Schools in Thirsk
North Yorkshire · 17 schools
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 5 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to North Yorkshire (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to North Yorkshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Schools in Thirsk (17)
- Dishforth Airfield Community Primary School
Primary · Ages 3-11 · YO7 3DL
Ofsted: Outstanding (2023)KS2: 85% expected (2025) - All Saints Catholic Primary School, a Catholic Voluntary Academy
Primary · Ages 3-11 · YO7 1NB
Ofsted: Good (2023)KS2: 65% expected (2025) - Carlton Miniott Primary Academy
Primary · Ages 4-11 · YO7 4NJ
Ofsted: Good (2023)KS2: 82% expected (2025) - Dishforth Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School
Primary · Ages 3-11 · YO7 3LN
Ofsted: Good (2019)KS2: 86% expected (2025) - Knayton Church of England Academy
Primary · Ages 4-11 · YO7 4AN
Ofsted: Good (2024)KS2: 75% expected (2025) - Pickhill Church of England Primary School
Primary · Ages 2-11 · YO7 4JL
Ofsted: Good (2014)KS2: 59% expected (2024)64% of first choices got in - Thirsk Community Primary School
Primary · Ages 2-11 · YO7 1SL
Ofsted: Good (2021)New report cardKS2: 47% expected (2025) - Thirsk School & Sixth Form College
Secondary · Ages 11-18 · YO7 1RZ
Ofsted: Good (2017)New report cardAttainment 8: 38.4 (2026) - Topcliffe CofE Academy
Primary · Ages 2-11 · YO7 3RG
Ofsted: Good (2011)KS2: 73% expected (2025)94% of first choices got in - Alanbrooke Academy
Primary · Ages 4-11 · YO7 3SF
- Darwin School
Senior · Ages 11-16 · Independent · YO7 4PT
- South Kilvington Church of England Academy
Primary · Ages 4-11 · YO7 2LR
Ofsted report cardKS2: 92% expected (2025)
By type:Primary schools in Thirsk (13)Special schools in Thirsk (1)Senior schools in Thirsk (1)All-through schools in Thirsk (1)Secondary schools in Thirsk (1)
17
13 primary · 1 secondary
2,903
80% capacity used
6
1 outstanding · 5 good
3,625
722 spare places
Ofsted Ratings
Best Schools in Thirsk
View the full league table - ranked by Ofsted, Progress 8, KS2 results and more
Best Schools in North Yorkshire
Compare all schools across the county
Area Performance (2026)
Attainment 8
31.9
GCSE Eng+Maths
17.0%
School Capacity & Demand
Housing Growth Detected
421 new homes approved nearby. This could generate an estimated +105 primary and +76 secondary pupils.
Source: MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years)
Primary Schools
80% occupied · 403 spare places
Secondary Schools
82% occupied · 226 spare places
Questions parents ask about schools in Thirsk
How many schools are there in Thirsk?
Thirsk has 17 open schools: 13 state primary, 1 state secondary or all-through, 2 independent and 1 special.
Source: DfE Get Information About Schools
Which schools in Thirsk are rated Outstanding?
1 school in Thirsk was rated Outstanding at its most recent graded Ofsted inspection: Dishforth Airfield Community Primary School. Counting Good as well, 100% of the 12 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.
Dishforth Airfield Community Primary School
Source: Ofsted
Which secondary schools in Thirsk get the best GCSE results?
Of the 2 schools in Thirsk with 2026 GCSE results, the highest Attainment 8 scores - the average grade across a pupil's best eight GCSEs - were at Thirsk School & Sixth Form College, with an Attainment 8 score of 38.4 and 23% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; and Breckenbrough School, with an Attainment 8 score of 29.8 and 0% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above. Progress 8, the DfE's value-added measure, was not published for 2026.
Thirsk School & Sixth Form CollegeBreckenbrough School
Source: DfE school performance data
Which primary schools in Thirsk have the best SATs results?
Of the 10 primary schools in Thirsk with 2025 Key Stage 2 results, the highest shares of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading and maths were at South Kilvington Church of England Academy (92% in reading, 92% in maths); Dishforth Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School (93% in reading, 79% in maths); and Dishforth Airfield Community Primary School (80% in reading, 90% 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.
South Kilvington Church of England AcademyDishforth Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary SchoolDishforth Airfield Community Primary School
Source: DfE school performance data
Are there grammar schools in Thirsk?
No. None of the state secondary schools in Thirsk selects pupils by ability, so every state secondary here is comprehensive.
Source: DfE Get Information About Schools
Do schools in Thirsk have catchment areas?
Most state schools in Thirsk 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 Thirsk?
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.