A council (local authority) in the South East
In short: Most primary schools here are rated Good or better, about the same as across England. Results at 11 are close to England, and results at 16 were close to England in 2026. Attendance is close to the England figure.
Medway at a glance
How Medway's schools compare with England, area by area.
Primary and secondary schools are ranked by Eduscope score, which weighs up results, inspections, attendance and more. Nurseries, special and independent schools aren't ranked. A high score isn't everything: always visit.
76 mainstream schools in Medway, best first
Rochester, ME1 3LF · Academy · Primary · Ages 3 to 11
Results well above the England average.
53 first choices, 30 offers made
Met the standard at 1183%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
43 first choices, 30 offers made
Met the standard at 1181%
England 62%
Rochester, ME1 1YF · Academy · Primary · Ages 3 to 11
Results well above the England average.
35 first choices, 28 offers made
Met the standard at 1179%
England 62%
19 mainstream schools in Medway, best first
Rochester, ME1 3EL · Academy · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18 · Boys
Results well above the England average.
336 first choices, 201 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1669.9
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
238 first choices, 149 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1663.0
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
240 first choices, 204 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1667.5
England 46.2
86 in Medway, highest Ofsted grade first
Chatham, ME5 9EP · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Chatham, ME4 4AF · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Rochester, ME2 3PP · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
25 in Medway, by the school's Eduscope score
Rochester, ME1 3EL · Academy · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18 · Boys
Results well above the England average.
336 first choices, 201 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1669.9
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
238 first choices, 149 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1663.0
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
240 first choices, 204 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1667.5
England 46.2
11 in Medway. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Rochester, ME2 3SP · Special · All-through · Ages 3 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Chatham, ME5 0LB · Academy · All-through · Ages 4 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Gillingham, ME7 4LT · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
7 in Medway. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Rochester, ME1 1HY · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 21
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Gillingham, ME7 4LT · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Chatham, ME4 6DQ · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 25
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Each dot is a school or nursery, coloured by its latest Ofsted grade. Point at a dot to see its name, or use the list.
Apply through the council where you live, even for a school in another council's area. Independent schools take applications directly.
Medway is a unitary authority in the South East with 76 mainstream primary schools and 19 mainstream secondary schools. Towns with the most schools include Gillingham (Medway), Rochester and Chatham. It has 6 grammar schools, which choose pupils by a test. Pupil numbers have grown 13% since 2018. Most state schools here are academies or free schools (86%), so many set their own term dates and admissions rules.
From Medway council's website, checked 7 November 2026. Check the council's pages before you apply.
School admissions team: admissions@medway.gov.uk · 01634 331 110
If a date falls on a weekend or bank holiday, offers go out the next working day.
93.9%got their first-choice primary school in Medway in 2026. England: 92.4%. Ranked 65 of 151 councils. 98.8% got one of their top three.2.5% were offered a primary school in another council. England: 3.6%.
80.4%got their first-choice secondary school in Medway in 2026. England: 83.6%. Ranked 96 of 151 councils. 93.9% got one of their top three.3.4% were offered a secondary school in another council. England: 8.0%.
Source: DfE applications and offers, 2026. A low rate shows high demand, not poor schools.
15 of 37 primary appeals heard in Medway succeeded in 2025. 135 of 489 secondary appeals heard in Medway succeeded in 2025.
| Term | Starts | Half term | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn | 1 Sept | 26 Oct to 30 Oct | 18 Dec |
| Spring | 4 Jan | 15 Feb to 19 Feb | 25 Mar |
| Summer | 12 Apr | 31 May to 4 Jun | 21 Jul |
For schools that follow the council's dates. Academies, faith and foundation schools can set their own, and schools add training days. Source, checked 6 November 2026.
Pick a stage to see every Medway school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
All 63 inspected are Good or better.
86nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
98% Good or better. 61% met the standard at 11.
86schools
Ages 11 to 16
2 Outstanding, 9 Good, 2 need to improve. 42% got grade 5 in English and maths.
32schools
All 10 inspected are Good or better. About 7 pupils per teacher.
11schools
Here's how Medway's schools break down by type, faith and more.
The blue bar is the average Eduscope score of the primary schools in each town. The black line is the Medway average, 46.
Average primary score
42Medway 46
Average primary score
71Medway 46
Average primary score
29Medway 46
Some areas, like parts of a bigger town, are easiest to find by postcode.
Inspections, exam results and attendance, next to the figure for England where we have it.
MedwayEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 61 primaries with one.
98%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
11 of the 13 with a grade.
85%
England 93%
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
61%
England 62%
Close to England
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
42%
Pupils who miss a lot of school
Missed 1 in 10 days or more. Lower is better.
19%
England 18%
Close to England
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
27%
Latest graded inspection for the 84 schools that have one.
96%
Good or Outstanding
Medway in blue. There were no tests in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid.
The latest published year for each measure. Sources and years are on our data sources page.
| Measure | Medway | England |
|---|---|---|
| Good or Outstanding (Ofsted) | 96% | 95% |
| Met the expected standard at 11 (KS2) | 61% | 62% |
| Attainment 8 | 45.4 | 46.2 |
| Persistent absence | 19% | 18% |
| Pupils per teacher | 18.3:1 | 17.9:1 |
| Spending per pupil | £7,116 | £8,120 |
| In education or work after 16 | 91% | 91% |
| Went on to higher education | 53% | 56% |
| Pupils with special educational needs | 20% | 21% |
| Pupils with English as an additional language | 17% | 22% |
| Pupils on free school meals | 26% | 27% |
DfE local authority code 887, ONS code E06000035.
Medway has 198 schools and nurseries across 5 towns and villages, the biggest being Gillingham (Medway), Rochester, Chatham and Cliffe Woods.
There are 13% more pupils than in 2018.
27% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in Medway's state schools each January.
Up 13% since 2018. More children can mean popular schools fill up faster.
Out of every 10 primary pupils, how many get free school meals. It's a sign of family income, not of school quality.
Medway27%
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
Medway has 198 schools, including 86 primary schools, 32 secondary schools, 86 nurseries, 7 independent schools, 11 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in Medway on Eduscope are Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School, Fort Pitt Grammar School, The Pilgrim School (A Church of England Primary With Nursery). We rank each state school against schools of the same phase across England on its Ofsted inspection, results and attendance. Independent, special and nursery schools aren't ranked.
96% of inspected schools in Medway hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is above the England average of 94.8%. This includes 5 schools rated Outstanding and 76 rated Good.
Across primary schools in Medway, 61% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing, and maths at Key Stage 2. This is based on the latest published results from the Department for Education.
The average pupil-teacher ratio across schools in Medway is 18.3:1. While not a direct measure of class size, this indicates the level of teaching resource available per pupil. Across England it is 17.9:1.
The persistent absence rate across schools in Medway is 18.8%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 50,905 pupils enrolled across schools in Medway, with 26,837 in primary and 24,068 in secondary. 26.1% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There are 7 independent schools in Medway. Fees vary by school and age group, with day school fees typically ranging from £10,000 to £20,000 per year. You can compare all private schools in Medway on Eduscope, including ISI inspection ratings where available.
Start by considering your child's age, your location, and whether you prefer a state or independent school. Use Eduscope to compare 198 schools in Medway by Ofsted ratings, exam results, and distance. Filter by school type, gender, religious character, and admissions policy to narrow your options.
Sources: DfE school performance tables, DfE school census and workforce, DfE pupil absence, Ofsted. Photos are stand-ins.
