Dr Challoner's Grammar School
Chesham Road, Amersham, HP6 5HA
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Boys
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- DR CHALLONER'S GRAMMAR SCHOOL
- Headteacher
- Mr David Atkinson
- Admissions policy
- Selective
- Sponsor
- Dr Challoner's Grammar School
- Constituency
- Chesham and Amersham
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,356
- Pupils on roll
- 1,384
- URN
- 136419
- Local authority
- Buckinghamshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01494787500
About this school
Dr Challoner's Grammar School is a boys' secondary academy in Amersham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,384 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Dr Challoner's Grammar School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit 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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Sixth form
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 184 | 186 | 182 |
| Attainment 8 score | 77.5 | 77.5 | 73.9 |
| Progress 8 score | +1.19 +0.95 to +1.44 | +1.18 +0.95 to +1.41 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 99% | 99.5% | 96.2% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 99% | 100% | 97.8% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 88% | 88.2% | 87.4% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 7.4 | 7.5 | 7.1 |
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 Dr Challoner's Grammar 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 | Buckinghamshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 77.5 | 47.7 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 77.5 | 49.4 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 73.9 | 46.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,368 |
| 2023/24 | 1,370 |
| 2024/25 | 1,368 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Dr Challoner's Grammar School compares
Dr Challoner's Grammar School ranked 8th of 36 secondary schools in Buckinghamshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 98% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 73.9 | 5.2% | 2.7% | 1,384 | — |
| Amersham School | 49.7 | 8.4% | 13.8% | 1,050 | 0.9 miles |
| Dr Challoner's High School | 79.1 | 5.5% | 2.9% | 1,391 | 1.8 miles |
| Chesham Grammar School | 74 | 5.7% | 2.1% | 1,331 | 2.3 miles |
| Chiltern Hills Academy | 40.3 | 10.5% | 22.4% | 1,047 | 2.3 miles |
| Holmer Green Senior School | 47.1 | 7.5% | 11.1% | 1,244 | 3.8 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.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report6 November 2024
- 5 November 2019
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 2.73%
- English as an additional language
- 17.4%
- Overall absence
- 5.17%
- Persistent absence
- 14.19%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Amersham School0.9 miles
Secondary · Amersham
-
Dr Challoner's High School1.8 miles
Secondary · Amersham
-
Chesham Grammar School2.3 miles
Secondary · Chesham
-
Chiltern Hills Academy2.3 miles
Secondary · Chesham
-
Holmer Green Senior School3.8 miles
Secondary · High Wycombe
Other schools in Amersham
- Amersham School Secondary
- Dr Challoner's High School Secondary
- Henry Allen Nursery School Nursery
- Chalfont Valley E-ACT Primary Academy Primary
- Chesham Bois Church of England School Primary
- Chestnut Lane School Primary
- Coleshill Church of England Infant School Primary
- Curzon Church of England Combined School Primary
- Elangeni School Primary
- Hyde Heath Infant School Primary
- Little Chalfont Primary School Primary
- Little Missenden Church of England School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Dr Challoner's Grammar School teach?
- Dr Challoner's Grammar School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Amersham.
- Who is the headteacher of Dr Challoner's Grammar School?
- The headteacher of Dr Challoner's Grammar School is Mr David Atkinson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Dr Challoner's Grammar School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Dr Challoner's Grammar 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 many pupils are at Dr Challoner's Grammar School?
- Dr Challoner's Grammar School has 1,384 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Dr Challoner's Grammar School full?
- Dr Challoner's Grammar School has capacity for 1,356 pupils and 1,384 on roll (102%), 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 Dr Challoner's Grammar School a faith school?
- No. Dr Challoner's Grammar School has no designated religious character.
- Is Dr Challoner's Grammar School a selective school?
- Yes. Dr Challoner's Grammar School is recorded as Selective in the schools register, so entry involves selection.
- Is Dr Challoner's Grammar School part of an academy trust?
- Dr Challoner's Grammar School is part of DR CHALLONER'S GRAMMAR SCHOOL. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Dr Challoner's Grammar School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 77.5 in 2022/23 and 73.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Dr Challoner's Grammar School compare with other schools in Buckinghamshire?
- Dr Challoner's Grammar School ranked 8th of 36 secondary schools in Buckinghamshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 98% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Dr Challoner's Grammar School's absence rate?
- Dr Challoner's Grammar School's overall absence rate is 5.2% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Dr Challoner's Grammar School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Dr Challoner's Grammar 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 1 July 2026.