Updated for 2026 admissions cycle
The grammar schools in the South West survive in a series of separate local pockets rather than in one coherent regional system. Gloucestershire, Plymouth, Torbay, Dorset, and Wiltshire each tell a different selective story, which is why the region is best read as a map of exceptions rather than a continuous grammar-school belt.
Top schools
Previewing the top 5 grammar schools in South West by GCSE results. The area pages below separate local clusters so routes, admissions rules, and travel patterns are easier to check.
High competition / GL Assessment
High competition / CEM
High competition / GL Assessment
High competition / GL Assessment
High competition / GL Assessment
Area pages
Each page covers one smaller local area.
These area pages split South West into smaller local groups. That makes it easier to compare schools that are actually part of the same local list.
See all exam areas7 grammar school profiles in Gloucestershire, covering Cheltenham, Gloucester, and Stroud. The linked Gloucestershire guide covers shared test dates, downloads, and route detail.
4 grammar school profiles in Gloucester, Gloucestershire. The linked Gloucestershire guide covers shared test dates, downloads, and route detail.
2 grammar school profiles in Stroud, Gloucestershire. The linked Gloucestershire guide covers shared test dates, downloads, and route detail.
4 grammar school profiles in Dorset. The linked Dorset guide covers shared test dates, downloads, and route detail.
1 grammar school profile in Devon. The linked Plymouth and Devon guide covers shared test dates, downloads, and route detail.
3 grammar school profiles in Devon. The linked Plymouth and Devon guide covers shared test dates, downloads, and route detail.
3 grammar school profiles in Devon. The linked Torbay guide covers shared test dates, downloads, and route detail.
2 grammar school profiles in Wiltshire, with the local admissions route and journey in view.
Area map
School ranking
This table ranks schools by GCSE results. Before saving a school, open the relevant area page and check the 11+ route, admissions rule, and journey, because those details can vary a lot between areas such as Gloucestershire, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, and Gloucester.
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Pate's Grammar School, Princess Elizabeth Way
Overall GCSE score:88.1
Assessment: GL Assessment
Colyton Grammar School, Whitwell Lane, Colyford
Overall GCSE score:79.9
Assessment: CEM
Sir Thomas Rich's School, Oakleaze
Overall GCSE score:75.0
Assessment: GL Assessment
Stroud High School, Beards Lane, Cainscross Road
Overall GCSE score:74.6
Assessment: GL Assessment
South Wilts Grammar School, Stratford Road
Overall GCSE score:74.4
Assessment: GL Assessment
Bournemouth School, East Way
Overall GCSE score:69.3
Assessment: GL Assessment
Competition: 1.9 candidates per place
Devonport High School for Girls, Lyndhurst Road, Peverell
Overall GCSE score:68.3
Assessment: GL Assessment
Marling School, Cainscross Road
Overall GCSE score:68.2
Assessment: GL Assessment
Bishop Wordsworth's Church of England Grammar School, Exeter Street
Overall GCSE score:66.2
Assessment: GL Assessment
Competition: 3.0 candidates per place
Crypt School, Podsmead Road
Overall GCSE score:66.0
Assessment: GL Assessment
Denmark Road High School, Denmark Road
Overall GCSE score:64.5
Assessment: GL Assessment
Bournemouth School for Girls, Castle Gate Close, Castle Lane West
Overall GCSE score:63.5
Assessment: GL Assessment
Competition: 1.9 candidates per place
Torquay Boys' Grammar School, Shiphay Manor Drive
Overall GCSE score:61.0
Assessment: GL Assessment
Churston Ferrers Grammar School Academy, Greenway Road, Churston Ferrers
Overall GCSE score:60.2
Assessment: GL Assessment
Poole Grammar School, Gravel Hill
Overall GCSE score:59.0
Assessment: GL Assessment
Devonport High School for Boys, Paradise Road, Stoke
Overall GCSE score:56.2
Assessment: GL Assessment
Parkstone Grammar School, Sopers Lane
Overall GCSE score:54.4
Assessment: GL Assessment
Torquay Girls' Grammar School, 30 Shiphay Lane
Overall GCSE score:52.9
Assessment: GL Assessment
Ribston Hall High School, Stroud Road
Overall GCSE score:51.0
Assessment: GL Assessment
Plymouth High School for Girls, St Lawrence Road
Overall GCSE score:46.5
Assessment: GL Assessment
Next checks
Open focused comparisons and guides for the routes, admissions rules, and journeys that matter in South West.
Explore other areas
Nearby region overviews show how the ranking-first picture changes outside one local cluster.
57 grammar school profiles in 3 counties across South East, covering 5 local clusters in total, with local area hubs for route, admissions and journey detail.
34 grammar school profiles in 5 counties across Midlands, covering 7 local clusters in total, with local area hubs for route, admissions and journey detail.
19 grammar school profiles in Greater London, covering 7 local clusters in total, with local area hubs for route, admissions and journey detail.
8 grammar school profiles in Essex, covering Essex and Southend-on-Sea, with local area hubs for route, admissions and journey detail.
South West overview
20 grammar schools are spread across 8 local areas, with the biggest groups in Gloucestershire, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Gloucester, and 5 more.
What stands out
South West contains smaller grammar-school areas rather than one admissions market. The largest groups sit around Gloucestershire, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Gloucester, Plymouth, and 4 more.
School mix and route
The area includes boys' schools, girls' schools, and co-ed options. South West does not sit on one single test route. Across the wider area you see a mix of GL Assessment, CEM. 7 local areas also have a named shared test guide.
Where they are
South West is best understood as a set of smaller local areas, each with its own school mix and admissions shape.
Largest local group
Gloucestershire is the biggest local cluster in this wider area, with 7 schools.
Test routes
South West does not sit on one single test route. Across the wider area you see a mix of GL Assessment, CEM.
School mix
The area includes boys' schools, girls' schools, and co-ed options.
Shared test guides
7 local areas in South West also have a named shared test guide.
The Gloucestershire route sets the local test pattern.
The Dorset route sets the local test pattern.
The Gloucestershire route sets the local test pattern.
The Plymouth and Devon route sets the local test pattern.
The Torbay route sets the local test pattern.
The Gloucestershire route sets the local test pattern.
2 schools in a more self-contained local grammar area.
The Plymouth and Devon route sets the local test pattern.
FAQ
South West grammar schools are mainly concentrated in Gloucestershire, Gloucester, Stroud, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Devon, and 3 more, rather than one single city-wide or county-wide group.
The area includes boys' schools, girls' schools, and co-ed options.
South West does not sit on one single test route. Across the wider area you see a mix of GL Assessment, CEM.
They can feel quite different. Some local areas have a named shared test guide, while others are smaller self-contained clusters with their own school mix and local admissions detail.