School profile Verified 11 September 2026

Kent Kent 11+

Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys

St John's Road, Tunbridge Wells, TN4 9XB

A selective boys grammar school in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, serving ages 11-18 with a sixth form and around 1,799 pupils on roll.

Grammar school Boys Community school Ages 11-18 Sixth form GL Assessment
Year 7 places
300
Competition ?
Moderate
Ofsted ?
Good
11+ route
GL Assessment
Compare Official website Map

At a glance

Key facts

GCSE rank
UK Rank #141
Sector
Grammar school
Admissions
Boys only
Assessment
GL Assessment
Places in Year 7
300
Competition ?
Moderate
Catchment
You can apply from any area, but living in the published local area gives priority for some or all places.
Ofsted ?
Good

Overview

Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys is a large selective boys' grammar school on St John's Road, with a co-educational sixth form and about 1,799 pupils on roll. The school describes itself as one school on two sites, and that scale matters: TWGSB is one of the bigger Kent grammar-school communities, with a Year 7 intake of 300 and a sixth form that draws both internal and external applicants.

The academic language is built around all-round excellence. The school says its broad and ambitious curriculum is designed to help students achieve their fullest potential, while the headteacher's welcome links academic aspiration with confidence, resilience, critical thinking and respectful relationships. In Years 7 to 11, target grades are tied to prior attainment and all students are expected to work towards at least GCSE grade 6 targets.

Facilities and sixth-form provision are unusually prominent. A recent 12 million pound expansion at the Tunbridge Wells campus added a two-storey teaching centre, sports centre and reconfigured dining hall. TWGSB6 is based in a new building, offers 25 A-level subjects, and includes a study centre with silent and quiet work areas, an ICT suite and charging lockers. Co-curricular opportunities include music, drama, sport, Duke of Edinburgh, chess and student leadership.

Admission to Year 7 is through the Kent Test. The 2027 policy gives priority to looked-after and previously looked-after children, then current family association, health or special access reasons, boys within three miles, named parishes and finally other eligible boys by distance. Pupil Premium priority applies within oversubscribed criteria where the supplementary form is returned. The latest applications record lists 1,059 applications and 299 offers for 2025/26; published measures add Ofsted Good, +0.46 Progress 8, 95.9% grade 5+ in English and maths and 20% AAB or better at A level.

Key points

Assessment route
GL Assessment across a single-stage process, covering English, Maths, Verbal reasoning and Non-verbal reasoning.
Places and demand
300 places in Year 7 and Moderate
Catchment
You can apply from any area, but living in the published local area gives priority for some or all places.
Results
95.9% grade 5+ in English and maths and 63.7 Attainment 8
Sixth form
Sixth form available with 20% AAB or better and 73% in higher education.

GCSE benchmark

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

School Local authority England
GCSE benchmark comparison Latest GCSE benchmark measures for Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys, Kent, and England. 0 50 100 Att. 8 5+ E&M EBacc APS EBacc %
Attainment 8
63.7
Grade 5+ English and maths
95.9%
EBacc APS
5.88
EBacc entry
80.6%

Attainment 8 trend

Recent published Attainment 8 scores compared with Kent and England.

School Local authority England
Attainment 8 trend line Attainment 8 over time for Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys, Kent, and England. 70 60 50 40 21/22 22/23 23/24 24/25

Destinations

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

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

School details

Sector
Grammar school
School type
Community school
Application
Local authority CAF
Gender
Boys only
Age range
11-18
Headteacher
Ms Amanda Simpson
Pupil roll
1,799 pupils
Sixth form
Yes
FSM ?
5.4%
EAL ?
14.8%
EHCP ?
0.2%

Facilities

Sports hall Library

Extracurriculars

Chess club Duke of Edinburgh

Ethnicity

Pupil ethnicity

Whole-school roll of 1,799 pupils; 1,774 had a recorded ethnic group.

White 77.1% Asian 9.9% Mixed 8.2% Black 2.6% Other 0.8% Unclassified 1.4%

Location and contact

Address

Address
St John's Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent
Postcode
TN4 9XB
Area
Kent
Exam area
Kent 11+

School leadership

Headteacher
Ms Amanda Simpson

School contact

School phone
01892529551

Admissions contact

Admissions phone
01892529551

Admissions

Year 7 places
300 places (2025 entry)
Applications listed
1,059 applications (2025 entry)
First preferences
291 first preferences (2025 entry)
Competition ?
Moderate
Who can apply
You can apply from any area, but living in the published local area gives priority for some or all places.
Pass mark note
Kent Test scores are age standardised. A grammar assessment does not guarantee a grammar school place on offer day.

Eligibility is through the Kent Test. Pupil Premium priority applies within oversubscribed criteria where the supplementary form is returned, followed by distance within each criterion.

Priority areas are a 3-mile radius, then named parishes, then all other eligible boys by distance. Pupil Premium priority applies within oversubscribed criteria when the SIF is returned.

Oversubscription and eligibility

  1. 1

    Looked-after and previously looked-after children

    Eligible applicants in this category are prioritised first.

  2. 2

    Current family association

    Applicants with a qualifying sibling link are prioritised after looked-after children.

  3. 3

    Health and Special Access Reasons

    Applicants with accepted health or special access reasons are prioritised next.

  4. 4

    Within 3 miles

    Eligible boys living within a 3-mile radius are ranked by distance.

