You will find the parallel article looking at Kent Non-selective schools here. Medway Schools to follow. Please note that the two articles on secondary school allocation in Kent had over 27,000 hits last year, being the two longest and most popular I publish. If there are corrections to be made, or you would like any section expanded or clarified, please let me know.
The number of Kent grammar school places available for Year 7 pupils has risen by just 20 overall since last year, to 5469, with a total increase of 535 over the past five years. The biggest change is an increase of 30 places at Simon Langton Boys to 150, although its popularity has dropped sharply. There are currently 217 empty spaces for September (up from 184 in 2018), in ten grammar schools including three of the four Maidstone grammars.
(Most figures in this paragraph are approximate, see below): 417 of the 5252 Kent grammar school places offered, or 8% (down from 9% in 2018) of the total, went to pupils from outside of the county (ooc), with 223 pupils going to out of county grammars, mainly in Medway. 147 pupils coming in were offered places at the two Dartford Grammar schools. As a result, the pressure on places at these two schools continues to rise inexorably along with the two Wilmington grammars, led by Dartford Grammar School with a record 476 grammar qualified first choices for its 180 places, up from 460 in 2018. The next most popular schools were unsurprisingly Dartford Girls, The Judd School, and Tonbridge Grammar.
As far as I am aware there is just one black spot for grammar school applications, North West Kent, especially around Swanscombe and Greenhithe, where a number of grammar qualified children have been offered no grammar school place, although most applied for two or three of the local schools.
I look at the outcomes below in more detail, including levels of oversubscription and vacancies together with a look at each school individually. I have also included a new measure which is the change in popularity, throwing up some interesting trends.
One problem I have is that KCC has introduced a new set of rules for data publication that redacts information relating to small numbers, although I consider there is no danger that individuals can be identified, as is claimed. As a result, I am delaying the updating of Individual School Information until I can obtain this information fro all schools, although there is still much reported on each, including the number of first choices for 2019.
You will find an initial article on allocation here, that also provides cut off scores for the super selective schools, and also the 2018 equivalent article here. You will also find further information on each secondary school here, the pages currently being updated. Please let me know of any you wish to be brought up to date.
Please note that all statistics in this page refer to grammar qualified children, both via the Kent Test and also through local Tests available through six grammar schools as explained below. I am sorry that my full analysis of Kent Test results has been delayed this year, but I hope to publish it soon.
I am using a different measure to my usual one this year, because of the KCC redaction. It simply compares the number of first choices to the number of places available, but still produces the same first four schools as in 2018. I hope to update this article as and when I receive the full data.
The most oversubscribed school by grammar qualified first choices is once again Dartford Grammar turning away 296 boys. With the school topping this list for some year, the overwhelming majority of the disappointed boys stand no chance off the waiting list or at appeal.
Immediately below is full list of those schools oversubscribed with more than ten first choices (grammar qualified) than places. This pattern will change a little following re-allocation in coming months, and successful appeals can change the picture significantly, as schools admit additional pupils, in some cases drawing them from other grammars. However, it is clear that for the large majority of these schools, few appeals are successful.
The change of oversubscription criteria for Skinners has produced a very unclear picture. I look at this in more detail below.
MOST OVERSUBSCRIBED KENT GRAMMAR SCHOOLS ON ALLOCATION 2019 | |||||
GRAMMAR SCHOOL | PLACES OFFERED | 1ST CHOICES OVER PLACES | OOC* OFFERS | APPEALS 2018 | APPEALS UPHELD 2018 |
| Dartford | 180 | 296 | 80 | 129 | 4 |
| Dartford Girls | 180 | 199 | 67 | 71 | 2 |
| Judd | 180 | 150 | 17 | 39 | 10 |
| Tonbridge | 180 | 105 | 30 | 47 | 2 |
| Skinners | 160 | 74 | 18 | 48 | 6 |
| Queen Elizabeth's | 140 | 34 | 0 | 34 | 15 |
| Dane Court | 165 | 30 | 0 | 56 | 6 |
| Wilmington Boys | 150 | 26 | 25 | 121 | 5 |
| Dover Girls | 140 | 17 | 0 | 21 | 10 |
| Harvey | 150 | 13 | 0 | 42 | 4 |
| Cranbrook | 60 | 12 | 5 | 16 | 2 |
| Folkestone Girls | 180 | 10 | 0 | 35 | 9 |
Note * ooc - Out of County You will find the comparative data for 2018 admission here.
