A town in Medway
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.
Chatham at a glance
How Chatham'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.
21 mainstream schools in Chatham, best first
Results well above the England average.
91 first choices, 90 offers made
Met the standard at 1181%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
28 first choices, 28 offers made
Met the standard at 1177%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
Met the standard at 1174%
England 62%
6 mainstream schools in Chatham, best first
Results well above the England average.
137 first choices, 179 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1659.8
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
185 first choices, 150 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1660.6
England 46.2
Results well below the England average.
191 first choices, 222 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1638.9
England 46.2
23 in Chatham, highest Ofsted grade first
Chatham, ME5 9EP · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Chatham, ME5 7NX · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Chatham, ME4 6BA · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
7 in Chatham, by the school's Eduscope score
Results well above the England average.
137 first choices, 179 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1659.8
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
185 first choices, 150 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1660.6
England 46.2
Results well below the England average.
191 first choices, 222 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1638.9
England 46.2
3 in Chatham. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
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.
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.
Chatham, ME5 0LB · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
1 in Chatham. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
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.
Schools in Chatham sit in 2 council areas. Your home council handles your application, wherever the school is. Living nearby doesn't guarantee a place: each school's admission rules decide.
Pick a stage to see every Chatham school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
All 16 inspected are Good or better.
23nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
100% Good or better. 62% met the standard at 11.
23schools
Ages 11 to 16
3 Good, 2 need to improve. 39% got grade 5 in English and maths.
10schools
All 3 inspected are Good or better. About 7 pupils per teacher.
3schools
Here's how Chatham'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.
Worked out by Eduscope from each school's published figures. Not an official statistic for this town.
ChathamEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 18 primaries with one.
100%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
3 of the 5 with a grade.
60%
England 93%
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
62%
England 62%
Close to England
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
39%
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.
30%
Latest graded inspection for the 26 schools that have one.
92%
Good or Outstanding
Chatham in blue. There were no tests in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid.
Chatham has 54 schools and nurseries.
There are 14% more pupils than in 2018, but numbers have fallen since 2025.
30% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in Chatham's state schools each January.
Up 14% 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.
Chatham30%
Apply through your local council, even for academies and faith schools.
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
Chatham has 54 schools, including 23 primary schools, 10 secondary schools, 23 nurseries, 1 independent school, 3 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in Chatham on Eduscope are Holcombe Grammar School, Swingate Primary School, St Benedict's Catholic 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.
92% of inspected schools in Chatham hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is below the England average of 94.8%. This includes 1 school rated Outstanding and 23 rated Good.
Across primary schools in Chatham, 62% 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 Chatham is 17.4:1. 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 Chatham is 20.9%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 14,181 pupils enrolled across schools in Chatham, with 7,828 in primary and 6,353 in secondary. 29.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There is 1 independent school in Chatham, a special school for children with special educational needs, where councils usually pay the fees. You can compare it on Eduscope, including inspection reports where available.
Start by considering your child's age, your location, and whether you prefer a state or independent school. Use Eduscope to compare 54 schools in Chatham 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.
