The Gryphon School is a mixed secondary academy in Sherborne, Dorset Council, teaching 1,569 pupils aged 11 to 18. Its last Ofsted inspection in June 2023 found the school remains Good. In 2024–2025, GCSE Attainment 8 was 46.7 (England 46.1). Term dates and holidays for 2025–2026 are listed below.

Ofsted inspection

The latest published Ofsted judgement for The Gryphon School.

Latest inspection
Good Ungraded inspection
Outcome: School remains Good. Ungraded (short) inspections confirm whether standards are maintained since the last full graded inspection — they don’t assign new category grades.
Ungraded inspection · Inspected 21 Jun 2023 · Published 17 Sep 2023
Read full Ofsted report ↗

Term dates & holidays 2025–2026

Autumn, spring and summer terms, half-terms, INSET days and bank holidays for The Gryphon School.

The Gryphon School term dates calendar 2025–2026
Official term-dates calendar · 2025–2026 · source

Key dates (2025–2026)

  • Inset Day Wednesday 3 September 2025 Inset Day
  • Inset Day Thursday 4 September 2025 Inset Day
  • Inset Day Friday 5 September 2025 Inset Day
  • Autumn Term Starts Monday 8 September 2025 Term
  • Inset Day Friday 24 October 2025 Inset Day
  • Autumn Half Term Monday 27 October 2025 - Friday 31 October 2025 Holiday
  • Autumn Term Ends Thursday 18 December 2025 Term
  • Inset Day Friday 19 December 2025 Inset Day
  • Christmas Holiday Friday 19 December 2025 - Sunday 4 January 2026 Holiday
  • Spring Term Starts Monday 5 January 2026 Term
  • Inset Day Friday 13 February 2026 Inset Day
  • Spring Half Term Monday 16 February 2026 - Friday 20 February 2026 Holiday
  • Spring Term Ends Friday 27 March 2026 Term
  • Easter Holiday Saturday 28 March 2026 - Monday 13 April 2026 Holiday
  • Inset Day Monday 13 April 2026 Inset Day
  • Summer Term Starts Tuesday 14 April 2026 Term
  • Summer Half Term Monday 25 May 2026 - Friday 29 May 2026 Holiday
  • Summer Term Ends Wednesday 22 July 2026 Term
  • Summer Holiday Thursday 23 July 2026 - Early September 2026 Holiday
  • New Year's Day (Bank Holiday) Thursday 1 January 2026 Holiday
  • Good Friday (Bank Holiday) Friday 3 April 2026 Holiday
  • Easter Monday (Bank Holiday) Monday 6 April 2026 Holiday
  • Early May Bank Holiday Monday 4 May 2026 Holiday
  • Spring Bank Holiday Monday 25 May 2026 Holiday
  • Summer Bank Holiday Monday 31 August 2026 Holiday
  • Christmas Day (Bank Holiday) Thursday 25 December 2025 Holiday
  • Boxing Day (Bank Holiday) Friday 26 December 2025 Holiday

Exam results & performance

DfE performance tables Official results, 2024–2025 GOV.UK ↗
46.7 Attainment 8 England 46.1 Top 36%
44.4% Grade 5+ English & maths England 45.4%
35.12 A level average score England 35 Top 41%
20.4% Persistent absence England 17.8%

The measures that carry the most signal. Open a section to compare The Gryphon School with Dorset Council and England.

Key stage 4 (GCSE) 46.7 Attainment 8 score

Year 11 results across eight qualifications, including English and maths.

This school Dorset Council England

Attainment 8 score · Average across 8 GCSEs, out of 90 46.7
Dorset Council 43.2 England 46.1 in line with England
Grade 5+ in English & maths · A strong pass 44.4%
Dorset Council 40.7% England 45.4% -1 vs England
Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils 35.1
Dorset Council 31.1 England 34.9 in line with England
Disadvantage gap · Attainment 8 points; smaller is better 14.4
Dorset Council 15.8 England 15.5 -1.1 vs England
Disadvantaged pupils in the year group · Context for the scores above 19.2%
Dorset Council 23.9% England 28.2%
Pupils in the year group · Small cohorts swing wildly 234
16 to 18 (A level & sixth form) 35.12 A level average point score

Results for students finishing post-16 study.

This school Dorset Council England

A level average point score · Per entry, 50 = A* 35.12
Dorset Council 32.2 England 35 in line with England
A level students · Small cohorts swing wildly 156
Attendance 20.4% Persistently absent pupils

Absence across the whole school year.

This school Dorset Council England

Persistently absent pupils · Missed 10%+ of sessions; lower is better 20.4%
Dorset Council 19.5% England 17.8% +2.6 vs England
Overall absence · Lower is better 7.9%
Dorset Council 7.6% England 6.8% +1.1 vs England
What pupils do after GCSEs 94% In education, apprenticeship or work

Still in education, an apprenticeship or work a year after key stage 4.

This school Dorset Council England

In education, apprenticeship or work 94%
Dorset Council 94% England 92% +2 vs England
Same, for disadvantaged pupils 87%
Dorset Council 87% England 83% +4 vs England
What students do after 16 to 18 study 83% In education, apprenticeship or work

Destinations the year after finishing post-16 study.

This school Dorset Council England

In education, apprenticeship or work 83%
Dorset Council 80% England 79% +4 vs England
Went to higher education 42%
Dorset Council 27% England 37% +5 vs England
About this data source & caveats

Progress 8 is not published for 2024–2025. This year group missed their key stage 2 tests in 2020, so there is no baseline to measure progress from.

Attendance comparisons are pupil-weighted averages we calculate from every school’s published absence figure — the DfE absence file has no local authority or England rows of its own.

We show the headline measures only. Threshold and curriculum-policy figures — grade 4+ in English and maths, EBacc entry and points, the per-subject key stage 2 breakdown, academic and applied splits at 16 to 18 — reflect admissions and curriculum choices more than school quality, so they are left to GOV.UK. Progress measures matter most because they compare pupils with others who started at the same level; attainment on its own largely tracks a school’s intake.

Figures are the Department for Education’s official published results for The Gryphon School. Results are suppressed where too few pupils were entered. England figures are the average for state-funded schools. “Top x%” is this school’s position among all schools in England with a published figure for that measure — the DfE does not publish league table rankings.

Source: Compare school and college performance, Department for Education. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Location & catchment area

Indicative catchment Other secondary schools

Indicative only. This is a nearest-school (Voronoi) estimate — the area closer to The Gryphon School than to any other secondary school. Real admissions depend on the school’s own policy (straight-line distance, siblings, faith, feeder schools and available places) and change each year. Always confirm with the school and local authority admissions team.