There were just ten grammar schools with vacancies on allocation, so all appeals at these schools will be from children with a non-selective decision after the Kent Test procedure. The total number of vacancies at this stage is 217 places unfilled, (184 in 2018). Most of these will vanish after appeals and late applications.
Three quarters of the vacancies are from five of the six grammar schools in Maidstone and Ashford (Maidstone Grammar is oversubscribed).
KENT GRAMMAR SCHOOLS WITH MORE THAN 5 VACANCIES, MARCH 2019 | ||||
| GRAMMAR SCHOOL | PLACES AVAILABLE | VACANCIES | APPEALS 2018 | APPEALS UPHELD 2018 |
| Maidstone Girls | 180 | 58 | 91 | 45 |
| Oakwood Park | 160 | 41 | 89 | 68 |
| Norton Knatchbull | 210 | 40 | 66 | 46 |
| Highworth | 210 | 21 | 56 | 23 |
| Borden | 120 | 16 | 37 | 15 |
| Dover Boys | 150 | 12 | 16 | 2 |
| Highsted | 150 | 12 | 18 | 13 |
| Simon Langton Girls | 165 | 8 | 455 | 29 |
| Barton Court | 150 | 5 | 74 | 7 |
| Invicta | 240 | 4 | 64 | 49 |
Please note that whilst the 2018 appeal pattern may be a guide to the 2019 outcomes, there are often considerable swings from year to year. One very rough guide may be the number of places offered for Individual Schools for 2019, compared with 2018 (both on the same page).
CHANGE IN POPULARITY MEASURED BY 1ST CHOICES | |||
| Dartford Girls | +79 | Tunbridge Wells Boys | -49 |
| Skinners | +54 | Tunbridge Wells Girls | -46 |
| Judd | +30 | Simon Langton Boys | -37 |
| Norton Knatchbull | +28 | Oakwood Park | -25 |
| Wilmington Boys | +26 | Maidstone Girls | -25 |
To find details of Individual Schools in:
North West Kent - go to Page 3
West Kent - go to Page 4
Maidstone and Ashford - go to Page 5
Folkestone and Dover - go to Page 6
East Kent - go to Page 7
Individual School Survey Below:
I have quoted the number of first choices offered places at each school below, where there were no children with Education Health Care Plans offered places (where there are EHCPs, Kent County Council has redacted information)..
The ever increasing popularity of the super selective Dartford Grammar is driven by its easy access from SE London, cutting out large numbers of local boys who failed to achieve the ‘inner’ required aggregate score of 369 against a Kent Test pass level of 320, and well above 2017’s 340 and 2018's 358. For those outside the tight local area it is 391 (up from 384). 80 of the school’s 180 places went to high scoring out of county boys -just short of half the 180 places available. 64 of these came from Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham. Chances of success at appeal for Dartford Grammar are again likely to be very low, with just four successful appeals last year. That very high number of first choices turned down suggests there will be little movement on the waiting list. A total of ? (to come) applicants for the school were not offered places. This is echoed by the situation at Dartford Grammar Girls (see below). Some years ago, when the two schools changed their admission criteria and were challenged with complaints to the Schools Adjudicator, both assured him that local children would not be disadvantaged. This assurance was self-evidently false.
The knock on effect of this drive for exclusivity follows right along the Thames coast to Chatham, as boys are displaced locally. Some boys, especially those living in the Ebbsfleet area, have not been able to access any local grammar school and have given places in the non-selective and unpopular Ebbsfleet Academy.
Wilmington Grammar Boys has given priority to local boys for several years, and saw 26 more first choices than places this year, a steadily rising number, again generated from London, but also again this year seeing some boys from local villages losing out. It is often placed second to Dartford Grammar which explains why just 75 of the 176 first choices were offered places, along with 73 second choices. It also gives a priority to siblings and siblings of pupils at Wilmington Girls, partly explaining why 25 ooc boys are still being offered places at the school.
