Skegness, Lincolnshire · Lincolnshire
Skegness Grammar School
Lowers its qualifying score to 210 for Pupil Premium and Service Premium children — a direct reduction in the bar itself, not just a reserved quota layered on top.
Skegness Grammar's own website admissions page describes operating 'under the Local Authority's admissions scheme,' which could easily be misread as the council holding admissions authority — the actual policy document is unambiguous that the David Ross Education Trust is the admissions authority, with Lincolnshire County Council only coordinating the shared application process. The school takes a distinctive approach to widening access: rather than reserving a separate quota, it lowers the qualifying score itself to 210 for children eligible for Pupil Premium or Service Premium at the time of registration. Results here run lower than most grammar schools in this index, and EBacc entry collapsed dramatically from 98.6% in 2023 to 21.3% in 2025 — confirmed as a genuine figure, not a data error, and likely reflecting a deliberate curriculum change worth understanding before assuming it's an anomaly.
Key facts
- Gender
- co-ed
- Age range
- 11-18
- Region
- East Midlands
- Local authority
- Lincolnshire
- DfE URN
- 138757
- Website
- https://www.skegnessgrammar.co.uk
Admissions
- Admissions authority
- The school sets its own test and criteria
- Entrance test board
- The Lincolnshire Consortium of Grammar Schools' shared 11+ test. GL Assessment is named consistently by independent tutoring sources as the provider, though not confirmed on a Lincolnshire primary page during this research.partly verified
GL Assessment is named consistently by tutoring sources but wasn't confirmed on a Lincolnshire Consortium primary page, which was inaccessible during this research.
- Test format
- Two multiple-choice papers: Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. Registration occurs in the summer term of Year 5; tests are sat in September of Year 6.
- Qualifying / pass mark
- A standardised score of 220 or above for September 2026 entry — representing the top 25% of the ability range across Lincolnshire's selective areas. A reduced qualifying score of 210 or above applies directly to children eligible for Pupil Premium or Service Premium at the time of 11+ registration, lowering the bar itself rather than reserving a separate quota.
- Superselective?
- No
The school's own admissions policy sets its qualifying bar at the same top-25%/220 threshold applied uniformly across the Lincolnshire Consortium of Grammar Schools — not a materially higher or narrower bar of its own.
Catchment & priority criteria
No hard catchment area, but a 'designated area for free school transport' exists and is used as the third of four oversubscription criteria — living within it confers a real advantage without being an outright guarantee.
- Children with an EHCP naming the school
- Looked-after and previously looked-after children
- Siblings on roll at time of admission
- Children within the designated free-transport area
- All other children, by distance
- Tie-break: highest 11+ standardised score, then independent lottery
Results
| Year | Attainment 8 | GCSE 5+ Eng & Maths | Progress 8 | A*–A | A*–B |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 52.4 | 67.3% (grade 4+ 89.7%) | -0.02 ('Average', confidence interval -0.30 to +0.26) — this cohort predates the COVID-era gap | — | — |
| A-level (69 students): average grade C (29.53 points per entry), retention 91.8%. EBacc entry 35.5%. | |||||
| 2025 | 52.0 (England average 46.1) | 62.0% (grade 4+ 88.0%; England 45.4%) | Not calculated — no KS2 baseline data for this cohort nationally | verify with school | verify with school |
| A-level (43 students): average grade C+ (33.64 points per entry), progress score +0.07 ('Average'), retention 86.0% — notably below both the Lincolnshire (95.5%) and England (93.1%) averages. EBacc entry collapsed to 21.3%, down from 98.6% in 2023 and 35.5% in 2024 — confirmed as a genuine figure across two independent DfE data views, likely reflecting a deliberate curriculum change rather than an error, though not independently explained. | |||||
Ofsted
- Rating
- Under Ofsted's new report-card framework: 'Strong standard' in Personal Development and Wellbeing; 'Expected standard' in Achievement, Attendance and Behaviour, Curriculum and Teaching, Inclusion, Leadership and Governance, and Post-16 Provision. Safeguarding met. The previous inspection (2021) rated the school Good under the old framework — not directly comparable to the new scale, so this shouldn't be read as a decline.
- Date
- 12 May 2026
- Report
- Read the full report
Sources
- 1. DfE Get Information About Schools — URN, status, gender, LA — https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/Establishments/Establishment/Details/138757
- 2. School's own Admissions Policy 2026-27 — https://www.skegnessgrammar.co.uk/docs/admissions/Skegness_Grammar_School_Admissions_Policy_2026_27.pdf
- 3. School's own 11+ information page — https://www.skegnessgrammar.co.uk/11-plus
- 4. Ofsted report card, inspected 12 May 2026 — https://files.ofsted.gov.uk/v1/file/50307896
- 5. DfE Compare School Performance — GCSE results over time — https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/138757/skegness-grammar-school/secondary/results-over-time
- 6. DfE Compare School Performance — Progress 8, 2023 and 2024 — https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/138757/skegness-grammar-school/secondary/progress-measures-for-2023-and-2024
- 7. DfE Compare School Performance — Advanced level qualifications — https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/138757/skegness-grammar-school/16-to-18/advanced-level-qualifications
Last updated 2026-09-01. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.