  5. 5

    Named parishes

    Eligible boys living in the named parishes are ranked by distance.

  6. 6

    All other eligible boys

    Remaining applicants are ranked by nearness of home to school.

Exam and test format

The GL Assessment 11+ entrance test format

Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys 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
Mixed format
Age standardisation
Published as age-standardised

Official exam resources

Past papers and practice materials

No released past entrance-test papers are currently verified here. The resources below are labelled by type.

Kent Test test guide

Papers and rounds

  1. Paper 1

    English, Maths, Verbal reasoning, Non-verbal reasoning

    Kent Test

    Kent grammar assessment covering English, mathematics and reasoning, with a writing task used only for headteacher assessment panels.

What the test includes

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

Science is not listed in the current published format.

Included

  • English

  • Maths

  • Verbal reasoning

    Kent grammar assessment covering English, mathematics and reasoning, with a writing task used only for headteacher assessment panels.

  • Non-verbal reasoning

    Kent grammar assessment covering English, mathematics and reasoning, with a writing task used only for headteacher assessment panels.

Not listed

  • Science

Application

Find open days and plan a visit
  1. Kent Test registration opens

    1 June 2026

    Past
  2. Kent Test registration closes

    1 July 2026

    Past
  3. Kent primary school test day

    10 September 2026

    Past
  4. Out-of-Kent test weekend

    Weekend of 12/13 September 2026

  5. Kent assessment decision

    15 October 2026

  6. Secondary school application deadline

    2 November 2026

  7. National offer day

    1 March 2027

  8. Tunbridge Wells campus tour

    9 October 2026

    Booking required; tours last about an hour.

  9. Tunbridge Wells campus tour

    20 October 2026

    Booking required; tours last about an hour.

  10. Sevenoaks campus tour

    23 September 2026

    Booking required; tours last about an hour.

  11. Sevenoaks campus tour

    30 September 2026

    Booking required; tours last about an hour.

  12. Sevenoaks campus tour

    7 October 2026

    Booking required; tours last about an hour.

  13. Sevenoaks campus tour

    21 October 2026

    Booking required; tours last about an hour.

How to apply

  1. 1

    Register for the Kent Test

    Complete Kent Test registration by Wednesday 1 July 2026.

    Register
  2. 2

    Sit the Kent Test

    Kent pupils test on 10 September 2026; out-of-Kent candidates test over the 12/13 September weekend.

    Check test details
  3. 3

    Return any Pupil Premium SIF

    Return the supplementary form by 31 October 2026 if applying for Pupil Premium priority.

    Check form details
  4. 4

    Submit the secondary application

    Name the school on the secondary application by 2 November 2026.

    Check application details

Results

Inspection

Good

Latest inspection: 25 November 2021

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

Quick summary

  • Overall effectiveness: The school remained Good, with inspectors describing a harmonious community where pupils feel safe, work hard and achieve well. The report also names specific development points: more consistent curriculum delivery in a small number of subjects, and reading-for-pleasure work still embedding.
  • Quality of education: The curriculum is broad and challenging, with most key stage 4 pupils studying EBacc subjects and 25 A-level courses available. Teachers often use strong subject knowledge well, but in a few subjects curriculum delivery and reading strategies are not yet consistently secure.
  • Behaviour and attitudes: Pupils behave well and bring positive attitudes to learning. Lessons are calm and productive, low-level disruption is rare, and pupils understand expectations. The wider culture is respectful, with pupils saying bullying is not a concern and worries are dealt with quickly.
  • Personal development: The all-round excellence programme gives pupils practical routes into wider development: sport, theatre and gallery trips, productions, careers advice, diversity and equality learning, and leadership roles for sixth-form students, including well-being ambassadors and clubs for younger pupils.
  • Leadership and management: Leaders and governors are ambitious and know the school's priorities. Staff morale is high and workload support is valued, while leaders are already acting on the two main improvement areas: subject consistency and a more embedded culture of reading for pleasure.

Similar schools and comparisons

Nearby schools families also consider

Local rivals appear first, followed by nearby alternatives where the journey and admissions route are still comparable.

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 Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys use?

Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys currently uses GL Assessment.

How do I apply to Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys?

1. Register for the Kent Test: Complete Kent Test registration by Wednesday 1 July 2026. 2. Sit the Kent Test: Kent pupils test on 10 September 2026; out-of-Kent candidates test over the 12/13 September weekend. 3. Return any Pupil Premium SIF: Return the supplementary form by 31 October 2026 if applying for Pupil Premium priority. 4. Submit the secondary application: Name the school on the secondary application by 2 November 2026.

When are the key dates for Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys?

Kent Test registration opens: 1 June 2026. Kent Test registration closes: 1 July 2026. Kent primary school test day: 10 September 2026. Out-of-Kent test weekend: Weekend of 12/13 September 2026. Kent assessment decision: 15 October 2026. Secondary school application deadline: 2 November 2026. National offer day: 1 March 2027. Tunbridge Wells campus tour: 9 October 2026. Tunbridge Wells campus tour: 20 October 2026. Sevenoaks campus tour: 23 September 2026. Sevenoaks campus tour: 30 September 2026. Sevenoaks campus tour: 7 October 2026. Sevenoaks campus tour: 21 October 2026

What does the latest inspection picture look like for Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys?

Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys is currently rated Good following the latest published inspection dated 25 November 2021.