Gravesend Grammar has kept its PAN at 174 having increased it from the 150 of 2017 following another large number of local boys who passed the Kent Test, but unlike 2018 looks as if all from Hartley/New Ash Green have been offered. 151 of the 167 first choices were offered places, along with 18 second choices. Has turned away boys from Swanscombe/Greenhithe, who will no doubt be appealing, Fewer than five from London, most of will be siblings of boys already at the school.
The knock on effect of oversubscription in the three boys grammars has travelled Eastwards with Holcombe Grammar in Chatham offering 48 places to boys from Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich, and another 19 to Kent boys.
The pattern for the girls’ grammars is very similar but far less severe, Dartford Girls having started chasing London pupils a few years ago. The school has seen the largest increase in first choices of any grammar school in the county. Required aggregate scores have risen again, with local girls (from a wider area than the boys school) being required to score at least 359 (up from 341 in 2018), with outers 385 (as in 2018). There were 379 first choices of which 149 were offered places, 17 to second choices and 8 thirds. Wilmington Girls changed three years ago to give priority mainly to local girls and has seen a sharp fall in the number of London siblings working through from previous years to 29. There were 148 first choices for 150 places, of which 75 were offered places, along with 66 second choices. Lost a third of its Year 11 pupils before entry to Sixth Form in 2018. Mayfield Grammar in Gravesend also admits girls through its own Test, with 33 being offered places who did not pass the Kent Test, up from the 21 of 2018 (see Table below). 167 first choices for its 180 places, of which 128 were offered places, along with 16 second choices. The intake number increased in 2017 from 145 to the current 180.
The super selective Judd School has regained its position as the most oversubscribed West Kent grammar with 330 first choices for its intake of 180 boys. Clearly the decision to give priority to local boys in 2018 has proved very popular, with just 17 boys from out of county. The Inner residential area cut off score rose to 376 up from 364, with outers reaching the stratospheric requirement of 402, also up from 395.
I look at the foot of this section at the Byzantine and controversial complications of the new Skinners School admission criteria, which has certainly produced a more local intake with just 18 boys being offered places from outside Kent, against 53 in 2018. These saw 112 boys who put the school as first choice being offered places, amongst the 160 offers. It is likely that the 44 second choices offered will have placed the school behind Judd or St Olave's in Bromley.
The recent expansions at Judd and Skinners, both attracting many more first choices, have hit Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys with just 77 first choices, although it still expanded its set intake of 210 to make 240 offers. This included 23 boys mainly from Bromley and East Sussex. This means that 263 boys who placed it second or third, presumably behind one or both of the two super selectives have been offered places, with no more than four Local Authority Allocations of grammar qualified Kent boys being offered places with no school of their choice. My Individual School Information for TWGSB confirms the high turnover of grammar places in West Kent with the school filling on allocation, a large number of successful appeals and still starting the new school year at around capacity. Much of the turnover is caused by pupils being pulled out of West Kent grammars for private schools accompanied by a trading up to the super selectives.
The second year of the new annexe of Weald of Kent Grammar at Sevenoaks has also seen the school expand by a further 30 places to offer places to 295 girls. There were 262 first choices, of which 235 were offered places, those being unsuccessful were probably out of county. Tonbridge Grammar School gives a priority to high scorers, with an aggregate of 371 for those in the Inner area (up from 369) and 393 for outers (down slightly from 394). A very high 174 places went to first choices out of 180 offered, the highest proportion of any grammar in West or NW Kent. That still leaves 11 first choices who were unsuccessful. Surprisingly loses 20% of Year 11 after GCSE, perhaps because they don't like Baccalaureate instead of A Levels.
Tunbridge Wells Girls Grammar has seen a sharp fall in first choices this year, down to 114 from 160 in 2018 for its 145 places. This means that most appeals unusually are likely to be from girls who have not passed the Kent Test.
