Schools in Grays
Grays is the largest town in Thurrock with 26 schools - 16 primaries and a notably large secondary sector of 7 schools including William Edwards, The Gateway Academy, Grays Convent High School, Harris Academy Chafford Hundred, The Hathaway Academy, Orsett Heath Academy and Thames Park Secondary School. Thurrock Council co-ordinates admissions for community and voluntary-controlled schools.
Secondary competition in Grays is significant: the town's secondary schools are all academies or faith schools with their own oversubscription criteria. Grays Convent High School allocates places on faith criteria first, drawing Catholic pupils from across Thurrock. Families applying to comprehensive secondaries typically find distance from home to school is the decisive factor after siblings; checking 'last distance offered' for your preferred school is strongly advised before submitting preferences in October.
School demand in Grays
Across the 25 schools in Grays with published capacity data, the average fill rate is 97%. 13 of them are currently at or above their published admission number, and at those schools catchment distance is likely to decide places at the next intake.
3 schools in Grays have a religious character, so faith criteria sit alongside catchment distance in their admissions policies.
20 of the schools in Grays are academies that set their own admissions criteria independently of Thurrock, so check each school's policy directly rather than assuming the council default applies.
11 of the schools in Grays have a current Ofsted rating, of which 10 are rated Good or Outstanding. Demand and catchment distance tend to be tightest at the highest-rated schools.
Primary schools in Grays: 8 oversubscribed (16)
The Gateway Primary Free School
Primary · Free schools
Grays · RM16 4LU
Harris Primary Academy Chafford Hundred
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 6SA
Thameside Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Grays · RM17 6EF
Herringham Primary Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 4JX
Belmont Castle Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM17 5YN
Woodside Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 2GJ
Quarry Hill Academy
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Grays · RM17 5UT
West Thurrock Academy
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM20 3HR
Tudor Court Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 6PL
Stifford Clays Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Grays · RM16 2ST
Deneholm Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 2SS
Chadwell St Mary Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Grays · RM16 4DH
Orsett Church of England Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 3JR
St Thomas of Canterbury Catholic Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM17 5RW
Little Thurrock Primary School
Primary · Academy sponsor led
Grays · RM17 5SW
Warren Primary School
Primary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 6NB
Secondary Schools in Grays (7)
Grays Convent High School
Secondary · Voluntary aided school
Grays · RM17 5UX
The Gateway Academy
Secondary · Academy sponsor led
Grays · RM16 4LU
William Edwards School
Secondary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 3NJ
Harris Academy Chafford Hundred
Secondary · Academy converter
Grays · RM16 6SA
The Hathaway Academy
Secondary · Academy sponsor led
Grays · RM17 5LL
Orsett Heath Academy
Secondary · Free schools
Grays · RM16 4DG
Thames Park Secondary School
Secondary · Free schools
Grays · RM17 5FP
Other Schools in Grays (3)
Treetops School
Not applicable · Academy special converter
Grays · RM16 2WU
Treetops Free School
Not applicable · Free schools special
Grays · RM16 2WU
The Light Christian School
Not applicable · Other independent school
Grays · RM17 5DF
Catchment area boundaries for schools in Grays are set by Thurrock and updated each year. The "last distance offered", how far the furthest successful applicant lived, changes annually based on the number of applications received.