The Priory School

Foundation school·Secondary school Hitchin, Hertfordshire·SG5 2UR
Composite score
60.6
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#1,125
National rank
#115
In East of England
#43
In Hertfordshire
Top 36%
Nationally

Performance (KS4 GCSE)

Attainment 8 score
48.5
National avg ≈ 46
Progress 8 score
—
% achieving 9–5 in English & Maths
49%
% achieving 9–4 in English & Maths
64%
% EBacc grade 5+
16%
EBacc average points score
4.28

Getting a place

Offered a place after putting it first
100%
94 first choices, 127 places
First choices per place
0.74
fewer first choices than places
Applications naming the school
523
any preference, for 127 places
Last place offered lived
5.03 mi
straight line, 2025 intake · 8101 m
Applications from another council area
4%
First preferences per place, last five years▲ 0.06
00.511.5
1 per place
0.9120220.9020230.7420240.6820250.742026

Red dashed line = one first choice per place. How to read this

The cut-off distance is how far the last child offered a place lived, not a catchment boundary: it moves every year with the number of applicants. Published by the council in its 2025 allocation figures, and checked against that document before we show it. In 2026 the school was not oversubscribed, so no distance limit applied.

Application figures: DfE, school level applications and offers (2026 intake).

School profile

Age range
11–18
Pupils on roll
1,242
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
None
Admissions
Non-Selective

Pupil background

% FSM ever-6
24.2%
Typical secondary: 27.5%
% EAL
6.7%
Typical secondary: 12.0%

Special educational needs

% SEN support
17.1%
Typical secondary: 13.7%
% with an EHC plan
4.0%
Typical secondary: 2.9%

Attendance

Overall absence
8.0%
Typical secondary: 8.9%
Persistently absent
19.8%
Typical secondary: 25.7%

Staffing & funding

Pupils per teacher
16.3
Typical secondary: 16.7
Spend per pupil
£8,424
Typical secondary: £7,815

“Typical” = the median secondary school in England. What this means

What pupils do next

The share of this school's Year 11 leavers in education, training or employment for at least two terms afterwards.

In education, training or work
93%
205 pupils tracked
Stayed in education
87%
Apprenticeship
4%
Employment
1%

DfE, KS4 destination measures.

Nearby secondary schools

Location

School overview

The Priory School is a secondary school serving Hitchin, Hertfordshire, classified by the DfE as a foundation school. It has 1,242 pupils aged 11 to 18 on roll. The school's average Attainment 8 score in the latest GCSE results was 48.5 — broadly in line with the national average (national average: 46). Its Attainment 8 score has risen by 2.0 points year on year. On our composite score, which combines the DfE attainment measures above, this places it in the top 36% of secondary schools nationally.

49% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in both English and maths, above the national average of about 45%. 64% achieved a standard pass (grade 4+) in English and maths. Getting a place is straightforward: for the September 2026 intake every family who made The Priory School their first choice was offered one of its 127 Year 7 places. In 2025 the furthest child offered a place lived 5.03 miles from the school in a straight line, according to the council's published allocation figures; the distance changes every year with demand. After Year 11, 93% of its leavers went on to education, an apprenticeship or work that they stayed in for at least two terms. Overall pupil absence was 8.0%. There are about 16.3 pupils per teacher. The Priory School does not currently have a recent graded Ofsted judgement on record (often the case for newer or recently converted schools), so it is worth asking when its next inspection is expected. This overview is generated automatically from the latest published DfE performance tables and Ofsted data; figures are rounded, and you can check the originals via the official links above.

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