 on foot, 3 on a bicycle and 9 in a vehicle or otherwise.
39 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Portsmouth is 57 (the median across 67 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Priory School
Will you get a place at Priory School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Priory School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Priory School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Priory School.
- Last distance offered for 2025 entry, from Portsmouth's own figures, and how your distance compares each year.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Priory School for 2015 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Portsmouth got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
99%
Near capacity
1,256 pupils
1,270 places
14 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Southsea
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Southsea
Across Portsmouth council
Places available
2,178
Applications
2,140
Got 1st preference
83.4%
Got preferred school
96.1%
All secondary applications across Portsmouth council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(2)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
169
SEN Support
39
EHC Plans
16.3%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
1,278
Total Pupils
653
Boys
625
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
80
Teachers
16.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£55,481
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,336
Per pupil
£9870k
Total funding
£463k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
9.4%
Overall absence
23.6%
Persistent absence
1,304
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Priory School
Showing 10 of 15 linked schools
Questions parents ask about Priory School
What are GCSE results like at Priory School?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Priory School achieved an Attainment 8 score of 43.4. 43% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Priory School's Ofsted rating?
Priory School was rated Good at its most recent Ofsted inspection in November 2022.
How close to Priory School do you need to live?
Portsmouth published for September 2025 entry that the last place offered at Priory School on distance went to a family 0.882 miles away. This is the authority's own figure for one year, not a fixed boundary - the cut-off moves with the number of applications, so treat it as a guide rather than a guarantee.
Is it hard to get a place at Priory School?
Priory School was close to full in 2025, at 99% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at Priory School?
Classes at Priory School average 26.2 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Priory School?
Priory School has around 1278 pupils on roll. 35% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Priory School?
9.4% of sessions were missed at Priory School in 2024/25. 23.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Priory School?
Apply through Portsmouth's coordinated admissions process, naming Priory School on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Priory School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 168 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 29 serious and 138 slight. 25 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 13 on foot, 3 on a bicycle and 9 in a vehicle or otherwise. 39 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Portsmouth is 57 (the median across 67 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Priory School?
Priory School is at Fawcett Road, Southsea, Hampshire, PO4 0DL.
Sources: Portsmouth admissions booklet; Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)