A town in Kent
In short: Most primary schools here are rated Good or better, about the same as across England. Results at 11 are below England, and results at 16 were below England in 2026. Missing school is a bigger problem than across England.
Margate at a glance
How Margate'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.
11 mainstream schools in Margate, best first
Results below the England average.
72 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1159%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
43 first choices, 30 offers made
Met the standard at 1175%
England 62%
Westgate on Sea, CT8 8LD · State · Primary · Ages 7 to 11
Results close to the England average.
Met the standard at 1164%
England 62%
3 mainstream schools in Margate, best first
Results below the England average.
121 first choices, 168 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1640.0
England 46.2
Results well below the England average.
144 first choices, 150 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1638.7
England 46.2
Results well below the England average.
103 first choices, 144 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1635.3
England 46.2
16 in Margate, highest Ofsted grade first
Margate, CT9 5QX · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Westgate-on-Sea, CT8 8QY · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Margate, CT9 1SX · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
3 in Margate, by the school's Eduscope score
Results below the England average.
121 first choices, 168 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1640.0
England 46.2
Results well below the England average.
144 first choices, 150 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1638.7
England 46.2
Results well below the England average.
103 first choices, 144 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1635.3
England 46.2
6 in Margate. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Margate, CT9 4JA · Special · 16+ · Ages 16 to 24
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Margate, CT9 3RA · Special · All-through · Ages 7 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Margate, CT7 0BB · Independent · All-through · Ages 2 to 25
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
4 in Margate. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Margate, CT7 0BB · Independent · All-through · Ages 2 to 25
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Ct9 2an · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Margate, CT9 3TP · Independent · Secondary · Ages 10 to 18
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.
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 Margate school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
All 13 inspected are Good or better.
16nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
100% Good or better. 52% met the standard at 11.
14schools
Ages 11 to 16
All 2 inspected are Good or better. 29% got grade 5 in English and maths.
9schools
3 Good, 1 need to improve. About 6 pupils per teacher.
6schools
Here's how Margate'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.
MargateEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 6 primaries with one.
100%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
2 of the 2 with a grade.
100%
England 93%
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
52%
England 62%
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
29%
Pupils who miss a lot of school
Missed 1 in 10 days or more. Lower is better.
29%
England 18%
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
46%
Latest graded inspection for the 13 schools that have one.
92%
Good or Outstanding
Margate in blue. There were no tests in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid.
Margate has 37 schools and nurseries.
There are 3% fewer pupils than in 2018.
46% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in Margate's state schools each January.
Down 3% since 2018.
Out of every 10 primary pupils, how many get free school meals. It's a sign of family income, not of school quality.
Margate46%
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.
Margate has 37 schools, including 14 primary schools, 9 secondary schools, 16 nurseries, 4 independent schools, 6 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in Margate on Eduscope are Palm Bay Primary School, St Gregory's Catholic Primary School, Margate, St Saviour's Church of England Junior 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 Margate hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is below the England average of 94.8%. This includes 0 schools rated Outstanding and 12 rated Good.
Across primary schools in Margate, 52% 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 Margate is 16.5:1. 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 Margate is 28.9%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 7,161 pupils enrolled across schools in Margate, with 4,389 in primary and 2,772 in secondary. 45.3% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There are 4 independent schools in Margate, all special schools for children with special educational needs, where councils usually pay the fees. You can compare them 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 37 schools in Margate 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.
