A selective girls grammar school in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, serving ages 11-18 with a sixth form and around 906 pupils on roll.
Ribston Hall High School
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At a glance
Ribston Hall High School is a selective girls' grammar school in Gloucester with a co-educational sixth form and a current roll of about 906. The school has a clear curriculum language: cognitive fluency, personal character, compassion and tolerance. In practice, that means academic ambition is tied to confidence, judgement, social conscience and personal growth rather than being treated as a separate strand.
The Key Stage 3 curriculum is broad, covering English, mathematics, science, French and Spanish, history, geography, religious studies, art and design, food, music, computer science, PE, dance, drama and PSHE. At GCSE, pupils continue the core academic subjects and choose from options including art, dance, food, drama, geography, history, computer science, music, religious studies, PE, psychology and languages. Sixth formers can choose from a wide A-level list that includes food science and nutrition, politics, philosophy and ethics, sociology, dance and the core academic subjects.
Ribston's sixth form has one of the more distinctive public offers in the Gloucestershire grammar group. Students use a dedicated sixth-form building with common room and cafe, and the Ribston Baccalaureate, accredited by the National Baccalaureate Trust, combines A levels, EPQ-style personal project work and personal development across enrichment, leadership and community engagement. Leadership roles include Head Student, House Captain, Prefect, Peer Mentor and Subject Captain, with student-led societies such as History, FemSoc and MedSoc.
For Year 7 entry, the published admission number is 150. Ribston uses the Gloucestershire grammar test with GL Assessment material across verbal, non-verbal, English and mathematics skills. Allocation is by rank after the qualifying standard, with priority for looked-after and previously looked-after children and up to 30 Pupil Premium places, including a GL1-GL4 priority within that group; distance is used to separate equal scores. Recent official benchmarks record Ofsted Good, Progress 8 of +0.24, 95.9% grade 5+ in English and maths and 16.3% AAB or better at A level.
Latest 2024/25 KS4 measures compared with Gloucestershire and England.
Recent published Attainment 8 scores compared with Gloucestershire and England.
Latest 2024/25 Year 11 destination mix compared with Gloucestershire and England.
January 2025 school census
Whole-school roll of 906 pupils; 749 had a recorded ethnic group.
| Recorded group | Share | Category | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| White British | 53.3% | White | 483 |
| Unclassified | 17.3% | Unclassified | 157 |
| Indian | 8.6% | Asian | 78 |
| Any other White background | 4% | White | 36 |
| Any other Asian background | 3.9% | Asian | 35 |
| Any other mixed background | 2.9% | Mixed | 26 |
| African | 2.2% | Black | 20 |
| Pakistani | 1.9% | Asian | 17 |
| White and Asian | 1.3% | Mixed | 12 |
| Chinese | 1.1% | Asian | 10 |
| Any other ethnic group | 0.9% | Other | 8 |
| Bangladeshi | 0.8% | Asian | 7 |
| White and Black Caribbean | 0.8% | Mixed | 7 |
| Any other Black background | 0.4% | Black | 4 |
| White and Black African | 0.3% | Mixed | 3 |
| Caribbean | 0.2% | Black | 2 |
| Irish | 0.1% | White | 1 |
Places are score-led after eligibility. Gloucester postcode priority applies only within the Pupil Premium allocation; straight-line distance breaks tied scores.
Looked-after and previously looked-after children
Priority by rank order applies for children in care, previously in care and children regarded as previously in state care outside England who meet the qualifying standard or fall within 100 ranked places below it.
Pupil Premium allocation
Up to 30 places are allocated to eligible Pupil Premium candidates who meet the qualifying standard or fall within 100 ranked places below it, with GL1-GL4 candidates ranked before other Pupil Premium candidates.
Remaining qualified candidates
Remaining places are allocated by rank order among candidates meeting the qualifying standard.
Tie-break
Equal scores are ordered by straight-line distance from the permanent home address to the school; exact final-place ties use random allocation.
The 2027 Gloucestershire grammar test uses GL Assessment materials across verbal, non-verbal, English and mathematics skills, with age-standardised results used for ranked allocation.
Shared exam route
Ribston Hall High School uses the shared Gloucestershire route. Use these common practice resources for the route, then check the full consortium guide for the complete set and current test guidance.
View all Gloucestershire practice papersPaper 1
English, Verbal reasoning
Verbal skills paper
Multiple-choice questions covering English comprehension, vocabulary and verbal reasoning skills.
