Colchester Royal Grammar School
Lexden Road, Colchester, CO3 3ND
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Boys
- Religious character
- Christian
- Trust
- THE THINKING SCHOOLS ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr John Russell
- Admissions policy
- Selective
- Boarding
- Boarding school
- Sponsor
- The Thinking Schools Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Colchester
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 777
- Pupils on roll
- 1,073
- URN
- 149899
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01206509100
About this school
Colchester Royal Grammar School is a Christian boys' secondary academy in Colchester. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,073 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Colchester Royal 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 no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area of the school's work is graded on a five-point scale, and safeguarding is judged separately.
- Inclusion
- Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Exceptional
- Achievement
- Exceptional
- Attendance and behaviour
- Strong standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Strong standard
- Leadership and governance
- Exceptional
- Post-16 provision
- Exceptional
- Safeguarding
- Met
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 124 | 128 |
| Attainment 8 score | 83.4 | 82.1 |
| Progress 8 score | +1.09 +0.82 to +1.37 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 100% | 100% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 100% | 100% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 77.4% | 76.6% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 8.0 | 7.9 |
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 Colchester Royal 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 | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | — | 43.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 83.4 | 41.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 82.1 | 42.2 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2023/24 | 1,018 |
| 2024/25 | 1,059 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Colchester Royal Grammar School compares
Colchester Royal Grammar School ranked 2nd of 78 secondary schools in Essex for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 100% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 82.1 | 5.4% | 6.6% | 1,073 | — |
| St Benedict's Catholic College | 54.7 | 5.8% | 12.6% | 905 | 0.5 miles |
| Colchester County High School for Girls | 80.6 | 4.2% | 5% | 1,198 | 0.5 miles |
| St Helena School | 46 | 8% | 31.3% | 986 | 0.6 miles |
| Philip Morant School and College | 44.5 | 7.7% | 26.3% | 1,888 | 0.7 miles |
| Paxman Academy | 41.3 | 8.2% | 32.6% | 873 | 1.2 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
-
Graded inspection report14 April 2026
- 11 May 2021
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 6.57%
- English as an additional language
- 11%
- Overall absence
- 5.36%
- Persistent absence
- 18.2%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Benedict's Catholic College0.5 miles
Secondary · Colchester
-
Colchester County High School for Girls0.5 miles
Secondary · Colchester
-
St Helena School0.6 miles
Secondary · Colchester
-
Philip Morant School and College0.7 miles
Secondary · Colchester
-
Paxman Academy1.2 miles
Secondary · Colchester
Other schools in Colchester
Colchester Royal Grammar School ranks 1st of the 14 ranked secondary schools in Colchester.
- Colchester Academy Secondary
- Colchester County High School for Girls Secondary
- Colne Community School Secondary
- East Bergholt High School Secondary
- Honywood School Secondary
- Paxman Academy Secondary
- Philip Morant School and College Secondary
- St Benedict's Catholic College Secondary
- St Helena School Secondary
- The Gilberd School Secondary
- The Stanway School Secondary
- The Thomas Lord Audley School Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Colchester Royal Grammar School teach?
- Colchester Royal Grammar School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Colchester.
- Who is the headteacher of Colchester Royal Grammar School?
- The headteacher of Colchester Royal Grammar School is Mr John Russell, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Colchester Royal Grammar School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Colchester Royal 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 Colchester Royal Grammar School?
- Colchester Royal Grammar School has 1,073 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Colchester Royal Grammar School full?
- Colchester Royal Grammar School has capacity for 777 pupils and 1,073 on roll (138%), 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 Colchester Royal Grammar School a faith school?
- Yes. Colchester Royal Grammar School is designated Christian.
- Is Colchester Royal Grammar School a selective school?
- Yes. Colchester Royal Grammar School is recorded as Selective in the schools register, so entry involves selection.
- Is Colchester Royal Grammar School part of an academy trust?
- Colchester Royal Grammar School is part of THE THINKING SCHOOLS ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Colchester Royal Grammar School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 83.4 in 2023/24 and 82.1 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Colchester Royal Grammar School compare with other schools in Essex?
- Colchester Royal Grammar School ranked 2nd of 78 secondary schools in Essex for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 100% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Colchester Royal Grammar School's absence rate?
- Colchester Royal Grammar School's overall absence rate is 5.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Colchester Royal Grammar School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Colchester Royal 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 15 July 2026.