Across Nottinghamshire, there are plenty of school communities which should be especially proud of how their pupils have done this year.
The Government has now released preliminary performance figures for state-funded secondary schools, covering the recently-ended 2024/25 school year. But this time, the usual improvement-based Progress 8 scores are nowhere to be found - and instead, the default metric available to compare schools is their Attainment 8 scores.
These are a purely performance-based figure derived from pupils’ results in up to eight GCSEs or similar qualifications. They can go up to 90 and loosely align with GCSE 9-1 number grades, with the national average being 45.9 this year - somewhere between the standard and strong passing grades of 4 to 5.
Nottinghamshire is home to many schools which boasted exceptionally strong performances over the most recent GCSE season. To celebrate those which scored well over the national average this year, we’ve created a league table of the 15 highest achievers across the Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County council areas.
Of course, grades aren’t the only metric to consider when comparing schools. That is why we’ve also made sure each school we’ve included in our list had a positive mark in its latest Ofsted inspection. These are set to change this month, but for now, we’ve excluded schools that didn’t manage to achieve either a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ overall grade before last September, or positive ratings across all categories if it has been inspected since.
Here were this year’s top 15 from across Nottinghamshire:
1. The West Bridgford School
At the top of the list is this secondary academy in West Bridgford, most recently rated ‘outstanding’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 62.8 – compared to a local average of 46.7 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
2. Rushcliffe Spencer Academy
Next up is Rushcliffe Spencer, a secondary academy in West Bridgford. In a recent Ofsted inspection, it was found to be ‘outstanding’ in all categories. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 58 – compared to a local average of 46.7 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
3. The Becket School
The Becket School is a Catholic secondary academy, also in West Bridgford, which was most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 57.3 – compared to a local average of 46.7 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
4. Toot Hill School
Toot Hill is a secondary academy in Bingham, most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 55.8 – compared to a local average of 46.7 and a national average of 45.9. | Google