The Skinners School
The Skinners School, Tunbridge Wells, along with The Judd School, both run by the Skinners Company, a London Livery Company, has changed its Admissions Policy for 2019 entry, to widen its previous super selective policy of offering all places after those set aside for Looked After Children (as required by law) to those applicants with the highest aggregate scores. It has moved to a policy of giving priority to local boys who achieve a benchmark aggregate score of 360 or more in the Kent Test, not dissimilar to those at Maidstone and Simon Langton Boys' grammar schools. This has produced considerable controversy as many families of high scoring boys who would have expected places, especially some who wrongly believed the school when it wrote on its website, 'The qualifying score is virtually the same as before so we expect all in that area getting 360 in the Kent test to get into the school'. I explore the issues in more detail here, including a look at my assessment of the appeal situation.
Maidstone Grammar is the only one of the six grammar schools to be oversubscribed for 2019, with 214 first choices for its 205 places. Both Maidstone boys' grammars have lost their Outstanding Ofsted status.
Norton Knatchbull School in Ashford, has kept last year's temporary increase to 2010 places, from the previous 149. It made 170 offers including all its 158 first choices. This surely therefore, sends out a message that it is looking for additional pupils through the appeals process, similar to last year's 70%, the history confirmed in the Individual School Profile, but still places it below Invicta and Oakwood (below). The county average grammar appeal success rate is 29%. The large number of successful appeals no doubt contributes to the 25% loss of numbers between Years 11 and 12.
Oakwood Park continues to suffer badly from the Maidstone Grammar expansion in 2017, but is recovering well from that low of just 95 places offered in 2017, with 119 for 2019. However, just 60 of these were first choices. As with the two girls' grammars, the success rate at appeal is traditionally very high.
Highworth Grammar has kept its temporary intake number at 210 (up from 184) presumably in preparation for the rapid expansion of Ashford in progress. It made 189 offers, all but seven of them to first choices.
Invicta Grammar has kept its temporary expansion at 240 places, up from the PAN of 192. One could almost feel that, like Maidstone Grammar it is trying to undermine its competitor. It has made 236 offers of which 214 are first choices. Some of the 14 second choices will be unsuccessful candidates for Rochester Grammar which has sharply increased its cut off score (Medway grammars article to follow). The Sixth form expulsion scandal of two years ago does not appear to have touched its popularity for younger girls. Traditionally it takes in a very high proportion of girls on appeal, last year seeing 77% upheld (but down on the 2017 record of 89% for a grammar school in the county,) It has a high record of success at GCSE, but then sees a large number leave immediately afterwards.
Maidstone Girls’ Grammar, which has rivalled Invicta in previous years under an earlier headteacher, also had its own sixth form admissions scandal and, whilst the number of places offered remains very low for a school that used to fill each year, reaching a new low intake of 122 for its 180 places, the highest number by some way of any Kent grammar school, as its popularity has crashed. A similar pattern on appeals to Invicta, and with these numbers one can expect high appeal success this summer, the high leaving pattern at the end of GCSE in previous years having vanished for 2018.
Folkestone and Dover
All four grammar schools set local tests, success at which offers an alternative route for qualification to the Kent Test. All but Dover Boys slightly oversubscribed with first choices as a result. The following table shows the outcome of all Local Tests.
| Kent Grammar School Allocations including Local Tests 2019 | |||||
| School | PAN | Kent Test | Local Test | Vacancies | % Pupil Premium |
| Dover Boys | 150 | 37 | 101 | 12 | 19% |
| Dover Girls | 140 | 56 | 84 | 0 | 20% |
| Folkestone Girls | 180 | 76 | 104 | 0 | 20% |
| Harvey | 150 | 88 | 62 | 0 | 20% |
| Other Grammar Schools with Local Tests | |||||
| Highsted | 180* | 109 | 29 | 12 | 13% |
| Mayfield | 180 | 145 | 35 | 0 | 9% |
* Admission Number Increased temporarily from 150
The four Folkestone and Dover grammar schools have, as s result of the Local Tests, considerably the highest proportion of Year 7 children in Year 7 on Pupil Premium, next being Highworth with 15%. This is according to October's school census which has the average for grammar schools at 10%.
Three schools were oversubscribed, with Dover Girls - offering places to 136 out of its 157 first choices, qualified by either route; : Folkestone School for Girls - 179 out of its 190 first choices; and Harvey Grammar - 163 first choices for its 150 places, details not yet available.
