England · Grammar school
Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Horncastle
Horncastle · Mixed (co-educational) · ages 11 to 18
Official record: Get Information About Schools (URN 138665)
Overview
- Address
- West Street, Horncastle, Lincolnshire, LN9 5AD
- Status
- Open
- Admits
- Mixed (co-educational)
- Age range
- 11 to 18
- Number of pupils
- 788
- Capacity
- 920
- Eligible for free school meals
- 11.6%
- Sixth form
- Yes
- School type
- Academy converter
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- HORNCASTLE EDUCATION TRUST
- Local authority
- Lincolnshire
Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026 · Source: Desk research (cited public sources) (get-information-schools.service.gov.uk), last checked 31 October 2026
Admissions and the 11+
- Admissions policy
- Selective (grammar school)
- Selection in this area
- Fully selective area25% of Year 7 places offered in Lincolnshire for September 2026 were at selective schools (DfE applications and offers). We class an area as fully selective at 25% or more. Confirm with the local authority's admissions guide.
- Entrance test
- Not yet available
- Qualifying score
- Not yet available
- Catchment area
- For September 2026 and 2027 entry, after looked-after children and children eligible for pupil premium or service premium, priority goes to qualifying children living in the school's designated area for free transport (a map is on the school website), ranked by test score.
- Children from outside the catchment
- Sometimes: For September 2026 and 2027 entry, qualifying children from outside the designated transport area get any remaining places in order of test score. The lowest score offered outside the area was 244 in 2026 and 235 in 2025 (council figures).
Past offers: lowest score and furthest distance
| Intake | Applicant group | Lowest score offered | Last distance offered | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2026 | outside designated transport areaLowest 11+ score offered on national offer day to a child living outside the school's designated transport area. Places outside the area are given in score order, but pupil premium children are given priority first, so this may reflect one of them. Qualifying score 220. | 244 | – | lincolnshire.gov.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2025 | outside designated transport areaLowest 11+ score offered on national offer day to a child living outside the school's designated transport area. Places outside the area are given in score order, but pupil premium children are given priority first, so this may reflect one of them. Qualifying score 220. | 235 | – | lincolnshire.gov.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2024 | outside designated transport areaLowest 11+ score offered on national offer day to a child living outside the school's designated transport area. Places outside the area are given in score order, but pupil premium children are given priority first, so this may reflect one of them. Qualifying score 220. | 222 | – | lincolnshire.gov.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2023 | outside designated transport areaLowest 11+ score offered on national offer day to a child living outside the school's designated transport area. Places outside the area are given in score order, but pupil premium children are given priority first, so this may reflect one of them. Qualifying score 220. | 250 | – | lincolnshire.gov.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2022 | outside designated transport areaLowest 11+ score offered on national offer day to a child living outside the school's designated transport area. Places outside the area are given in score order, but pupil premium children are given priority first, so this may reflect one of them. Qualifying score 220. | 245 | – | lincolnshire.gov.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2021 | outside catchment47 out-of-catchment places; reserve 231 | 234 | – | lincolnshire.gov.uksecondary source |
From published allocation data found in desk research (checked 1 November 2026); not yet confirmed with the school. Scores from different tests or years are not comparable, and a past cut-off does not guarantee a future place.
Applications and offers for Year 7
For September 2026 entry, 293 applicants named this school (167 as their first choice) for 118 places. 0 of 118 offers went to children living outside Lincolnshire.
