UK Schools
Sir John Lawes School
Sir John Lawes School is a mixed secondary academy in Harpenden, Hertfordshire County Council, teaching 1,373 pupils aged 11 to 18. Ofsted rated it Outstanding at its last graded inspection in March 2023. In 2024–2025, GCSE Attainment 8 was 62.8 (England 46.1). Term dates and holidays for 2025–2026 are listed below.
Ofsted inspection
The latest published Ofsted judgement for Sir John Lawes School.
Scale: Outstanding Good Requires improvement Inadequate
Term dates & holidays 2025–2026
Autumn, spring and summer terms, half-terms, INSET days and bank holidays for Sir John Lawes School.
Key dates (2025–2026)
- First day of term (External Sixth Form induction) 1st Sep 2025 Term
- First day of term for Year 7, Year 12 and Year 13 2nd Sep 2025 Term
- First day of term for Year 8, Year 9, Year 10 and Year 11 3rd Sep 2025 Term
- Autumn Half Term 27th Oct 2025 - 31st Oct 2025 Holiday
- Occasional Day - school closed 24th Nov 2025 Event
- Last day of Autumn Term (school closes at 12.30pm) 19th Dec 2025 Term
- Christmas Holiday 22nd Dec 2025 - 5th Jan 2026 Holiday
- Inset Day - school closed for students 5th Jan 2026 Inset Day
- First day of Spring Term 6th Jan 2026 Term
- Inset Day - school closed for students 4th Feb 2026 Inset Day
- Spring Half Term 16th Feb 2026 - 20th Feb 2026 Holiday
- Inset Day - school closed for students 6th Mar 2026 Inset Day
- Last day of Spring Term (school closes at 3.30pm) 27th Mar 2026 Term
- Easter Holiday 30th Mar 2026 - 13th Apr 2026 Holiday
- Inset Day - school closed for students 13th Apr 2026 Inset Day
- First day of Summer Term 14th Apr 2026 Term
- Early May Bank Holiday 4th May 2026 Holiday
- Summer Half Term 25th May 2026 - 29th May 2026 Holiday
- Inset Day - school closed for students 23rd Jun 2026 Inset Day
- Last day of Summer Term (school closes at 12.30pm) 17th Jul 2026 Term
- Summer Holiday 18th Jul 2026 - Early Sep 2026 Holiday
- New Year's Day 1st Jan 2026 Event
- Good Friday 3rd Apr 2026 Event
- Easter Monday 6th Apr 2026 Holiday
- Spring Bank Holiday 25th May 2026 Holiday
- Summer Bank Holiday 31st Aug 2026 Holiday
- Christmas Day 25th Dec 2025 Holiday
- Boxing Day 26th Dec 2025 Event
Exam results & performance
The measures that carry the most signal. Open a section to compare Sir John Lawes School with Hertfordshire County Council and England.
Key stage 4 (GCSE) 62.8 Attainment 8 score
Year 11 results across eight qualifications, including English and maths.
This school Hertfordshire County Council England
16 to 18 (A level & sixth form) 42.42 A level average point score
Results for students finishing post-16 study.
This school Hertfordshire County Council England
Attendance 7.5% Persistently absent pupils
Absence across the whole school year.
This school Hertfordshire County Council England
What pupils do after GCSEs 97% In education, apprenticeship or work
Still in education, an apprenticeship or work a year after key stage 4.
This school Hertfordshire County Council England
What students do after 16 to 18 study 91% In education, apprenticeship or work
Destinations the year after finishing post-16 study.
This school Hertfordshire County Council 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 Sir John Lawes 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 only. This is a nearest-school (Voronoi) estimate — the area closer to Sir John Lawes 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.