A council (local authority) in the East Midlands
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 below England in 2026. Missing school is a bigger problem than across England.
Nottingham at a glance
How Nottingham'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.
74 mainstream schools in Nottingham, best first
Results well above the England average.
74 first choices, 59 offers made
Met the standard at 1190%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
49 first choices, 31 offers made
Met the standard at 1186%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
39 first choices, 32 offers made
Met the standard at 1176%
England 62%
18 mainstream schools in Nottingham, best first
Results well above the England average.
426 first choices, 293 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.6
England 46.2
Results above the England average.
228 first choices, 206 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1653.4
England 46.2
Results close to the England average.
150 first choices, 170 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1648.8
England 46.2
68 in Nottingham, highest Ofsted grade first
Nottingham, NG7 2DU · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Nottingham, NG3 5TT · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Nottingham, NG3 4LD · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
19 in Nottingham, by the school's Eduscope score
Results close to the England average.
150 first choices, 170 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1648.8
England 46.2
Nottingham, NG8 3EZ · Academy · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18
Results well above the England average.
209 first choices, 187 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.4
England 46.2
Results above the England average.
185 first choices, 120 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1652.0
England 46.2
8 in Nottingham. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Nottingham, NG11 8HX · Academy · All-through · Ages 5 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Nottingham, NG8 3HW · 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.
Nottingham, NG3 2FE · Special · All-through · Ages 4 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
11 in Nottingham. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Nottingham, NG7 4AF · Independent · Primary · Ages 5 to 11
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Nottingham, NG5 1DX · Independent · Secondary · Ages 13 to 16
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Nottingham, NG3 5TT · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19 · Girls
Independent school. Results close to the England average.
Attainment 8 at 1647.3
England 46.2
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.
Nottingham is a unitary authority in the East Midlands with 74 mainstream primary schools and 18 mainstream secondary schools. 80.3% got their first-choice secondary school, against 83.6% across England.
From Nottingham council's website, checked 7 November 2026. Check the council's pages before you apply.
School admissions team: 01158415568
If a date falls on a weekend or bank holiday, offers go out the next working day.
94.9%got their first-choice primary school in Nottingham in 2026. England: 92.4%. Ranked 39 of 151 councils. 98.9% got one of their top three.7.4% were offered a primary school in another council. England: 3.6%.
80.3%got their first-choice secondary school in Nottingham in 2026. England: 83.6%. Ranked 97 of 151 councils. 92.4% got one of their top three.11.3% 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.
34 of 197 primary appeals heard in Nottingham succeeded in 2025. 48 of 304 secondary appeals heard in Nottingham succeeded in 2025.
| Term | Starts | Half term | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn | 2 Sept | 19 Oct to 30 Oct | 18 Dec |
| Spring | 4 Jan | 15 Feb to 19 Feb | 25 Mar |
| Summer | 12 Apr | 31 May to 4 Jun | 28 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 Nottingham school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
All 57 inspected are Good or better.
68nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
97% Good or better. 61% met the standard at 11.
90schools
Ages 11 to 16
All 14 inspected are Good or better. 42% got grade 5 in English and maths.
37schools
All 5 inspected are Good or better. About 6 pupils per teacher.
8schools
Here's how Nottingham's schools break down by type, faith and more.
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.
NottinghamEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 57 primaries with one.
97%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
14 of the 14 with a grade.
100%
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.
21%
England 18%
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
37%
Latest graded inspection for the 86 schools that have one.
97%
Good or Outstanding
Nottingham 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 | Nottingham | England |
|---|---|---|
| Good or Outstanding (Ofsted) | 97% | 95% |
| Met the expected standard at 11 (KS2) | 61% | 62% |
| Attainment 8 | 43.3 | 46.2 |
| Persistent absence | 21% | 18% |
| Pupils per teacher | 17.9:1 | 17.9:1 |
| Spending per pupil | £8,074 | £8,120 |
| In education or work after 16 | 88% | 91% |
| Went on to higher education | 62% | 56% |
| Pupils with special educational needs | 19% | 21% |
| Pupils with English as an additional language | 39% | 22% |
| Pupils on free school meals | 39% | 27% |
DfE local authority code 892, ONS code E06000018.
Nottingham has 184 schools and nurseries.
There are 7% more pupils than in 2018, but numbers have fallen since 2025.
37% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in Nottingham's state schools each January.
Up 7% 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.
Nottingham37%
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
Nottingham has 184 schools, including 90 primary schools, 37 secondary schools, 68 nurseries, 11 independent schools, 8 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in Nottingham on Eduscope are St Teresa's Catholic Primary School, Edna G. Olds Academy, Sneinton St Stephen's CofE Primary School. 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.
97% of inspected schools in Nottingham hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is above the England average of 94.8%. This includes 10 schools rated Outstanding and 73 rated Good.
Across primary schools in Nottingham, 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 Nottingham is 17.9:1. 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 Nottingham is 20.6%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 48,574 pupils enrolled across schools in Nottingham, with 27,143 in primary and 21,338 in secondary. 38.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There are 11 independent schools in Nottingham. 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 Nottingham 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 184 schools in Nottingham 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.
