Harwich and Dovercourt High School
Hall Lane, Harwich, CO12 3TG
1,075 pupils · 83% of 1,300 capacity
- Phase
- Secondary
- Type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11–16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- THE SIGMA TRUST
- Local authority
- Essex
- Free school meals
- 42.5%
Ofsted
Needs attention (2026) — Report card — the most common grade across the inspected areas
| Inclusion | Needs attention |
|---|---|
| Curriculum and teaching | Needs attention |
| Achievement | Urgent improvement |
| Attendance and behaviour | Needs attention |
| Personal development and wellbeing | Needs attention |
| Leadership and governance | Needs attention |
| Safeguarding | Met |
Inspected 6 January 2026, published 28 May 2026. Read the full Ofsted report
England has three coexisting inspection systems — how we translate them into one signal.
Exam results
| Measure | 2024/25 |
|---|---|
| Attainment 8 score | 37.6 |
| Grade 5 or above in English & maths (strong pass) | 27.9% |
| Grade 4 or above in English & maths (standard pass) | 44.2% |
| Entering the English Baccalaureate | 20.9% |
Progress 8 is not published nationally for 2024/25 and 2025/26 while KS2 baselines are missing (no SATs in 2020/21). It returns from 2026/27.
“Not published (small cohort)” means the DfE suppressed the figure to protect small cohorts — it is not a zero.
Will my child get in?
Roughly one first choice per place — 0.98 first-choice applications per place (Sept 2026 entry)
| Entry | Places | 1st preferences | Total preferences | Offers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2026 entry | 210 | 205 | 234 | 210 |
| Sept 2025 entry | 221 | 201 | 229 | 215 |
| Sept 2024 entry | 234 | 226 | 252 | 230 |
| Sept 2023 entry | 211 | 197 | 224 | 207 |
| Sept 2022 entry | 203 | 187 | 210 | 198 |
| Sept 2021 entry | 169 | 156 | 186 | 167 |
| Sept 2020 entry | 188 | 172 | 201 | 182 |
| Sept 2019 entry | 195 | 164 | 193 | 182 |
First-choice demand varies year to year, and the school’s admission criteria — not demand — decide who is offered a place. Use this as a rough signal, never a prediction.
Nearby alternatives
- Felixstowe School 6.8 km · Good (2024) · previous system
- Lift Tendring 9.7 km · Good (2024) · previous system
- Holbrook Academy 9.8 km · Good — confirmed 2024 · previous system
- Ipswich Academy 12.3 km · Requires improvement (2024) · previous system
- Manningtree High School 14.4 km · No overall grade (2025)
- Copleston High School 14.7 km · Good — confirmed 2023 · previous system
Straight-line distance — not travel time, and not a catchment. Same phase, open schools only.
Data from DfE and Ofsted open data (OGL v3) — sources. School record updated 10 July 2026. Report incorrect data.