Skipton Girls' High School, Skipton

From the headteacher's welcome: "I am delighted to introduce you to Skipton Girls' High School, a thriving and successful secondary school based in Skipton. Our school community of 900, includes students from the districts of Craven, Bradford, North Yorkshire, Lancashire and beyond."

In 2026, pupils at Skipton Girls' High School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 67.5, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 47.2 in North Yorkshire and 47 across England.

87% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 48% in North Yorkshire and 47% in England.

That is down from 69.7 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.45: pupils made above 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 67, against 67.5 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 0.5 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 22 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Biology and Chemistry.

Skipton Girls' High School is a grammar school: places go to children who reach the required standard in its entrance test, and only then are the oversubscription criteria applied.

For September 2026 entry, 180 families put Skipton Girls' High School as their first choice and 245 named it as one of their preferences, for 120 places offered. That is 1.5 first choices for every place. 61 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

Skipton Girls' High School admits pupils through an entrance test, usually called the 11-plus. Children have to be registered for it in advance, normally in the spring or summer of Year 5; the test itself is usually sat in September of Year 6, and results come out in October, before the 31 October deadline for naming secondary schools.

Passing the test makes a child eligible rather than guaranteeing a place: when more children pass than there are places, Skipton Girls' High School ranks them by the criteria in its admissions policy, which can include test score and distance. Check North Yorkshire's admissions pages and the school's own policy for this year's registration deadline - a child who is not registered in time cannot sit the test.

North Yorkshire has 3 state grammar schools in all, so a child who passes may have several selective schools to choose between.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Skipton Girls' High School are Ermysted's Grammar School (0.2 miles, Good, selective, Attainment 8 64.3); The Skipton Academy (0.4 miles, Good, Attainment 8 39.9); and South Craven School (4.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 46.7).

Skipton Girls' High School's 2026 results were higher than all 3 of them.

Skipton Girls' High School is one of 15 schools run by Northern Star Academies Trust, an academy trust.

Of the 112 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 97% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 12% to a further education college.

Of the 129 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 69% went on to university or other higher education, 2% to apprenticeships and 18% into work. 42% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

9.5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 89 pupils (10.3%) received SEN support and 1 (0.1%) 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 a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia.

The nearest railway station is Skipton Rail Station, about 570 metres away (roughly a 7-minute walk).

10 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Girls High School (e-bound), 70 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Skipton Girls' High School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 109 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 North Yorkshire (9), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, Skipton Girls' High School issued 7 suspensions, 0.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to Skipton Girls' High School are St Stephen's Catholic Primary School and Nursery, A Voluntary Academy (0.3 miles); Skipton, Water Street Community Primary School (0.3 miles); Christ Church Church of England Primary School (0.5 miles); and Skipton Parish Church of England Primary School (0.7 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.