Holcombe Grammar School

Medway · ME4 6JB

General information Secondary School · 11-18 years Who goes here 1060 pupils, 12.7% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 2.3% on SEN support Behaviour 5.4% absence rate Staff 16.2% turnover Financials £5,524 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Holcombe Grammar School

General Information

Address: Holcombe, Maidstone Road, Chatham, ME4 6JB – View on map
Phone: 03333602130
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Lee Preston
Age range: 11-18 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 137 families put it first for 179 places – 8 for every 10 places. 64% of them were offered a place. 94 of the 179 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 9 · 2024 7 · 2025 8 · 2026 8
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Boys
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1060 pupils out of 1000 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 97
% eligible for free school meals: 12.7%
Pupil mix: 7 in 10 (more mixed than the Medway average)
English as an additional language: 13% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 16.2% a year (Medway 17.9%, typical in England 15.5%)
Where they went: about 59% moved to another school, 41% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Medway: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 30 (1.3 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 35 (1.5 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 20 (0.9 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.8)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state secondary schools in Medway, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 5.4%
Persistently absent pupils: 14.1%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 2.3%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 0.4%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 9 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 6 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 4 pupils
Hearing impairment: 2 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 1 pupil

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 3 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Good 2024 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Attainment 8 score: 62.4
Compared with the area: 15.1 points above the Medway average (47.3)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: not compared – selective (grammar) school - chooses pupils by ability
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 97% (Medway 65%, England 65%) Broadly steady
Data year: 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

GCSE results over time

This schoolMedway averageEngland↗ Improving Up 4.5 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 15.1 points above the Medway average (47.3).

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

5th of 18 secondary schools in Medway for Attainment 8

#3Fort Pitt Grammar School65.9
#4Rainham Mark Grammar School62.7
#5Holcombe Grammar School62.4
#6Chatham Grammar61.8
#7The Howard School45.2

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School69.5
#2The Rochester Grammar School68.4
#3Fort Pitt Grammar School65.9
#4Rainham Mark Grammar School62.7
#5Holcombe Grammar School62.4
#6Chatham Grammar61.8
#7The Howard School45.2
#8Rainham School for Girls44.3
#9Leigh Academy Hundred of Hoo43.2
#10The Thomas Aveling School41.3
#11Leigh Academy Strood41.2
#12St John Fisher Catholic Comprehensive School40.0
#13Brompton Academy38.1
#14The Victory Academy35.5
#15The Robert Napier School32.5
#16Waterfront UTC30.0
#17Walderslade School29.9
#18Greenacre School29.8

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 97.0%
Went into further education: 93.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

Maths (General)
English Literature
English Language
Spanish
Science Double Award
History
Geography
Physics (General)
Chemistry (General)
Biology
Business Studies
Psychology (General)
D & T
Computer Science
Art & Design
French Language
Religious Studies
Sports Studies
Sociology
Speech & Drama
Media Studies
Music Studies (General)
Photography
Polish
Japanese Language
Punjabi

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

4th of 13 secondary schools in Medway for Ofsted rating

#2Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical SchoolOutstanding
#3Chatham GrammarGood
#4Holcombe Grammar SchoolGood
#5Leigh Academy Hundred of HooGood
#6Leigh Academy RainhamGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Fort Pitt Grammar SchoolOutstanding
#2Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical SchoolOutstanding
#3Chatham GrammarGood
#4Holcombe Grammar SchoolGood
#5Leigh Academy Hundred of HooGood
#6Leigh Academy RainhamGood
#7Rainham Mark Grammar SchoolGood
#8The Rochester Grammar SchoolGood
#9The Thomas Aveling SchoolGood
#10The Victory AcademyGood
#11Waterfront UTCGood
#12Greenacre SchoolInadequate
#13Walderslade SchoolInadequate

Financials

Spending per pupil: £5,524 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

20th of 20 secondary schools in Medway for spending per pupil

#18The Rochester Grammar School£5,757
#19Chatham Grammar£5,637
#20Holcombe Grammar School£5,524

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1The Robert Napier School£9,009
#2Rainham Mark Grammar School£8,012
#3St John Fisher Catholic Comprehensive School£7,814
#4Waterfront UTC£7,745
#5The Thomas Aveling School£7,495
#6Greenacre School£7,481
#7Leigh Academy Hundred of Hoo£7,402
#8Brompton Academy£7,053
#9The Howard School£6,869
#10Walderslade School£6,832
#11Fort Pitt Grammar School£6,485
#12Leigh Academy Rainham£6,393
#13Leigh Academy Strood£6,357
#14The Victory Academy£6,340
#15Maritime Academy£6,002
#16Rainham School for Girls£5,970
#17Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School£5,809
#18The Rochester Grammar School£5,757
#19Chatham Grammar£5,637
#20Holcombe Grammar School£5,524

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Medway: suspensions by reason

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered