The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough
Morton Terrace, Gainsborough, DN21 2ST
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mr Richard Eastham
- Admissions policy
- Selective
- Constituency
- Gainsborough
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,286
- Pupils on roll
- 1,139
- URN
- 120655
- Local authority
- Lincolnshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01427612354
About this school
The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough is a community secondary school in Gainsborough. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,139 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 182 | 191 | 177 |
| Attainment 8 score | 64.6 | 62.4 | 62.5 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.39 +0.18 to +0.60 | +0.26 +0.06 to +0.47 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 82% | 84.8% | 79.7% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 97% | 95.8% | 93.8% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 96% | 94.8% | 97.2% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 6.2 | 6.1 | 6.1 |
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 The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Lincolnshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 64.6 | 42.9 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 62.4 | 41.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 62.5 | 39.8 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,220 |
| 2023/24 | 1,171 |
| 2024/25 | 1,126 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough compares
The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough ranked 7th of 54 secondary schools in Lincolnshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 95% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 62.5 | 4.9% | 11.2% | 1,139 | — |
| The Gainsborough Academy | 38 | 12.8% | 61.4% | 767 | 0.9 miles |
| South Axholme Academy | 53.2 | 6.5% | 18.6% | 910 | 8.1 miles |
| The Elizabethan Academy | 41.1 | 9.1% | 25.7% | 1,230 | 9.1 miles |
| Kirton Academy | 36.7 | 11.3% | 47% | 406 | 9.2 miles |
| Retford Oaks Academy | 40.1 | 9.7% | 32.5% | 1,080 | 9.7 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)
- 11.22%
- English as an additional language
- 6.4%
- Overall absence
- 4.9%
- Persistent absence
- 15.85%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Gainsborough Academy0.9 miles
Secondary · Gainsborough
-
South Axholme Academy8.1 miles
Secondary · Doncaster
-
The Elizabethan Academy9.1 miles
Secondary · Retford
-
Kirton Academy9.2 miles
Secondary · Gainsborough
-
Retford Oaks Academy9.7 miles
Secondary · Retford
Other schools in Gainsborough
- Kirton Academy Secondary
- The Gainsborough Academy Secondary
- The Gainsborough Nursery School Nursery
- Benjamin Adlard Primary School Primary
- Blyton Cum Laughton Church of England School Primary
- Castle Wood Academy Primary
- Corringham CofE VC Primary School Primary
- Frances Olive Anderson Church of England (Aided) Primary School Primary
- Hemswell Cliff Primary School Primary
- Kirton Lindsey Primary Academy Primary
- Mercer's Wood Academy Primary
- Morton Trentside Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough teach?
- The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Gainsborough.
- Who is the headteacher of The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough?
- The headteacher of The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough is Mr Richard Eastham, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough, 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 The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough?
- The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough has 1,139 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough full?
- The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough has capacity for 1,286 pupils and 1,139 on roll (89%), so it has space against 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 The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough a faith school?
- No. The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough has no designated religious character.
- Is The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough a selective school?
- Yes. The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough is recorded as Selective in the schools register, so entry involves selection.
- How have The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 64.6 in 2022/23 and 62.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough rank locally?
- The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough ranked 7th of 54 secondary schools in Lincolnshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 95% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough's absence rate?
- The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough's overall absence rate is 4.9% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Queen Elizabeth's High School, Gainsborough'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.