Dorothy Stringer School

About Dorothy Stringer School

Dorothy Stringer School sits fifth out of ten secondary schools in Brighton and Hove when ranked by Progress 8, placing it squarely in the middle of the local pack. The top three performers in the local authority are King's School, Cardinal Newman Catholic School, and Varndean College, all of which post higher Progress 8 scores. The school is a mixed, non-faith state secondary for ages 11 to 16, with no sixth form on site. It is noticeably oversubscribed: for 2025/26 entry, 902 families applied for 322 places, and only 179 of those offers went to first-preference applicants. That works out at 2.8 applications per place, which tells you it is a popular choice among Brighton families. The headteacher is Matt Hillier, and the school's most recent Ofsted inspection, in October 2023, rated it Good across every category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management.

Academically, Dorothy Stringer performs a touch above the local average. Its Progress 8 score of 0.11 means pupils achieve slightly more than expected compared with similar students nationally, and that is above the Brighton and Hove average of 0.05. Attainment 8 sits at 49.8, and 74.2% of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in English and maths (the basics measure), with 58.2% reaching grade 5 or above. The school has a strong focus on the English Baccalaureate: 73.2% of pupils entered the EBacc suite of subjects, and 44.6% achieved it at grade 4 or above. In the most recent Ofsted inspection, inspectors noted that behaviour and attitudes were Good, and the school's leadership was rated Good too. The previous inspection in 2018 also awarded an overall Good, so the school has held that rating consistently across both its recent inspections.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a theatre, sports hall, gymnasium, science labs, and playing fields, plus a sixth form centre even though the school itself does not run a sixth form. Sports on offer include football, rugby, cricket, dance, and gymnastics, and there are clubs like choir, orchestra, debate, and Model UN. SEND provision is broad, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, autistic spectrum disorder, and physical disabilities. With 23.9% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a reasonably diverse intake. Given its oversubscription and strong local reputation, Dorothy Stringer is a good fit for families who want a large, well-established secondary with consistent Ofsted grades and academic results that nudge above the LA average — but you will need to apply early and make it your first choice to have a realistic chance of a place.

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