Ofsted: Outstanding schoolGrammar School trending_up Popular emoji_events #31 in Kent public Top 4% UK

Dover Grammar School for Girls

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMr Robert Benson

location_onDover, CT16 2PZ

language Visit Website phone 1304206625

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Ofsted

Outstanding

Inspected 2025

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Students

882

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Attainment 8

59.9

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GCSE Rank

#31 in Kent

#249 of 3,216 nationally

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Dover Grammar School for Girls is a Community school secondary school in Dover, serving ages 11-18. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted — the highest possible grade. Demand is above capacity (1.2×) — apply through your local authority on time.

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School Summary

Dover Grammar School for Girls is a community school in Dover, Kent, admitting pupils aged 11-18. It has a sixth form offering post-16 education. The school has approximately 872 pupils on roll, of whom 19% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 59.9, placing the school #31 in Kent and #249 of 3,216 nationally. 75.20% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 37.4% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

The sixth form offers 24 A-level subjects. 52.3% of A-level entries were graded A*–B, with 25.2% at A*–A. A-level value added: -0.1 — sixth-form progress was broadly average.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2025. The school's current overall rating is Outstanding. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.2× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 15.8:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 2.7 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

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Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

59.9

Grade 5+ E&M

75.20%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)37.4%

Entering EBacc84.20%

EBacc APS5.76

2024

Progress 8 Score

0.17

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

59.3

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc85.50%

EBacc APS5.67

2023

Progress 8 Score

0.28

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

59.7

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc92%

EBacc APS5.83

2022

Progress 8 Score

0.17

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

60.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc89%

EBacc APS5.72

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc96%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

0.36

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

62.8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc98%

EBacc APS6.13

2018

Progress 8 Score

0.45

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc96%

EBacc APS6.21

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Student Destinations (After Secondary)

This module shows what students did after finishing Key Stage 4 (GCSEs). It reflects how well the school prepares pupils for the real world.

2025

Stayed in Education / Employment

99%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)96%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)0%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

98%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)95%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)2%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

99%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)98%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment2%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)1%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

98%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)98%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)2%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

99%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)96%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment2%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)0%

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Sixth Form (A-Level) Performance

A-level results for students who stayed in sixth form at this school. Value added measures how much progress students made relative to their GCSE starting point.

2025

A-Level Value Added

-0.1

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make broadly expected progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

B-

Students

117

Grade Breakdown

Achieving A*11.1%

Achieving A*–A25.2%

Achieving A*–B52.3%

VA Banding Average

Retention rate97.4%

A-level subjects offered24

2024

A-Level Value Added

-0.07

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make broadly expected progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Retention rate93.60%

2023

Avg Grade

B-

Students

118

Retention rate94.90%

2022

Avg Grade

B-

Students

106

Retention rate94.3%

Source: DfE A Level and Other 16-18 Results

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

04 March 2025

Inspection Report

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14 November 2013

Inspection Report

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30 June 2010

Inspection Report

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16 May 2007

Inspection Report

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24 September 2001

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2025-03-04

S5 Inspection EIF

Not Judged

info

Why no overall grade?

From autumn 2024, Ofsted stopped issuing a single headline grade (Outstanding / Good / RI / Inadequate). Instead, each inspection area is graded individually. This follows a major review after the death of headteacher Ruth Perry in 2023. The overall effectiveness field is left as "Not judged" in the published data.

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2013-11-14

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

2007-05-16

None EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

3.4%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 7.3% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

2.3%(20 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 872 pupils. During this period, there were 30 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 3.4%, which is below the termly national average of 7.3%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	872	30	3.4%	7.3%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	876	18	2.1%	7.8%
2023/24 (Summer term)	871	7	0.8%	7.4%
2023/24 (Spring term)	875	11	1.3%	7.1%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	878	7	0.8%	8.2%
2022/23 (Summer term)	874	7	0.8%	6.6%
2022/23 (Spring term)	882	8	0.9%	6.4%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	882	13	1.5%	5.9%
2021/22 (Summer term)	903	10	1.1%	4.7%
2021/22 (Spring term)	910	5	0.5%	4.9%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	917	6	0.7%	4.4%
2020/21 (Summer term)	909	4	0.4%	3.6%
2020/21 (Spring term)	914	2	0.2%	1.0%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	913	6	0.7%	3.9%
2019/20 (Summer term)	911	0	0.0%	0.0%
2019/20 (Spring term)	911	8	0.9%	3.2%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	917	5	0.5%	4.2%
2018/19 (Summer term)	884	5	0.6%	3.1%
2018/19 (Spring term)	890	2	0.2%	3.8%
2018/19 (Autumn term)	892	2	0.2%	3.8%
2017/18 (Summer term)	875	0	0.0%	3.4%
2017/18 (Spring term)	881	0	0.0%	3.0%
2017/18 (Autumn term)	886	4	0.5%	3.7%
2016/17 (Summer term)	870	6	0.7%	3.0%
2016/17 (Spring term)	872	3	0.3%	3.3%
2016/17 (Autumn term)	874	4	0.5%	3.1%

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Specific Learning Difficulty 17 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 14 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 14 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 11 pupils

Physical Disability 6 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 2 pupils

Hearing Impairment 1 pupils