Grays’s state schools get better results than 61% of towns in England
At Key Stage 2, 65% of pupils at Grays’s primaries met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, close to Essex’s towns (64%) and above towns in England (62%). 15 state-funded schools are located in Grays’s built-up area. Grays grades B for schools, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results: #42 of 81 in Essex. Ofsted is shown, not graded.
5 of 13 mainstream schools have at least as many pupils as their official capacity, including Grays Convent High and The Hathaway among the secondaries. A full school gives places by its admissions rules, usually by distance after siblings. Getting a place ↓
After 16 it’s college
None of the 5 state secondaries in Grays keeps pupils past 16. Most others go to a further-education or sixth-form college, or a sixth form in another town. After 16 ↓
Written from the Department for Education and Ofsted data on this page.
School Grade
Grays grades B for schools
Against every town in England with results; Wales publishes none.
Primary: reading, writing and maths at 11 (65% meet the standard)Better than 70% of towns in England
Secondary: Attainment 8 and grade 5+ English and maths (45.4 and 44%)Better than 47% of towns in England
The primary figure lifts Grays; the secondary figure holds it back.
Each of Grays’s 8 primaries: % meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (2023–25)
Each of Grays’s 5 secondaries: Attainment 8 (2025/26)
England’s average schoolThurrock’s average school
The primary figure: 8 primaries in the town, 2,017 pupils in results over three years. The secondary figure: 5 secondaries in the town, 689 pupils in results. Mainstream state schools only (grammar schools included); special schools, alternative provision, nurseries and 16–19 colleges are listed below but not graded. Each school’s results are compared with every school in England, then weighted by its pupils.
Map
Where Grays’s 15 state schools are
Each school at its address, coloured by its own letter and sized by pupils. Open a school for its own page. The dashed shape is Grays’s built-up area.
PrimarySecondary (named)Special, nursery, 16–19Size: pupilsABCDNo letter
Most schools give places by distance once siblings are in, so the schools nearest a home matter more than any league table. The 5 secondaries are named.
Results and intake
Which schools do better than their intake suggests
Schools with more pupils on free school meals tend to get lower results. The dashed line is the typical school in England for each level of free school meals; the band holds the middle two-thirds. A dot above the band is doing better than schools like it.
Primaries: KS2 reading, writing and maths against free school meals
Secondaries: Attainment 8 against free school meals
The share of pupils on free school meals runs from 17% at Little Thurrock Primary School to 32% at The Hathaway Academy. Against schools with the same intake, Quarry Hill Academy does best: 93% with 19% on free school meals, where a typical school would reach 63%. 5 of 8 primaries and 2 of 5 secondaries are above the line.
Free school meals: pupils eligible now, DfE January 2026 census. The typical-school line is a straight-line fit across every graded school in England. It describes; it doesn’t grade: the School Grade uses results alone.
Getting a place
How school places work in Grays
Thurrock Council handles applications for every state school in Grays, academies included. You apply to the council where you live, even for a school in another area.
Secondary (starting at 11)Apply by 31 October of Year 6. Offers on 1 March.
Primary (starting in Reception)Apply by 15 January before the September your child starts. Offers on 16 April.
Moving mid-yearApply to the council for an in-year place; it tells you which schools have room.
When a school is full
Every school publishes its admissions rules. Children in care come first, then, at most schools, brothers and sisters of current pupils, then those who live nearest. 2 of Grays’s 13 mainstream schools have a religious character; some of them give priority by church attendance, so check each school’s rules. Infant classes are limited to 30 by law. If you’re refused a place, you can appeal to an independent panel.
Pupils on roll as a share of the school’s official capacity. The black tick is 100%; 5 schools are at or over it.
Grays Convent High106%
Belmont Castle incl. nursery105%
The Hathaway105%
Little Thurrock incl. nursery101%
Woodside incl. nursery100%
Quarry Hill incl. nursery98%
Thameside incl. nursery98%
Thames Park Secondary90%
Deneholm89%
St Thomas of Canterbury incl. nursery85%
Show all 13 schools
William Edwards82%
Stifford Clays incl. nursery82%
Orsett Heath58%
DfE register of schools (GIAS), January 2026 census. Capacity often excludes a nursery class, so a school with a nursery can show over 100%.
The schools
15 state schools in Grays
Each school’s own letter compares its results with every state school in England of the same phase: Key Stage 2 for primaries, GCSEs for secondaries. Open a school for its results, how its letter is worked out, Ofsted and a map.
Letters of Grays’s schoolsA2B7C4D02 without a letter
Key result: Attainment 8 and grade 5+ English and maths (GCSEs, 2025/26 provisional) for secondaries; the share meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (KS2, DfE’s three-year average) for primaries. Pupils: the January 2026 school census. No letter: an infant or first school (no KS2 tests), a new school, a small cohort DfE suppresses, or a special school, nursery or college. Independent schools aren’t included.