Paper 2
Non-verbal reasoning, Maths
Non-verbal and mathematics paper
Multiple-choice questions covering non-verbal reasoning and mathematics skills.
English, Maths, Verbal reasoning and Non-verbal reasoning are included in the published format.
Science is not listed in the current published format.
English
Maths
Verbal reasoning
Multiple-choice questions covering English comprehension, vocabulary and verbal reasoning skills.
Non-verbal reasoning
Multiple-choice questions covering non-verbal reasoning and mathematics skills.
Science
Registration opens
18 May 2026, noon
PastRegistration closes
26 June 2026, noon
Entrance test
12 September 2026
Results
before 31 October 2026
Common application form deadline
31 October 2026
Allocation day
1 March 2027
Appeals
May to June 2027
Register for the grammar test
Complete the online registration between noon on 18 May 2026 and noon on 26 June 2026.
View admissions pageRequest access arrangements
Submit special educational need, medical or disability evidence during the registration window where adjustments may be needed.
Check access arrangementsSit the Gloucestershire grammar test
The entrance test is scheduled for Saturday 12 September 2026.
View test timetableSubmit the common application form
Apply through the home local authority by 31 October 2026 and include the preferred grammar schools.
Check CAF guidanceLatest official destinations data currently covers 2022/23 study leavers.
Recent trend
This follows the school's published overall GCSE score across the subjects pupils take. Higher is better.
| Year | This school | Grammar schools | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021/22 | 69.6 | 74.2 | 49.4 |
| 2022/23 | 62.6 | 71.8 | 47.0 |
| 2023/24 | 64.8 | 72.1 | 46.7 |
| 2024/25 | 67.7 | 72.3 | 46.8 |
Recent trend
This follows the published average A-level result for the school's sixth form. Higher is better.
| Year | This school | Grammar schools | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021/22 | B average (41.2 points) | 44.0 points | 37.5 points |
| 2022/23 | B- average (35.2 points) | 40.5 points | 33.7 points |
| 2023/24 | C+ average (32.4 points) | 41.3 points | 34.5 points |
| 2024/25 | C+ average (34.7 points) | 41.8 points | 35.0 points |
Recent trend
This follows the share of pupils moving into a sustained destination after Year 11, such as education, apprenticeships, or employment.
| Year | This school | Grammar schools | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021/22 | 99% | 99.1% | 94.1% |
| 2022/23 | 98% | 98.9% | 93.9% |
| 2023/24 | 99% | 99.0% | 93.3% |
| 2024/25 | 97% | 98.7% | 91.8% |
Latest year breakdown
| In education | 94% |
|---|---|
| In apprenticeships | 2% |
| In employment | 1% |
Latest inspection: 11 May 2022
Local rivals appear first, followed by nearby alternatives where the journey and admissions route are still comparable.
Same Gloucestershire area and similar girls' selective route
Same Gloucestershire area and similar girls' selective route
Closest comparable alternatives with a similar academic profile, so parents can weigh local fit and results together.
Similar Attainment 8 and Progress 8
Similar Attainment 8 and Progress 8
Similar Attainment 8 and Progress 8
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Best Girls' Grammar Schools in the UK
Explore the best girls grammar schools in the UK with a national ranking parents can filter by county and Ofsted before comparing schools by route and journey.
Best Grammar Schools in the UK
Explore the best grammar schools in the UK with a national ranking that can be filtered by county, school type, and Ofsted before moving into local admissions detail.
Best Grammar Schools by A-level Results
Explore the best grammar schools by A-level results in the UK, ranked by the published share of students achieving AAB or better at A level.
Related guides are still being added.
FAQ
Ribston Hall High School currently uses GL Assessment.
1. Register for the grammar test: Complete the online registration between noon on 18 May 2026 and noon on 26 June 2026. 2. Request access arrangements: Submit special educational need, medical or disability evidence during the registration window where adjustments may be needed. 3. Sit the Gloucestershire grammar test: The entrance test is scheduled for Saturday 12 September 2026. 4. Submit the common application form: Apply through the home local authority by 31 October 2026 and include the preferred grammar schools.
Registration opens: 18 May 2026, noon. Registration closes: 26 June 2026, noon. Entrance test: 12 September 2026. Results: before 31 October 2026. Common application form deadline: 31 October 2026. Allocation day: 1 March 2027. Appeals: May to June 2027
Ribston Hall High School is currently rated Good following the latest published inspection dated 11 May 2022.