Bishop Wordsworth's Church of England Grammar School

Salisbury, SP1 2ED · Wiltshire grammar school

Ofsted: Outstanding Boys
Test board
Consortium: N/A. Wiltshire uses CEM rather than GL Assessment

Ofsted judgement breakdown (2022-11-15)

Overall effectiveness
Outstanding
Quality of education
Outstanding
Behaviour and attitudes
Outstanding
Personal development
Outstanding
Effectiveness of leadership and management
Outstanding
Safeguarding is effective?
Yes
Sixth form provision (where applicable)
Outstanding

Oversubscription criteria

  1. Looked after — Looked After/Previously Looked After Children
  2. Pupil premium — Pupil Premium boys (Ever-6 FSM) at the time of the entry exam
  3. Designated area — Boys permanently resident in the School's designated area (map-defined)
  4. Sibling — Boys with a sibling already at the School
  5. Staff child — Boys with a parent/step-parent who is a contracted staff member (≥2 years)
  6. Service premium — Boys qualifying for Service Premium (armed forces) or a Service Child within the last 3 years

What the entrance test covers

The two Wiltshire (Salisbury) grammar schools test separately, both with GL Assessment papers but different structures: 1. Bishop Wordsworth's School (boys) — two papers of about 50 minutes: Verbal Skills (English + verbal reasoning) and Mathematics + Non-Verbal/Spatial Reasoning. Multiple-choice, held at the school in the second half of September. 2. South Wilts Grammar School (girls) — three papers in one sitting with breaks: Mathematics (50 minutes, Year 5 curriculum plus early Year 6), English (45 minutes — linguistic skills, comprehension, spelling, punctuation) and Verbal Reasoning (50 minutes). No non-verbal reasoning. Separate registrations with each school; results arrive in October. A child applying to a Salisbury school and e.g. a Hampshire/Dorset school will face different formats — prepare per school.

University destinations

Oxbridge
5%
Russell Group
55%
Top-third university
66%
Any degree
93%

Of the 121-student 2019/20 leaver cohort, sustaining a higher-education destination the following year. This is the last cohort the Department for Education published with an Oxbridge/Russell Group breakdown — these categories were discontinued as official accountability measures after this release, so a more recent figure does not exist.

House prices nearby

Median price, Salisbury Harnham East ward (Year ending Mar 2023)
£375,000

Median price for the school's electoral ward, year ending March 2023 — a neighbourhood-level indicator, not the school's actual admissions catchment (catchments are often smaller than a ward or span parts of several).

Data sourced from GIAS, Ofsted and official Wiltshire admissions publications. Figures can change year to year — always confirm with the school before applying.

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