Sir John Nelthorpe School
Grammar School Road, Brigg, DN20 8AA
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 11 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Headteacher
- Mr Robert Biglands
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Brigg and Immingham
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 870
- Pupils on roll
- 878
- URN
- 118112
- Local authority
- North Lincolnshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01652656551
About this school
Sir John Nelthorpe School is a voluntary controlled secondary school in Brigg. It teaches children aged 11 to 19 and has 878 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 18 October 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 138 | 149 | 133 |
| Attainment 8 score | 45.1 | 42.8 | 46.0 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.15 -0.39 to +0.08 | -0.46 -0.69 to -0.23 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 42% | 36.9% | 43.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 70% | 63.8% | 66.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 52% | 52.3% | 51.9% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.1 | 3.8 | 4.1 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Sir John Nelthorpe School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | North Lincolnshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 45.1 | 37.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 42.8 | 36.5 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 46 | 35.4 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 796 |
| 2023/24 | 830 |
| 2024/25 | 877 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Sir John Nelthorpe School compares
Sir John Nelthorpe School ranked 4th of 14 secondary schools in North Lincolnshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 61% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 16% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 46 | 8.1% | 21.7% | 878 | — |
| The Vale Academy | 51.6 | 7.3% | 26.5% | 627 | 0.4 miles |
| Frederick Gough School | 42.2 | 9.5% | 28.8% | 1,334 | 6.2 miles |
| St Bede's Catholic Voluntary Academy | 47.8 | 6.9% | 29.6% | 694 | 6.5 miles |
| Kirton Academy | 36.7 | 11.3% | 47% | 406 | 6.5 miles |
| Outwood Academy Brumby | 43 | 8.1% | 44.9% | 697 | 6.6 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 21.71%
- English as an additional language
- 1.9%
- Overall absence
- 8.09%
- Persistent absence
- 20.84%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Vale Academy0.4 miles
Secondary · Brigg
-
Frederick Gough School6.2 miles
Secondary · Scunthorpe
-
St Bede's Catholic Voluntary Academy6.5 miles
Secondary · Scunthorpe
-
Kirton Academy6.5 miles
Secondary · Gainsborough
-
Outwood Academy Brumby6.6 miles
Secondary · Scunthorpe
Other schools in Brigg
- The Vale Academy Secondary
- Brigg Primary School Primary
- Broughton Primary Academy Primary
- Hibaldstow Academy Primary
- Scawby Academy Primary
- St Mary's Catholic Primary Voluntary Academy (Brigg) Primary
- Worlaby Academy Primary
- Wrawby St Mary's CofE Primary School Primary
- Hestia School Special schools
- Robert Holme Academy Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Sir John Nelthorpe School teach?
- Sir John Nelthorpe School teaches children aged 11 to 19. It is a secondary school in Brigg.
- Who is the headteacher of Sir John Nelthorpe School?
- The headteacher of Sir John Nelthorpe School is Mr Robert Biglands, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Sir John Nelthorpe School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Sir John Nelthorpe School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Sir John Nelthorpe School?
- Sir John Nelthorpe School has 878 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 19.
- Is Sir John Nelthorpe School full?
- Sir John Nelthorpe School has capacity for 870 pupils and 878 on roll (101%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Sir John Nelthorpe School a faith school?
- No. Sir John Nelthorpe School has no designated religious character.
- Is Sir John Nelthorpe School a selective school?
- No. Sir John Nelthorpe School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- How have Sir John Nelthorpe School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 45.1 in 2022/23 and 46 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Sir John Nelthorpe School rank locally?
- Sir John Nelthorpe School ranked 4th of 14 secondary schools in North Lincolnshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 61% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 16% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Sir John Nelthorpe School's absence rate?
- Sir John Nelthorpe School's overall absence rate is 8.1% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Sir John Nelthorpe School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Sir John Nelthorpe School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 30 June 2026.