| Intake | Places offered | Applicants | First choice | First choices per place | Offers to children outside Lincolnshire |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2026 | 118 | 293 | 167 | 1.4 | 0 |
| Sept 2025 | 119 | 248 | 156 | 1.3 | 0 |
| Sept 2024 | 119 | 228 | 133 | 1.1 | 0 |
| Sept 2023 | 115 | 231 | 152 | 1.3 | 1 |
| Sept 2022 | 120 | 247 | 168 | 1.4 | 0 |
Show all 13 years
| Intake | Places offered | Applicants | First choice | First choices per place | Offers to children outside Lincolnshire |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2021 | 120 | 249 | 156 | 1.3 | 4 |
| Sept 2020 | 120 | 255 | 154 | 1.3 | 0 |
| Sept 2019 | 124 | 237 | 146 | 1.2 | 0 |
| Sept 2018 | 117 | 231 | 129 | 1.1 | 0 |
| Sept 2017 | 125 | 254 | 135 | 1.1 | 1 |
| Sept 2016 | 114 | 240 | 122 | 1.1 | 2 |
| Sept 2015 | 100 | 199 | 109 | 1.1 | 0 |
| Sept 2014 | 121 | 229 | 127 | 1.0 | 1 |
"Applicants" counts every family that listed the school as any preference, so it is higher than the number competing for each place. "Outside Lincolnshire" means a home in another local authority; it is not the school's catchment area. For grammar schools, offers also depend on the entrance test result.
Source: Secondary and primary school applications and offers (Department for Education), last checked 31 October 2026
Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026 · Source: Admissions research (cited public sources) (horncastletrust.greenhousecms.co.uk), last checked 1 November 2026
Key dates for September 2027 entry
- Test registration (Lincolnshire grammar schools)
- 7 January 2026 to 31 March 2026
- Test date
- 12 September 2026, 19 September 202612 Sep verbal reasoning, 19 Sep non-verbal reasoning. Opening varies by school (7 or 9 Jan); some schools closed 20 Mar; one school late window to 17 Jul 2026. Caistor Grammar runs its own process (registration closed 14 Aug 2026). Results from grammar schools are not an offer.
- Results sent to families
- 9 October 2026
- Apply to your council (September 2027 entry)
- By 31 October 2026This date has passed: late applications go to your council and are usually considered after on-time ones.
- National offer day
- 1 March 2027Offers are sent on 1 March, or the next working day.
- Open days
- Not yet available
- School opened (current registration)
- 1 September 2012
Unverified: test dates come from desk research (medium confidence). Confirm them with the council or test organiser. Sources: kings.lincs.sch.uk/admissions/entry-to-year-7-in-september-2027/registration-for-entry-2027, kings.lincs.sch.uk/admissions/entry-to-year-7-in-september-2027, kestevengrantham.lincs.sch.uk.
Statutory dates: School Admissions Code (Department for Education).
Guide to the Lincolnshire grammar schools and its schools · How applying works
Source: Test dates research (cited public sources) (kings.lincs.sch.uk), last checked 1 November 2026 · Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026
Ofsted inspection
Inspected on 4 June 2024: overall Good. Read the report ↗
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form provision
- Good
Inspection history (2)
Source: Ofsted inspection reports, last checked 31 October 2026
Exam results
GCSE results 2025/26 (provisional)
| Measure | This school | Selective schools in England | All state schools in England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8Average grade across 8 GCSE-level subjects, doubled for English and maths (maximum 90). | 62.7 | 72.1 | 46.2 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 82.5% | 93.7% | 46.3% |
| Grade 7 or above in English and maths | 30.8% | 57.7% | 14.2% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 95% | 98.3% | 64.8% |
| Progress 8Not published for most schools in recent years, because primary school tests were cancelled in 2020 and 2021. | – | – | – |
Attainment 8 over time: 62.1 (2023/24) → 66.2 (2024/25) → 62.7 (2025/26).
120 pupils took GCSEs. Results reflect a selective intake: compare grammar schools with each other rather than with all schools.
Source: Key stage 4 performance (GCSE results) (Department for Education), last checked 31 October 2026
How to get there
- Postcode
- LN9 5AD
- Map location
- 53.20973, -0.12213
- Open in OpenStreetMap
- Directions and surroundings ↗
- Telephone
- 01507522465
Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026
Official links and documents
- School website
- www.qegs.lincs.sch.uk
- Official register record
- Get Information About Schools (URN 138665) ↗
- Admissions policy document
- Not yet available
- Further reading
- Wikipedia ↗
Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026