School Updated 26 April 2026

Gloucestershire / Gloucestershire 11+

Stroud High School

Beards Lane, Cainscross Road, GL5 4HF

A selective girls grammar school in Stroud, Gloucestershire, serving ages 11-18 with a sixth form and around 1,106 pupils on roll.

Girls Academy converter Ages 11-18 Sixth form GL Assessment

At a glance

Key facts

GCSE rank
UK Rank #41
Admissions
Girls only
Assessment
GL Assessment
Places in Year 7
150
Competition
2.7 applicants per place
Catchment
There is no catchment area; places are offered to students who meet the required standard in rank order under the admissions policy.
Ofsted
Outstanding

Overview

A selective girls grammar school in Stroud, Gloucestershire, serving ages 11-18 with a sixth form and around 1,106 pupils on roll. Based in Stroud, Gloucestershire, the school serves girls aged 11-18 and includes sixth-form study as part of the offer. Current published roll and admissions data point to around 1,106 pupils on roll and 150 Year 7 places.

Admissions are central to understanding whether this school is the right fit and realistic shortlist option. The current route includes GL Assessment, with 150 places available in Year 7 and demand that currently looks 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 Outstanding. Recent official performance measures show Progress 8 at 0.85 and Attainment 8 at 74.9. 94.3% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and maths in the latest stored GCSE figures. In the sixth form, 33.3% of entries were awarded AAB or better at A level. Destinations data also suggest strong progression after sixth form, with 54% moving into higher education.

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 Stroud High School belongs on a serious shortlist.

Key points

Assessment route
GL Assessment across a single-stage process, covering VR, Maths and NVR.
Places and demand
150 places in Year 7 and 2.7 applicants per place
Catchment
There is no catchment area; places are offered to students who meet the required standard in rank order under the admissions policy.
Results
99.4% grade 5+ in English and maths and 76.9 Attainment 8
Sixth form
Sixth form available with 33.3% AAB or better and 54% in higher education.

GCSE benchmark

Latest 2024/25 KS4 measures compared with Gloucestershire and England.

School Local authority England
GCSE benchmark comparison Latest GCSE benchmark measures for Stroud High School, Gloucestershire, and England. 0 50 100 Att. 8 5+ E&M EBacc APS EBacc %
Attainment 8
76.9
Grade 5+ English and maths
99.4%
EBacc APS
6.96
EBacc entry
49.4%

Attainment 8 trend

Recent published Attainment 8 scores compared with Gloucestershire and England.

School Local authority England
Attainment 8 trend line Attainment 8 over time for Stroud High School, Gloucestershire, and England. 100 80 60 40 21/22 22/23 23/24 24/25

Destinations

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

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

School details

School type
Academy converter
Admissions
Girls only
Age range
11-18
Headteacher
Mr Mark McShane
Pupil roll
1,106 pupils
Sixth form
Yes
Trust
Stroud High School
FSM
2.9%
EAL
6.2%
EHCP
0.1%

Location and contact

Address

Address
Beards Lane, Cainscross Road, Stroud, Gloucestershire
Postcode
GL5 4HF
Area
Gloucestershire
Exam area
Gloucestershire 11+

School leadership

Headteacher
Mr Mark McShane

School contact

School phone
01214284200

Admissions contact

Admissions team
Admissions Manager
Admissions contact
Lynn Poole
Admissions phone
01453764441

Admissions

Year 7 places
150 places (2025 entry)
Applications listed
404 applications (2025 entry)
First preferences
172 first preferences (2025 entry)
Applicants per place
2.7 applicants per place
Catchment picture
There is no catchment area; places are offered to students who meet the required standard in rank order under the admissions policy.
Pass mark note
The qualifying standard is not a pre-defined pass mark; it is determined each year using the standardised scores from that year's Gloucestershire Grammar School test.

There is no catchment area; places are offered to students who meet the required standard in rank order under the admissions policy.

Oversubscription and eligibility

Oversubscription detail is still being reviewed, so use the official admissions policy before relying on a summary.

Exam and test format

The GL Assessment 11+ entrance test format

Stroud High School currently uses GL Assessment. The published format currently lists 1 paper. Scores are published as age-standardised.

