School Updated 26 April 2026

North Yorkshire / North Yorkshire 11+

Ripon Grammar School

Clotherholme Road, Ripon, HG4 2DG

A selective co-educational grammar school in Ripon, North Yorkshire, serving ages 11-18 with a sixth form and around 942 pupils on roll.

Co-ed Community school Ages 11-18 Sixth form GL Assessment

At a glance

Key facts

GCSE rank
UK Rank #101
Admissions
Mixed
Assessment
GL Assessment
Places in Year 7
117
Competition
1.9 applicants per place
Catchment
Qualified day-place applications are prioritised by looked-after status, social or medical need, catchment area, staff children, then out-of-catchment applicants, with sibling and distance tie-breaks.
Ofsted
Good

Overview

A selective co-educational grammar school in Ripon, North Yorkshire, serving ages 11-18 with a sixth form and around 942 pupils on roll. Based in Ripon, North Yorkshire, the school serves boys and girls aged 11-18 and includes sixth-form study as part of the offer. Current published roll and admissions data point to around 942 pupils on roll and 117 Year 7 places. It is also recorded as a boarding school, which is a relatively unusual feature in the grammar-school sector.

Admissions are central to understanding whether this school is the right fit and realistic shortlist option. The current route includes GL Assessment, with 117 places available in Year 7 and demand that currently looks very high by grammar-school standards. Catchment or distance rules still matter at allocation stage, so this is the kind of school where families need to read the admissions policy carefully rather than rely on headline scores alone.

Academically, the published picture is strong and easier to judge than reputation alone. The latest published Ofsted judgement is Good. Recent official performance measures show Progress 8 at 0.72 and Attainment 8 at 69.1. 91.5% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and maths in the latest stored GCSE figures. In the sixth form, 35.5% of entries were awarded AAB or better at A level. Destinations data also suggest strong progression after sixth form, with 57% moving into higher education.

Published school information highlights facilities such as Library. The wider offer currently includes Drama. For many parents, the presence of a sixth form is part of the attraction, because it gives able pupils the option to stay in a familiar academic setting through to A level. That mix of selective entry, published outcomes, and school life is what will matter most to families deciding whether Ripon Grammar School belongs on a serious shortlist.

Key points

Assessment route
GL Assessment across a 2-stage process, covering VR, NVR, Maths and English.
Places and demand
117 places in Year 7 and 1.9 applicants per place
Catchment
Qualified day-place applications are prioritised by looked-after status, social or medical need, catchment area, staff children, then out-of-catchment applicants, with sibling and distance tie-breaks.
Results
97.6% grade 5+ in English and maths and 70.9 Attainment 8
Sixth form
Sixth form available with 35.5% AAB or better and 57% in higher education.

GCSE benchmark

Latest 2024/25 KS4 measures compared with North Yorkshire and England.

School Local authority England
GCSE benchmark comparison Latest GCSE benchmark measures for Ripon Grammar School, North Yorkshire, and England. 0 50 100 Att. 8 5+ E&M EBacc APS EBacc %
Attainment 8
70.9
Grade 5+ English and maths
97.6%
EBacc APS
6.52
EBacc entry
69%

Attainment 8 trend

Recent published Attainment 8 scores compared with North Yorkshire and England.

School Local authority England
Attainment 8 trend line Attainment 8 over time for Ripon Grammar School, North Yorkshire, and England. 80 66.7 53.3 40 21/22 22/23 23/24 24/25

Destinations

Latest 2024/25 Year 11 destination mix compared with North Yorkshire and England.

Education Apprenticeships Employment Other / unknown
Destinations stacked bar comparison Year 11 destinations for Ripon Grammar School, North Yorkshire, and England across education, apprenticeships, employment, and other or unknown destinations. 0 50 100 School Local auth. England

School details

School type
Community school
Admissions
Mixed
Age range
11-18
Headteacher
Mr Jonathan Webb
Pupil roll
942 pupils
Sixth form
Yes
Boarding
Boarding school
FSM
4%
EAL
7.5%
EHCP
0.4%

Facilities

Library

Extracurriculars

Drama

Location and contact

Address

Address
Clotherholme Road, Ripon, North Yorkshire
Postcode
HG4 2DG
Area
North Yorkshire
Exam area
North Yorkshire 11+

School leadership

Headteacher
Mr Jonathan Webb

School contact

School phone
01765602647

Admissions contact

Admissions team
Admissions
Admissions phone
01765 602647

Admissions

Year 7 places
117 places (2027 entry)
Applications listed
218 applications (2025 entry)
First preferences
147 first preferences (2025 entry)
Applicants per place
1.9 applicants per place
Catchment picture
Qualified day-place applications are prioritised by looked-after status, social or medical need, catchment area, staff children, then out-of-catchment applicants, with sibling and distance tie-breaks.
Residence requirement
Yes, home address evidence is part of the published admissions checks

Qualified day-place applications are prioritised by looked-after status, social or medical need, catchment area, staff children, then out-of-catchment applicants, with sibling and distance tie-breaks.

Oversubscription and eligibility

  1. 1

    Required academic standard

    Day-place applicants must meet the required standard in the entrance test before oversubscription priorities are applied.

  2. 2

    Looked-after and previously looked-after children

    Qualified children in care and previously in care are prioritised first.

  3. 3

    Social or medical need

    Qualified applicants with exceptional social or medical reasons are prioritised after looked-after priority.

  4. 4

    Catchment area

    Qualified applicants living in the catchment area are prioritised before staff children and out-of-catchment applicants.

  5. 5

    Staff children

    Qualified children of staff are considered after catchment applicants.

