Maidstone Grammar School for Girls vs Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School

Side by side

	Maidstone Grammar School for Girls	Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School
Phase	Secondary	Secondary
Gender	Girls	Girls
Pupils on roll	1,254	1,123
Free school meals	9.6%	3.8%
Ofsted rating	Outstanding	Outstanding
Attainment 8 — 2025/26	62.7	72.5
11+ test board	GL Assessment	GL Assessment
Admission system	pass/fail then criteria order (score doesn't give priority after passing)	pass/fail then criteria order (score doesn't give priority after passing)
Places offered — 202627	133	174
First preferences per place — higher means more competition for a first-preference place	0.99	1.31

Qualifying scores

Maidstone Grammar School for Girls

332 out of 423 (2026 entry)

Aggregate ≥332 with no single paper below 108. County-wide Kent Test threshold: reaching it earns a 'suitable for grammar school' assessment, NOT a place — each school then applies its own oversubscription criteria, and super-selective schools (The Judd School, Skinners', Tonbridge, Dartford) fill in score order well above the threshold.

Council source ↗

Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School

332 out of 423 (2026 entry)

Aggregate ≥332 with no single paper below 108. County-wide Kent Test threshold: reaching it earns a 'suitable for grammar school' assessment, NOT a place — each school then applies its own oversubscription criteria, and super-selective schools (The Judd School, Skinners', Tonbridge, Dartford) fill in score order well above the threshold.

Council source ↗

Who gets priority

Where a school is oversubscribed, these are the first criteria applied, in order. This is usually what decides an application.

Maidstone Grammar School for Girls

Looked after and previously looked after children
Girls registered for free school meals in the last six years (Pupil Premium) — supplementary form by 31 October
A sister or brother at Maidstone Grammar School for Girls or Maidstone Grammar School when the child starts
Nearness of home to the school (straight line)

Source: school admissions policy.

Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School

Looked after and previously looked after children
Pupil Premium girls living in the school's area (criterion 6)
Girls in the school's area with a sister at the school
Health and special access reasons
Daughters of permanent staff (0.5 FTE+) with two years' service
Girls living within 4 miles of the school or in the named parishes (including Bidborough, Brenchley & Matfield, Capel, Sevenoaks, Tonbridge and others)

Source: school admissions policy.

Choosing between them

Both schools admit girls, so the decision usually comes down to the admission criteria above and how far each one reaches. The figures on this page are the published ones — they describe intakes and results, not what either school would be like for your child. The right choice depends on your family's own priorities and circumstances.

Other Kent comparisons

All grammar school comparisons →