The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, High Wycombe

From the headteacher's welcome: "When Sam joined RGS, he moved from a small primary school to a year group of over 230. Here he talks about his first impressions of Year 7 and why it isn't nearly as scary as he imagined. RGS is acclaimed for its academia ."

Clubs and activities named on the school's website include drama, cooking and philosophy.

In 2026, pupils at The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe averaged an Attainment 8 score of 71.9, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 55 in Buckinghamshire and 47 across England.

96% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 61% in Buckinghamshire and 47% in England.

That is down from 73.9 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 1.13: pupils made well 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 66.2, against 72.3 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 6.1 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 21 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Physics, Biology and Chemistry.

The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe 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, 217 families put The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe as their first choice and 701 named it as one of their preferences, for 182 places offered. That is 1.2 first choices for every place. 60 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe admits pupils through an entrance test - in Buckinghamshire, the Secondary Transfer Test. 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, The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe ranks them by the criteria in its admissions policy, which can include test score and distance. Check Buckinghamshire'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.

Buckinghamshire has 13 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 The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe are The Highcrest Academy (1 mile, Good, Attainment 8 42); Sir William Ramsay School (1.3 miles, Attainment 8 35.1); St Michael's Catholic School (1.7 miles, Attainment 8 48.7); and Wycombe High School (1.8 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 74.2).

The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe's 2026 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.

The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe is run by its own single-school academy trust.

360 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe (as of September 2025): 97% would recommend the school, 96% say their child is happy there and 73% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that the school has high expectations for their child (98%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (73%).

Of the 202 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 96% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 2% to a further education college, 1% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.

Of the 208 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 72% went on to university or other higher education, 1% to apprenticeships and 11% into work. 64% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 117 pupils (8.1%) received SEN support and 7 (0.5%) 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.

The nearest railway station is High Wycombe Rail Station, about 0.8 miles away in a straight line.

11 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Royal Grammar School (outside), 100 metres away.

In August 2026, police recorded 161 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Buckinghamshire (44), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe issued 15 suspensions, 1.1 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe are Highworth Combined School and Nursery (0.5 miles), Hannah Ball Academy (0.8 miles), Hamilton Academy (0.8 miles) and Kings Wood School and Nursery (0.9 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.