Assessment route
GL Assessment
Papers and stages
1 paper
Format
Multiple-choice paper
Age standardisation
Published as age-standardised

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

Open Gloucestershire guide

Papers and rounds

  1. Paper 1

    VR, Maths, NVR

    Gloucestershire Grammar Schools entrance test

    Two multiple-choice papers cover verbal ability, numerical reasoning and non-verbal reasoning.

What the test includes

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

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

Included

  • Maths

  • Verbal reasoning

    Two multiple-choice papers cover verbal ability, numerical reasoning and non-verbal reasoning.

  • Non-verbal reasoning

    Two multiple-choice papers cover verbal ability, numerical reasoning and non-verbal reasoning.

Not listed

  • English

  • Science

  • Creative writing

Application

Key dates

  1. Registration opens

    18 May 2026

  2. Registration closes

    26 June 2026

  3. Allocated test centre notification

    8 September 2026

  4. Entrance test

    12 September 2026

  5. Entrance test results

    in time for the 31 October 2026 CAF deadline

  6. Secondary CAF deadline

    31 October 2026

How to apply

  1. 1

    Register for the Gloucestershire Grammar Schools test

    Registration runs from 12 noon on 18 May 2026 to 12 noon on 26 June 2026.

    Open admissions page
  2. 2

    Sit the entrance test

    The Gloucestershire entrance test is scheduled for 12 September 2026.

    Open step
  3. 3

    Submit the secondary CAF

    Results are due in time for the Common Application Form deadline of 31 October 2026.

    Open step

Results

Attainment snapshot

Progress 8
+0.85 Progress 8
Attainment 8
76.9 Attainment 8
GCSE results
100% grade 4+ in English and maths
Grade 5+ English and maths
99.4% grade 5+ in English and maths
EBacc average point score
6.96 EBacc APS
A-level results
33.3% AAB or better
A-level average points
41.58 points per entry

Where students go next

Higher education progression
54% in higher education
Apprenticeships
5% in apprenticeships
Employment
29% in sustained employment

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

Subject performance

Maths
98.1% grade 5+ in EBacc maths
English
99.4% grade 5+ in EBacc English
Sciences
99.4% grade 5+ in EBacc sciences
Languages
99% 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.

Stroud High School Grammar schools England
Overall GCSE performance across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for Stroud High School, grammar schools, and England. 90 77.5 65 52.5 40 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 74.4 74.2 49.4
2022/23 72.5 71.8 47.0
2023/24 74.9 72.1 46.7
2024/25 76.9 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.

Stroud High School Grammar schools England
Average A-level result across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for Stroud High 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 (45.2 points) 44.0 points 37.5 points
2022/23 B average (40.1 points) 40.5 points 33.7 points
2023/24 B average (41.7 points) 41.3 points 34.5 points
2024/25 B average (41.6 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.

Stroud High School Grammar schools England
Where pupils go after Year 11 across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for Stroud High School, grammar schools, and England. 100% 75% 50% 25% 0% 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 100% 99.1% 94.1%
2022/23 99% 98.9% 93.9%
2023/24 99% 99.0% 93.3%
2024/25 97% 97.8% 91.4%

Latest year breakdown

In education 96%
In apprenticeships 0%
In employment 2%

Inspection

Outstanding

Latest inspection: 8 November 2023

Quality of education
Outstanding
Behaviour and attitudes
Outstanding
Personal development
Outstanding
Leadership and management
Outstanding
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 Stroud High School use?

Stroud High School currently uses GL Assessment.

How do I apply to Stroud High School?

1. Register for the Gloucestershire Grammar Schools test: Registration runs from 12 noon on 18 May 2026 to 12 noon on 26 June 2026. 2. Sit the entrance test: The Gloucestershire entrance test is scheduled for 12 September 2026. 3. Submit the secondary CAF: Results are due in time for the Common Application Form deadline of 31 October 2026.

When are the key dates for Stroud High School?

Registration opens: 18 May 2026. Registration closes: 26 June 2026. Allocated test centre notification: 8 September 2026. Entrance test: 12 September 2026. Entrance test results: in time for the 31 October 2026 CAF deadline. Secondary CAF deadline: 31 October 2026

What does the latest Ofsted picture look like for Stroud High School?

Stroud High School is currently rated Outstanding following the latest published inspection dated 8 November 2023.