Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School
Maidstone Road, Rochester, ME1 3EL
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Boys
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- LEIGH ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Eliot Hodges
- Admissions policy
- Selective
- Sponsor
- Leigh Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Rochester and Strood
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,280
- Pupils on roll
- 1,555
- URN
- 136662
- Local authority
- Medway
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01634844008
About this school
Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School is a boys' secondary academy in Rochester. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,555 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. 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
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 203 | 204 | 216 |
| Attainment 8 score | 70.4 | 70.3 | 69.5 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.85 +0.65 to +1.04 | +0.90 +0.70 to +1.09 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 98% | 97.5% | 93.5% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 100% | 99.5% | 97.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 99% | 97.1% | 98.6% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 6.9 | 6.9 | 6.8 |
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 Joseph Williamson's Mathematical 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 | Medway average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 70.4 | 34 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 70.3 | 36 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 69.5 | 36.1 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,479 |
| 2023/24 | 1,507 |
| 2024/25 | 1,528 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School compares
Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School ranked 1st of 18 secondary schools in Medway for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 97% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 69.5 | 3.7% | 10.8% | 1,555 | — |
| The Rochester Grammar School | 68.4 | 4.4% | 11.7% | 1,206 | 0.1 miles |
| The Thomas Aveling School | 41.3 | 9.4% | 33.4% | 1,201 | 0.5 miles |
| Holcombe Grammar School | 62.4 | 5.4% | 13.3% | 1,060 | 0.9 miles |
| St John Fisher Catholic Comprehensive School | 40 | 8.1% | 35.6% | 1,084 | 1.0 miles |
| Fort Pitt Grammar School | 65.9 | 6.2% | 14.9% | 1,009 | 1.0 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)
- 10.82%
- English as an additional language
- 14.1%
- Overall absence
- 3.65%
- Persistent absence
- 4.97%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Rochester Grammar School0.1 miles
Secondary · Rochester
-
The Thomas Aveling School0.5 miles
Secondary · Rochester
-
Holcombe Grammar School0.9 miles
Secondary · Chatham
-
St John Fisher Catholic Comprehensive School1.0 miles
Secondary · Rochester
-
Fort Pitt Grammar School1.0 miles
Secondary · Chatham
Other schools in Rochester
Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School ranks 1st of the 6 ranked secondary schools in Rochester.
- Leigh Academy Strood Secondary
- Maritime Academy Secondary
- St John Fisher Catholic Comprehensive School Secondary
- The Rochester Grammar School Secondary
- The Thomas Aveling School Secondary
- All Faiths Children's Academy Primary
- Balfour Infant School Primary
- Bligh Primary School (Infants) Primary
- Bligh Primary School (Juniors) Primary
- Burham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cedar Children's Academy Primary
- Chattenden Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School teach?
- Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Rochester.
- Who is the headteacher of Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School?
- The headteacher of Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School is Mr Eliot Hodges, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical 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 Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School?
- Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School has 1,555 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School full?
- Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School has capacity for 1,280 pupils and 1,555 on roll (121%), 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 Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School a faith school?
- No. Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School has no designated religious character.
- Is Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School a selective school?
- Yes. Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School is recorded as Selective in the schools register, so entry involves selection.
- Who runs Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School?
- Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School is part of LEIGH ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 70.4 in 2022/23 and 69.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School rank locally?
- Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School ranked 1st of 18 secondary schools in Medway for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 97% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% 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 Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School's absence rate?
- Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School's overall absence rate is 3.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical 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.