  6. 6

    Outside catchment

    Qualified applicants outside the catchment area are considered after the higher priority groups.

Exam and test format

The GL Assessment 11+ entrance test format

Structured exam detail is still being reviewed.

Assessment route
GL Assessment
Papers and stages
2 papers
Format
Multiple-choice papers

This school uses the shared Yorkshire consortium route. The consortium page brings together the common test format, key dates and official papers used across that route.

Open Yorkshire guide

Papers and rounds

  1. Paper 1

    English, VR

    Verbal skills test

    GL Assessment verbal skills paper covering English comprehension, spelling, grammar and verbal reasoning.

  2. Paper 2

    NVR, Maths

    Non-verbal reasoning and mathematics test

    GL Assessment paper covering non-verbal reasoning and mathematics.

What the test includes

English, Maths, Verbal reasoning and Non-verbal reasoning are included in the published format.

Science and Creative writing are not listed in the current published format.

Included

  • English

  • Maths

  • Verbal reasoning

    GL Assessment verbal skills paper covering English comprehension, spelling, grammar and verbal reasoning.

  • Non-verbal reasoning

    GL Assessment paper covering non-verbal reasoning and mathematics.

Not listed

  • Science

  • Creative writing

Application

Key dates

  1. Registration opens

    30 April 2026

  2. Registration closes

    30 June 2026

  3. Test invitations

    week of 25 August 2026

  4. Entrance test

    Saturday in September 2026, date to be confirmed

  5. Results

    mid-October 2026

How to apply

  1. 1

    Register for the entrance test

    Complete the North Yorkshire online entrance-test registration by 30 June 2026.

    Open step
  2. 2

    Watch for the test invitation

    Entrance-test invitations are expected during the week of 25 August 2026.

    Open step
  3. 3

    Sit the September test

    The test is scheduled for a Saturday during term time in September 2026, with the exact date still to be confirmed.

    Open step
  4. 4

    Submit the common application form

    Include Ripon Grammar on the home local authority common application form for Year 7 entry.

    Open step

Results

Attainment snapshot

Progress 8
+0.72 Progress 8
Attainment 8
70.9 Attainment 8
GCSE results
97.6% grade 4+ in English and maths
Grade 5+ English and maths
97.6% grade 5+ in English and maths
EBacc average point score
6.52 EBacc APS
A-level results
35.5% AAB or better
A-level average points
44.51 points per entry

Where students go next

Higher education progression
57% in higher education
Apprenticeships
3% in apprenticeships
Employment
28% in sustained employment

Latest official destinations data currently covers 2022/23 study leavers.

Subject performance

Maths
96% grade 5+ in EBacc maths
English
96% grade 5+ in EBacc English
Sciences
96% grade 5+ in EBacc sciences
Languages
79.5% grade 5+ in EBacc languages

Performance trends

Recent trend

Overall GCSE performance

This follows the school's published overall GCSE score across the subjects pupils take. Higher is better.

Ripon Grammar School Grammar schools England
Overall GCSE performance across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for Ripon Grammar School, grammar schools, and England. 80 70 60 50 40 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 74.2 74.2 49.4
2022/23 69.8 71.8 47.0
2023/24 69.1 72.1 46.7
2024/25 70.9 72.3 46.8

Recent trend

Average A-level result

This follows the published average A-level result for the school's sixth form. Higher is better.

Ripon Grammar School Grammar schools England
Average A-level result across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for Ripon Grammar School, grammar schools, and England. 50 pts 45 pts 40 pts 35 pts 30 pts 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 A- average (46.1 points) 44.0 points 37.5 points
2022/23 B+ average (44.8 points) 40.5 points 33.7 points
2023/24 B average (40.8 points) 41.3 points 34.5 points
2024/25 B+ average (44.5 points) 41.8 points 35.0 points

Recent trend

Where pupils go after Year 11

This follows the share of pupils moving into a sustained destination after Year 11, such as education, apprenticeships, or employment.

Ripon Grammar School Grammar schools England
Where pupils go after Year 11 across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for Ripon Grammar School, grammar schools, and England. 100% 75% 50% 25% 0% 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 98% 99.1% 94.1%
2022/23 98% 98.9% 93.9%
2023/24 99% 99.0% 93.3%
2024/25 98% 97.8% 91.4%

Latest year breakdown

In education 93%
In apprenticeships 3%
In employment 2%

Inspection

Good

Latest inspection: 26 January 2023

Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Outstanding
Leadership and management
Good
Sixth form provision
Outstanding

Similar schools and comparisons

Nearby schools families also consider

Local rivals first, then nearby alternatives that still fit the same shortlist-building context.

Nearby schools with similar results

Closest comparable alternatives with a similar academic profile, so parents can weigh local fit and results together.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What assessment types does Ripon Grammar School use?

Ripon Grammar School currently uses GL Assessment.

How do I apply to Ripon Grammar School?

1. Register for the entrance test: Complete the North Yorkshire online entrance-test registration by 30 June 2026. 2. Watch for the test invitation: Entrance-test invitations are expected during the week of 25 August 2026. 3. Sit the September test: The test is scheduled for a Saturday during term time in September 2026, with the exact date still to be confirmed. 4. Submit the common application form: Include Ripon Grammar on the home local authority common application form for Year 7 entry.

When are the key dates for Ripon Grammar School?

Registration opens: 30 April 2026. Registration closes: 30 June 2026. Test invitations: week of 25 August 2026. Entrance test: Saturday in September 2026, date to be confirmed. Results: mid-October 2026

What does the latest Ofsted picture look like for Ripon Grammar School?

Ripon Grammar School is currently rated Good following the latest published inspection dated 26 January 2023.