What GCSE and A-level results do grammar schools get?

Grammar schools often report high GCSE and A-level attainment, but results vary between schools and cohorts. A useful comparison needs the exam year, the measure and its denominator. It also needs the context that grammar schools select pupils academically: high raw grades alone do not show how much difference the school caused.

What do the latest national results show?

Ofqual’s summer 2026 release, updated on 20 August 2026, reports these figures for the grammar-school centre category in England:

These are percentages of examination results across subjects, not percentages of children attaining those grades in every subject. Ofqual uses centre classifications reported by schools and colleges, with adjustments moving some selective schools into the grammar category. The publication concerns results issued around results days, not a final school-by-school DfE league table.

The figures describe previous cohorts. They do not predict an individual child’s grades or provide a national pass mark for the 11 Plus. For families preparing for entrance exams taken in 2027, usually for September 2028 entry, use them as background while checking the schools actually within reach.

Which GCSE measures should parents compare?

DfE’s accountability guidance explains the weighting in Attainment 8: maths is double weighted and English can be double weighted, with other slots subject to eligibility rules. Use the published measure rather than trying to reconstruct it from headline school percentages.

Why is Progress 8 missing for 2025 and 2026?

The relevant pupils did not have the normal KS2 baseline because their primary assessments were cancelled during the pandemic. DfE confirms that Progress 8 cannot be calculated for academic years 2024/25 and 2025/26 and that there is no replacement measure for those cohorts. This absence is not evidence that a school made no progress.

A page can display a 2023/24 Progress 8 score beside 2026 GCSE results. Those numbers refer to different cohorts. Keep the year attached to each measure, and do not relabel an older progress figure as a current result. Even when available, Progress 8 is a statistical comparison, not a controlled experiment proving a school’s teaching effect.

School results, Ofqual statistics and DfE tables are different sources

School announcements can provide recent GCSE and A-level results quickly. DfE performance data follows its own checking and publication process. The DfE 2024/25 school-performance release was updated with revised data on 5 February 2026. As checked on 11 October 2026, that is the latest school-level KS4 release listed in the performance-tables collection; it should not be described as 2026 GCSE data.

Always record the status shown by the source: school-reported, provisional, revised or final. For instance, Bourne Grammar School’s results page reports an Attainment 8 score of 67.2 under its August 2026 GCSE heading while explicitly labelling the displayed Progress 8 score as 2023/24. That distinction matters more than whether two numbers happen to sit in the same table.

How should A-level results be read?

Compare the same thresholds: A*–A, A*–B and A*–C are not interchangeable. Check whether figures include only A levels or also another qualification such as the IB, whether they cover all subjects, and the cohort size. A headline about a few high-achieving students is not the distribution of results for everyone.

Average points per A-level entry is a different measure from an individual student’s three-grade university offer. Do not translate a single average points figure directly into an offer such as ABB. Sixth-form GCSE entry requirements, external entrants, subject availability and retention also matter when interpreting outcomes.

How to compare two schools fairly

1. 1Create one row per measure, with columns for school, exam year, source, publication status and denominator.
2. 2Compare like with like before drawing a conclusion: the same qualification, threshold, year and population.
3. 3Look at subject results and curriculum choices your child may value, not only an overall headline.
4. 4Ask how the school supports pupils who find a subject difficult, and how sixth-form entry and continuation work.
5. 5Consider the daily journey, pastoral support and your child’s response to a visit alongside academic information.

A selective school’s strong raw results do not establish that your child would achieve less elsewhere. Use our guide to grammar schools and other state schools alongside choosing between schools. The practical aim is to find a suitable education, not to treat a historical table position as a promise.