Ofsted
Ofsted report cards
Each school’s latest inspection; report cards replace one-word judgements as schools are re-inspected.
Good 5Report card 2Ungraded inspection only 8
Ofsted stopped giving one-word judgements in 2024. Until a school is re-inspected, its last overall judgement is its most recent single grade; a school judged years ago may have changed a lot since.
Since November 2025 Ofsted gives each area of a school one of five grades (exceptional, strong standard, expected standard, needs attention, urgent improvement) and says whether safeguarding is met, instead of one overall word. 2 of Grays’s 15 state schools have a report card so far; the others show their last inspection under the old framework. Ofsted is never part of the School Grade.
Academies are state schools run by a trust rather than the council: the trust employs the staff and can set its own curriculum and term dates. Admissions still go through the council.
Run by
Schools
Pupils
Their letters
South West Essex Community Education Trust LimitedWilliam Edwards, Orsett Heath, Stifford Clays, Deneholm
4
2,663
CCB−B+
Osborne Co-Operative Academy TrustThameside, Thames Park Secondary, Little Thurrock
Special schools and alternative provision in Grays
Grays has 2 special schools (Treetops Free and Treetops: 487 pupils). A special-school place isn’t applied for like a mainstream one: for a child with an education, health and care plan (EHCP), Thurrock Council names the school in the plan, after asking the family’s preference. These schools have no letter, because their results don’t compare with mainstream schools’. Their cards ↑
Thurrock Council’s SEND Local Offer lists support beyond these schools.
Towns its size
51st of 153 English towns of 31,000 to 60,000
Ranked by School Grade, best first: the towns either side of Grays, and the top and bottom of the group.
Tilbury 4 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 2.1 mi
B+
64%
49.6
Orsett 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 2.3 mi
B−
66%
41.9
South Ockendon 8 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 2.6 mi
A−
72%
46.9
Southfields 0 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 2.9 mi
B−
66%
42.6
Swanscombe 4 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 3 mi
B
65%
44.7
Chafford Hundred and West Thurrock has the best-graded schools nearby (A−). Small places often use the schools within 3 km, so neighbours can share schools.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
•
Expected standard at Key Stage 2. The share of 11-year-olds who reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths together, in tests and teacher assessment at the end of primary school. We use DfE’s three-year average (2023–2025) to steady small schools.
•
Higher standard. The share working at greater depth in all three. In Grays: 10% (England’s average school: 8%).
•
Attainment 8. A pupil’s GCSE grades across eight subjects, with English and maths counted twice, added up. 50 is roughly a grade 5 in every subject.
•
Grade 5+ in English and maths. A strong pass in both. Grade 4 is a standard pass.
•
Provisional. 2025/26 GCSE figures are DfE’s first release; revised figures follow in February, usually within a point.
•
Progress 8. Not shown: there is none for 2025/26, because these pupils sat no KS2 tests in 2020 (Covid).
•
Free school meals. Pupils eligible for free school meals now, from the January census: the usual measure of how many pupils come from low-income homes.
•
Independent schools. Not included: they publish no results comparable with state schools’.
Questions about schools in Grays
Are schools in Grays good?
Grays’s state schools earn a B against schools across England: primary results beat 70% of towns in England; secondary results beat 47% of towns in England, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results. School places are handled by Thurrock council.
What is the best secondary school in Grays?
On 2025/26 GCSE results, Grays Convent High School: Attainment 8 of 51.5 and 48% with grade 5+ in English and maths, against 47.3 at the average school in England. Results are one measure; distance decides most places.
What is the best primary school in Grays?
On Key Stage 2 results over 2023–25, Quarry Hill Academy: 93% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, against 62% at the average school in England.
Do Grays secondary schools have sixth forms?
No. All 5 state secondaries teach 11–16; students move at 16 to a college, a sixth form elsewhere or an apprenticeship.
How do I apply for a school place in Grays?
Through Thurrock Council, for every state school including academies. Secondary applications close on 31 October (offers 1 March); primary on 15 January (offers 16 April).
How many schools in Grays are full?
5 of 13 mainstream schools have at least as many pupils as places, on DfE’s January 2026 census. A full school still admits by its rules, usually distance after siblings.
How many state schools are in Grays?
15 open state-funded schools are located in Grays’s built-up area: 8 primary, 5 secondary and 2 other (special schools, alternative provision, nurseries and 16–19). Independent schools aren’t included.
Sources: DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), Key Stage 2 performance tables (2023–2025, three-year average) and Key Stage 4 (2025/26, provisional); Ofsted state-funded school inspections as at 30 September 2026 · DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), further-education and sixth-form colleges · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
