England · Grammar school
Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys
Tunbridge Wells · Boys only · ages 11 to 18
Official record: Get Information About Schools (URN 118790)
Overview
- Address
- St John's Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN4 9XB
- Status
- Open
- Admits
- Boys only
- Age range
- 11 to 18
- Number of pupils
- 1,875
- Capacity
- 1,308
- Eligible for free school meals
- 5.5%
- Sixth form
- Yes
- School type
- Community school
- Religious character
- Not yet available
- Trust
- Not yet available
- Local authority
- Kent
Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026 · Source: Desk research (cited public sources) (parentview.ofsted.gov.uk), last checked 31 October 2026
Admissions and the 11+
- Admissions policy
- Selective (grammar school)
- Selection in this area
- Fully selective area30% of Year 7 places offered in Kent 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
- Kent Test
- Qualifying score
- aggregate 332 with no section below 108 (Kent Test threshold for September 2026 entry) (2026 entry)
- Catchment area
- Priority to children within 3-mile radius of the Tunbridge Wells campus, then residents of named parishes, then all others; 90 Sevenoaks places go to offered students living closest to the Sevenoaks campus.
- Children from outside the catchment
- Yes: Applicants beyond the 3-mile radius/named parishes ranked after them by distance; average furthest distance offered over last three years 18.81 miles.
Past offers: lowest score and furthest distance
| Intake | Applicant group | Lowest score offered | Last distance offered | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2026 | Sevenoaks campus (places allocated to the offered boys living closest to it)Furthest distance from the Sevenoaks campus of a boy given a Sevenoaks place on National Offer Day. | – | 7.23 km (4.49 miles) | twgsb.org.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2025 | Sevenoaks campus (places allocated to the offered boys living closest to it)Furthest distance from the Sevenoaks campus of a boy given a Sevenoaks place on National Offer Day. | – | 7.31 km (4.54 miles) | twgsb.org.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2024 | Sevenoaks campus (places allocated to the offered boys living closest to it)Furthest distance from the Sevenoaks campus of a boy given a Sevenoaks place on National Offer Day. | – | 5.15 km (3.20 miles) | twgsb.org.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2023 | Sevenoaks campus (places allocated to the offered boys living closest to it)Furthest distance from the Sevenoaks campus of a boy given a Sevenoaks place on National Offer Day. | – | 7.16 km (4.45 miles) | twgsb.org.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2022 | Sevenoaks campus (places allocated to the offered boys living closest to it)Furthest distance from the Sevenoaks campus of a boy given a Sevenoaks place on National Offer Day. | – | 4.09 km (2.54 miles) | twgsb.org.uksecondary source |
| Sept 2021 | Sevenoaks campus (places allocated to the offered boys living closest to it)Furthest distance from the Sevenoaks campus of a boy given a Sevenoaks place on National Offer Day. | – | 7.31 km (4.54 miles) | twgsb.org.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, 1,179 applicants named this school (297 as their first choice) for 300 places. 5 of 300 offers went to children living outside Kent.
| Intake | Places offered | Applicants | First choice | First choices per place | Offers to children outside Kent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2026 | 300 | 1,179 | 297 | 1.0 | 5 |
| Sept 2025 | 299 | 1,059 | 291 | 1.0 | 25 |
| Sept 2024 | 300 | 1,091 | 293 | 1.0 | 8 |
| Sept 2023 | 301 | 1,086 | 325 | 1.1 | 4 |
| Sept 2022 | 300 | 972 | 236 | 0.8 | 11 |
Show all 13 years
| Intake | Places offered | Applicants | First choice | First choices per place | Offers to children outside Kent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2021 | 300 | 1,083 | 203 | 0.7 | 30 |
| Sept 2020 | 208 | 798 | 132 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Sept 2019 | 240 | 739 | 130 | 0.5 | 23 |
| Sept 2018 | 240 | 730 | 200 | 0.8 | 10 |
| Sept 2017 | 210 | 715 | 161 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Sept 2016 | 180 | 655 | 149 | 0.8 | 4 |
| Sept 2015 | 180 | 623 | 132 | 0.7 | 13 |
| Sept 2014 | 180 | 618 | 191 | 1.1 | 0 |
"Applicants" counts every family that listed the school as any preference, so it is higher than the number competing for each place. "Outside Kent" 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) (skinners-school.co.uk, twgsb.org.uk), last checked 1 November 2026
Key dates for September 2027 entry
- Test registration (Kent Test)
- 1 June 2026 to 1 July 2026
- Test date
- 10 September 2026, 12 September 2026, 13 September 202610 Sep for children at Kent primaries; 12-13 Sep for children at non-Kent primaries. Late registration only in limited cases (email kent.admissions@kent.gov.uk); sources conflict. Dates come from school/tuition pages; official page kent.gov.uk/kenttest not seen. One guide mentions 12 Feb offer, unclear.
- Results sent to families
- 15 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)
- Not yet available
Unverified: test dates come from desk research (medium confidence). Confirm them with the council or test organiser. Sources: kelsi.org.uk, lenham.kent.sch.uk, cognito.org, leadingtuition.co.uk.
Statutory dates: School Admissions Code (Department for Education).
Guide to the Kent Test and its schools · How applying works
Source: Test dates research (cited public sources) (kelsi.org.uk), last checked 1 November 2026
Ofsted inspection
Inspected on 17 March 2026. Read the report ↗
- Achievement
- Strong standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Strong standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Strong standard
- Post 16 provision
- Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Expected standard
- Inclusion
- Expected standard
- Leadership and governance
- Expected standard
- Safeguarding
- Met
From September 2024 Ofsted no longer gives an overall grade for state schools.
Inspection history (8)
- 17 March 2026: School inspection · report
- 24 November 2021: School inspection · report
- 31 January 2017: Short inspection · report
- 10 January 2013: Full inspection · report
- 13 December 2011: Curriculum and development visit · report
- 7 January 2011: Interim assessment · report
- 30 April 2008: Full inspection · report
- 24 January 2005: Full inspection · report
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). | 64.5 | 72.1 | 46.2 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 88.4% | 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 | 96.9% | 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: 64.2 (2023/24) → 63.7 (2024/25) → 64.5 (2025/26).
292 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
- TN4 9XB
- Map location
- 51.15086, 0.26109
- Open in OpenStreetMap
- Directions and surroundings ↗
- Telephone
- 01892529551
Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026
Official links and documents
- School website
- www.twgsb.org.uk
- Official register record
- Get Information About Schools (URN 118790) ↗
- Admissions policy document
- Not yet available
- Further reading
- Wikipedia ↗
Source: Get Information About Schools, last checked 31 October 2026