eMoov took the top 100 schools in England and compared the average house price in the surrounding area to the average GCSE score obtained by pupils at the school. eMoov then reduced the list to just the top 50 state schools based on the property price per a GCSE point (PPGP).
Unfortunately for last year’s winner, the King Edward VI Handsworth School in Birmingham, they are no longer the best school in England when it comes to a mix of good GCSE grades and affordable property prices. They slip to second with a property price per GCSE point of £185, missing the top spot by just £1.
The top spot for 2016 goes to the Heckmondwike Grammar School in Kirklees, West Yorkshire. With pupils at Heckmondwike achieving an average score of 616.1 points and an average price paid for property around the school of just £113,507, Heckmondwike Grammar School boasts a property price per GCSE point of just £184. The lowest across the nation.
Heckmondwike and King Edward VI Handsworth are joined by The Blue Coat School in Liverpool as the only other entrant to offer a PPGP below £200 (£198).
Despite missing out on the top spot Birmingham is also home to two more of the top 10 schools where property price and a good level of education is concerned. The King Edward VI Five Ways School places fourth with a PPGP of £230, joined by the King Edward VI Aston School with a PPGP of £263 placing in eighth.
The top ten are completed by the North Halifax Grammar School (5th) with a PPGP of £246, Devonport High School for Girls (6th) in Plymouth at £250, