King James Academy Royston
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King James Academy Royston is a converter academy in Royston for boys and girls aged 9 to 18. It has 947 pupils and room for 1,321. About 19 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit fewer than at most schools. We give it 48 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 68% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2024.
Garden Walk, Royston, SG8 7JH01763 242236kjar.org.ukMrs Zoe Andrews headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 23 April 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Good overall.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
93 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019 | 2018 | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 93 | 89 | 119 | 64 | 98 | 111 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 40.3 | 42.7 | 44.7 | 43.2 | 42.5 | 44.5 | 50.9 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | +0.19 | +0.31 | +0.00 | -0.26 | +0.04 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 34% | 45% | 38% | 36% | 34% | 38% | 53% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 53% | 57% | 61% | 61% | 54% | 58% | 72% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 3.52 | 3.80 | 3.78 | 3.63 | 3.55 | 3.70 | 4.58 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 25% | 27% | 8% | 2% | 9% | 14% | 47% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 22.4 | 23.5 | 36.9 | 35.4 | 26.8 | 32.5 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | 44.4 | 49.0 | 47.3 | 45.4 | 45.1 | 47.3 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 24.3 | 32.5 | 29.3 | 23.0 | 21.3 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started aheadAttainment 8, high prior attainers | – | 73.3 | 65.5 | – | 58.6 | 64.0 | – | – |
Subjects
Results came out for 16 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.
Strongest subjects
Subjects that did worse than the England average: Religious Studies (36% here, 60% across England), English Language (36% here, 54% across England), Food Preparation & Nutrition (34% here, 52% across England), History (35% here, 52% across England).
The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.
Every subject against England, 2025
| Subject | Entries | Grades 9 to 7 | Grades 9 to 5 | Grades 9 to 4 | England 9 to 5 | Rank in England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 92 | 14% | 39% | 59% | 53% | 2,502 of 3,211 |
| English Language | 92 | 5% | 36% | 60% | 54% | 2,793 of 3,210 |
| English Literature | 91 | 4% | 43% | 58% | 58% | 2,540 of 3,202 |
| Combined Science | 80 | 8% | 30% | 51% | 36% | 1,872 of 3,084 |
| Geography | 43 | 9% | 44% | 54% | 51% | 1,805 of 3,116 |
| History | 40 | 10% | 35% | 48% | 52% | 2,559 of 3,126 |
| Food Preparation & Nutrition | 32 | 9% | 34% | 53% | 52% | 855 of 1,098 |
| Spanish | 30 | 23% | 60% | 77% | 54% | 810 of 1,941 |
| Religious Studies | 25 | 8% | 36% | 48% | 60% | 1,655 of 1,825 |
| Physical Education | 23 | 9% | 44% | 52% | 56% | 1,098 of 1,559 |
| Art and Design | 18 | 17% | 83% | 94% | 58% | – |
| Design & Technology | 15 | 13% | 53% | 60% | 50% | – |
| Computer Science | 14 | 14% | 36% | 36% | 56% | – |
| Biology | 12 | 33% | 75% | 83% | 82% | – |
| Chemistry | 10 | 40% | 70% | 100% | 81% | – |
| Physics | 10 | 50% | 70% | 90% | 82% | – |
In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.
Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025
163 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.
All Year 6 measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 163 | 174 | 180 | – | – |
| Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 51% | 56% | 52% | 64% | 63% |
| Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths | 2% | 8% | 7% | 10% | 8% |
| Reading scoreReading average scaled score | 104.0 | 104.0 | 105.0 | 106.6 | 105.6 |
| Maths scoreMaths average scaled score | 102.0 | 101.0 | 102.0 | 105.2 | 104.6 |
| Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score | 103.0 | 104.0 | 104.0 | 106.1 | 105.2 |
| Expected level: readingReading expected standard | 72% | 69% | 73% | – | – |
| Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard | 59% | 63% | 63% | – | – |
| Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed) | 73% | 70% | 63% | – | – |
| Reading progressReading progress score | – | – | -1.6 | – | – |
| Maths progressMaths progress score | – | – | -3.0 | – | – |
| Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged | 38% | 24% | 35% | – | – |
| Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged | 53% | 61% | 56% | – | – |
There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.
A level and sixth-form results, 2025
18 students finished sixth-form courses.
All sixth-form measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students | 18 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 68 | 110 |
| Average A level points per entryA level APS per entry | – | – | – | – | 24.44 | 30.65 |
| Average A level grade | z | z | z | z | D+ | C |
| Best three A levelsBest 3 A levels APS | – | – | – | – | 23.91 | 32.00 |
| AAB or better in subjects universities likeAAB+ in two facilitating subjects | – | – | – | – | 0% | 16% |
| A level progressA level value added | – | – | – | – | -0.36 | -0.05 |
| Stayed and finishedRetained and assessed | – | – | – | – | 85% | 94% |
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. 4 of the 7 gaps are smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At GCSE, 2025
At the end of primary school, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
Getting a place
Open to all. There is no entrance test.
392 places were empty (30% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 5% since 2021/22, so places are getting easier to find.
The last child to get a place lived 1.5 miles away in 2026. Children in care, brothers and sisters of current pupils, faith and other priority groups are placed first. After that, the closer you live, the better your chances. Type in your postcode to see how far away you are.
We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.
How places were given out for September 2026. More children applied than there were places. The last place went to a child living 1.5 miles from the school. Living closer than that didn't guarantee a place, but living much further away meant missing out that year.
| Entry | Places | Applied at all | Got a place | How far the last child lived | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Secondary | 5 | 18 | 6 | 1.5 miles | LA |
What a home within 1.5 miles of the school costs
Every home sold within that distance of the school (the typical cut-off over the last three years), of any type, from HM Land Registry records. If homes here cost more than the district average, that is the price people pay to live close enough to get in.
Who goes here
Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (60), Specific learning difficulty (39), Autistic spectrum disorder (21), language and communications needs (13), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (5), Other difficulty or disability (4).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 947 | 939 | 957 | 1,004 | 976 | 901 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 19% | 20% | 18% | 16% | 15% | 13% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 7% | 7% | 5% | 5% | 4% | 3% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 13% | 10% | 20% | 18% | 15% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 3% | 2% | 1% | 1% | 2% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 92.1% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 91.4%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19 | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 7.9% | 8.6% | 7.7% | 9.0% | 3.5% | 6.1% | 8.6% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 5.9% | 5.8% | 6.0% | 6.1% | 2.5% | 4.4% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 1.9% | 2.7% | 1.7% | 2.8% | 1.0% | 1.7% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 20.5% | 23.4% | 20.1% | 25.6% | 6.9% | 18.6% | 23.9% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 23.2 | 11.0 | 3.7 | 5.3 | 5.2 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 119 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Among pupils from low-income families it was 80%, compared with 97% for everyone else.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers | 2020/21 leavers | 2019/20 leavers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 92% | 95% | 96% | 94% |
| Education | 87% | 86% | 87% | 90% |
| Apprenticeship | 1% | 2% | 4% | 2% |
| Work | 4% | 8% | 4% | 2% |
| Not in education, work or training | 6% | 2% | 4% | 6% |
After sixth form
Where the 12 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Where the ones heading for university went
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers | 2020/21 leavers | 2019/20 leavers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 100% | 100% | 100% | – |
| Education | 92% | 80% | 93% | – |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Work | 8% | 20% | 7% | – |
| Not in education, work or training | 0% | 0% | 0% | – |
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
Money
From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other secondary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.
Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.
The area around the school
Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.
Nearby schools
The closest secondary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Icknield Walk First School | Council | 380 m | 335 | No overall grade 2025 | 80 | Compare |
| St Mary Roman Catholic Primary School | Academy | 720 m | 227 | No overall grade 2025 | 88 | Compare |
| Studlands Rise First School | Council | 990 m | 170 | No overall grade 2024 | 87 | Compare |
| Roman Way Academy | Academy | 0.7 miles | 219 | Good 2023 | 30 | Compare |
| Tannery Drift School | Council | 0.8 miles | 320 | No overall grade 2025 | 90 | Compare |
| Melbourn Primary School | Council | 2.3 miles | 357 | Report card 2026 | 43 | Compare |
| Bassingbourn Village College | Academy | 2.5 miles | 652 | Good 2023 | 46 | Compare |
| Bassingbourn Primary School | Council | 2.6 miles | 326 | No overall grade 2024 | 7 | Compare |
Compared with schools like it
Our score compares King James Academy Royston with the 50 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 50 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.
How the score was worked out
The score is out of 100. A 48 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 48% of secondary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 37 to 60. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.
| What we looked at | How much it counts | Against schools like it | Effect on the score | Based on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results over three years | 20% | below | -0.11 | 2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 93 pupils |
| Ofsted inspection | 20% | in line | +0.02 | Ofsted grade, 2.4 years old |
| Progress pupils make | 20% | in line | +0.03 | DfE progress measure; 93 pupils |
| Direction of travel over five years | 10% | in line | -0.03 | results and attendance falling year on year |
| Attendance and behaviour | 10% | in line | +0.02 | 2024/25; 966 pupils |
| Results, allowing for the mix of pupils | 10% | in line | +0.02 | Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 93 pupils |
| What pupils do next | 5% | in line | +0.01 | 119 pupils |
| What parents say | 0% | no data | – |
Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.
Questions parents ask
Is King James Academy Royston a good school?
It is about average. King James Academy Royston scores 48 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 68% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 37 to 60, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.
What is King James Academy Royston's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated King James Academy Royston good at its last full inspection on 23 April 2024.
How good are King James Academy Royston's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 34% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 40.3, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished a little ahead of children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How good are King James Academy Royston's SATs results?
In summer 2025, 51% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 2% went further and reached the higher level.
How many pupils does King James Academy Royston have?
947 pupils aged 9 to 18 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 1,321 places, so it is 72% full.
Is King James Academy Royston oversubscribed, and how far away can you live?
Yes. For September 2026 the last place went to a child living 1.5 miles away. Children in care, brothers and sisters of current pupils and other priority groups come before distance, so the cut-off moves every year.
What is attendance like at King James Academy Royston?
Pupils were in school 92.1% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 91.4%. 21% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
How big are the classes at King James Academy Royston?
The average class had 24.9 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 22.8. 13% of classes had more than 30 pupils.
Does King James Academy Royston have a sixth form?
Yes. The average A level grade in 2025 was z.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- Garden Walk, Royston, SG8 7JH
- Telephone
- 01763 242236
- Website
- www.kjar.org.uk
- Headteacher
- Mrs Zoe Andrews
- Type of school
- Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
- Phase
- All-through school, ages 9-18, with sixth form
- Gender
- Mixed
- Multi-academy trust
- The Diamond Learning Partnership Trust (15 schools)
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Ward
- Royston Meridian
- Constituency
- North East Hertfordshire
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 November 2011 (academy converter)
- URN
- 137656 · LAESTAB 9194140 · UKPRN 10035748
- Formerly
- Roysia Middle School, The Greneway School, Meridian School
Recent changes
- New KS4 results for 2024/25
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Year 6 results: DfE key stage 2 tables, 2024/25.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Class sizes: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, academy accounts return 2024/25.
- Admissions outcomes: Hertfordshire council's published allocation statistics (source), entry years 2026.
- House prices: HM Land Registry price paid data, December 2023 to December 2025, placed by postcode.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.