Poole Grammar School
Gravel Hill, Poole, BH17 9JU
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Boys
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- POOLE GRAMMAR SCHOOL
- Headteacher
- Mrs Katie Etheridge
- Admissions policy
- Selective
- Constituency
- Mid Dorset and North Poole
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,375
- Pupils on roll
- 1,224
- URN
- 136850
- Local authority
- Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01202692132
About this school
Poole Grammar School is a boys' secondary academy in Poole. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,224 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Poole 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- 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 | 173 | 181 | 176 |
| Attainment 8 score | 70.0 | 71.3 | 70.2 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.45 +0.23 to +0.68 | +0.55 +0.33 to +0.78 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 91% | 96.1% | 95.5% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 97% | 98.9% | 98.3% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 75% | 69.1% | 60.2% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 6.5 | 6.6 | 6.4 |
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 Poole 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 | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 70 | 39.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 71.3 | 38.8 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 70.2 | 40 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,199 |
| 2023/24 | 1,199 |
| 2024/25 | 1,199 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Poole Grammar School compares
Poole Grammar School ranked 3rd of 22 secondary schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole 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 54% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 70.2 | 5.2% | 5.9% | 1,224 | — |
| Parkstone Grammar School | 68.5 | 5.1% | 6.9% | 1,241 | 0.7 miles |
| Magna Academy | 44.3 | 7.9% | 24.8% | 938 | 0.7 miles |
| St Edward's Roman Catholic/Church of England School, Poole | 46.4 | 7.4% | 13.8% | 1,093 | 1.4 miles |
| Corfe Hills School | 46.7 | 11.1% | 17.9% | 943 | 1.5 miles |
| Poole High School | 51 | 8.8% | 20.6% | 1,891 | 2.1 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
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 5.9%
- English as an additional language
- 16.8%
- Overall absence
- 5.22%
- Persistent absence
- 10.38%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Parkstone Grammar School0.7 miles
Secondary · Poole
-
Magna Academy0.7 miles
Secondary · Poole
-
St Edward's Roman Catholic/Church of England School, Poole1.4 miles
Secondary · Poole
-
Corfe Hills School1.5 miles
Secondary · Broadstone
-
Poole High School2.1 miles
Secondary · Poole
Other schools in Poole
Poole Grammar School ranks 1st of the 8 ranked secondary schools in Poole.
- Lytchett Minster School Secondary
- Magna Academy Secondary
- Parkstone Grammar School Secondary
- Poole High School Secondary
- St Aldhelm's Academy Secondary
- St Edward's Roman Catholic/Church of England School, Poole Secondary
- The Cornerstone Academy Secondary
- Ad Astra Infant School Primary
- Baden-Powell and St Peter's Church of England Junior School Primary
- Bayside Academy Primary
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Canford Heath Infant School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Poole Grammar School teach?
- Poole Grammar School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Poole.
- Who is the headteacher of Poole Grammar School?
- The headteacher of Poole Grammar School is Mrs Katie Etheridge, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Poole Grammar School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Poole 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 Poole Grammar School?
- Poole Grammar School has 1,224 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Poole Grammar School full?
- Poole Grammar School has capacity for 1,375 pupils and 1,224 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 Poole Grammar School a faith school?
- No. Poole Grammar School has no designated religious character.
- Is Poole Grammar School a selective school?
- Yes. Poole Grammar School is recorded as Selective in the schools register, so entry involves selection.
- Is Poole Grammar School part of an academy trust?
- Poole Grammar School is part of POOLE GRAMMAR SCHOOL. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Poole Grammar School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 70 in 2022/23 and 70.2 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Poole Grammar School compare with other schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole?
- Poole Grammar School ranked 3rd of 22 secondary schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole 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 54% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Poole Grammar School's absence rate?
- Poole 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 Poole Grammar School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Poole 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.