One negative consequence of Local Testing, in Dover is that GCSE performance in non-selective schools is significantly undermined as they lose many of their most able pupils, and will be for Folkestone when the Shepway Test children take GCSE for the first time this summer.
East Kent
I consider all these schools together, as there is considerable movement between the geographical areas.
The most interesting school is Simon Langton Boys in Canterbury, which has expanded by 30 places to 150, even though it has seen 37 fewer first choices than in 2018, a larger fall than all but two other grammar schools in the county. The decision, probably in consultation with KCC, is to tackle the lack of grammar school places for boys in Whitstable and Herne Bay. This has produced serious problems in terms of provision and led to a number of so far unsuccessful proposals that have been ongoing since 1985. As a result, for the first time in many years, I have had no enquiries from such families. There is no issue for girls as Simon Langton Girls still has vacancies.
The other grammar school accessible to Canterbury and District boys who have not reached the higher cut off of at Simon Langton, is the mixed Barton Court. The school, 15 first choices oversubscribed in 2018 has five vacancies this year as a result of the Simon Langton expansion and 150 places has a high figure of 39 second and third choices offered, all likely to be boys who failed to gain access to Simon Langton. Just 7 out of 74 appeals were upheld in 2018. The school has a history of being keen to expand, especially to meet demand in Whitstable and Herne Boy, recently here. Another new approach, building on the government's project to expand grammar schools where there is support for disadvantaged pupils has been now proposed by Barton Court and Queen Elizabeth's in Faversham in competition with each other. Just 18% of appeals were upheld last year.
Simon Langton Girls was mired in scandal for several years, seeing admissions drop sharply, but is now through this but is managed by the Boys school. For 2019 it had just eight places vacant for its 165 places with 150 first choices, both a great improvement on previous years and confirming its troubles are over. As a result its success rate for appeals is falling, although still high, from 82% in 2017, to 64% in 2018, all of girls who had been unsuccessful in the Kent Test. The school is about to be rebuilt.
Queen Elizabeth’s in Faversham is the other heavily oversubscribed grammar in the East of the county, with 174 first choices for its 140 places. It draws applications from Whitstable/Herne Bay, although many are unsuccessful on distance grounds, as well as towards Sittingbourne and Canterbury. Fewer appeals than normal in 2018, with 15 out of 34 upheld.
Borden and Highsted grammar schools in Sittingbourne, usually just about fill. Highsted has kept the 2018 increase to by 30 girls to 150, benefitting from having admitted 29 girls through its own test. The 13% Pupil Premium girls admitted last year is the sixth highest county figure, under all the Dover and Folkestone schools, but suggesting the own test does contribute towards this figure. Highsted Grammar is also consulting on an 'expansion' to an intake of 150 pupils, merely consolidating the situation over the past two years, but aiming to attract funding for new premises through its proposal to the Government's Selective School Expansion Scheme. It quotes misleadingly its Disadvantaged pupil ratio of 10% compared to the national 3%, an oft quoted but irrelevant comparison as many other grammars select in very different ways to Kent schools. More realistically it has 13% Pupil Premium girls in Years 7-11, above the county average of 10%. Borden has seen a fall in first preferences to 94, its lowest in five years, leaving 16 vacancies for its 120 places, just eight shy of Highsted's first preferences with Kent Test passes. Some boys and girls from the area look to places at Queen Elizabeth's or one of the Maidstone grammars. .
The east coast of Kent has the distinction that all three grammar schools are co-educational, all of which are full for the second year running: Sir Roger Manwoods; Dane Court with 165 of its 190 first choices being offered for its 165 places, its popularity locally being uniquely underlined by having all offers made to first choices, although it reduced its intake by 10 places from 2018; and Chatham & Clarendon with 154 of its 159 first choices being offered places as it filled 180 places, down by 10 from 2018). Chatham and Clarendon will have made offers to some boys from Herne Bay who did not get Canterbury or Faversham places. Not strictly relevant, but on allocation enormous pressure on local non-selective schools, so some appeals are made purely to try and avoid the two very unpopular schools. There was controversy locally as the head of Dane Court attacked Chatham and Clarendon in the media alleging that they (as do some other grammar and non-selective schools) took on a large number of additional pupils through the appeal process to boost finances.