The Priory School

North Hertfordshire · SG5 2UR

General information Secondary School · 11-18 years Who goes here 1221 pupils, 26.5% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN Resourced provision · 18.1% on SEN support Behaviour 8.7% absence rate Staff 9.9% turnover Financials £8,424 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

We haven't asked this school for its behaviour and staffing figures yet. Sign up to tell us you'd like them, and we'll email you when they arrive.

Notify me

Your email address

Leave this empty

We'll email you a link to confirm first. Your address is only used for news about this school, and every email has a link to stop them. Privacy

The Priory School

General Information

Address: Bedford Road, Hitchin, SG5 2UR – View on map
Phone: 01462622300
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Matt Blayney
Age range: 11-18 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 94 families put it first for 127 places – 7 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. 10 of the 127 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 9 · 2024 7 · 2025 7 · 2026 7
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1221 pupils out of 1300 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 258
% eligible for free school meals: 26.5%
Pupil mix: 5 in 10 (similar to the North Hertfordshire average)
English as an additional language: 8% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 9.9% a year (North Hertfordshire 13.3%, typical in England 15.5%) Low turnover
Where they went: about 29% moved to another school, 71% 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. "Low turnover" means it's among the quarter of similar schools in England where teachers are most likely to stay.

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 Hertfordshire: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 141 (1.5 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 1
Suspensions for bullying: 212 (2.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 86 (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 Hertfordshire (the council area this school is in), 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: 8.7%
Persistently absent pupils: 19.4%
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

Resourced provision for AutismSpeech, language and communicationOther needs 20 places · 20 pupils at the last count

Places are usually for children with an EHC Plan and are arranged through the council, not the normal school application.

Pupils on SEN Support: 18.1%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 5.6%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Specific learning difficulty: 65 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 52 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 51 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 16 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 14 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 34 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 11 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 10 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 5 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 4 pupils

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 –

Be the first to review — win £100 of books for your school Every honest review enters you into our prize draw

Behaviour

–

Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

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.

–

Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Good 2022 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: 48.5
Compared with the area: in line with the North Hertfordshire average (49.2)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (+1.2 points against an expected 47.3)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 64% (North Hertfordshire 70%, 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 schoolNorth Hertfordshire averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was in line with the North Hertfordshire average (49.2).

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.

4th of 7 secondary schools in North Hertfordshire for Attainment 8

#2Hitchin Boys' School57.1
#3The Knights Templar School48.5
#4The Priory School48.5
#5The Highfield School41.7
#6King James Academy Royston40.3

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Hitchin Girls' School57.8
#2Hitchin Boys' School57.1
#3The Knights Templar School48.5
#4The Priory School48.5
#5The Highfield School41.7
#6King James Academy Royston40.3
#7Fearnhill School38.9

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 93.0%
Went into further education: 87.0%
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 Language
English Literature
Science Double Award
Geography
History
Business Studies
Biology
Physics (General)
Chemistry (General)
Art & Design
Sociology
Psychology (General)
French Language
Food Technology
Spanish
D & T
Sports Studies
Media Studies
Computer Science
Music Studies (General)
Religious Studies

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 4 secondary schools in North Hertfordshire for Ofsted rating

#2The Highfield SchoolGood
#3The Knights Templar SchoolGood
#4The Priory SchoolGood

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

#1King James Academy RoystonGood
#2The Highfield SchoolGood
#3The Knights Templar SchoolGood
#4The Priory SchoolGood

Financials

Spending per pupil: £8,424 (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.

1st of 7 secondary schools in North Hertfordshire for spending per pupil

#1The Priory School£8,424
#2Fearnhill School£8,119
#3The Highfield School£8,064

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 Priory School£8,424
#2Fearnhill School£8,119
#3The Highfield School£8,064
#4Hitchin Boys' School£7,962
#5The Knights Templar School£7,682
#6Hitchin Girls' School£7,404
#7King James Academy Royston£7,100

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

Have you rated The Priory School yet? Your experience helps other parents.

Rate this school

General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Hertfordshire: 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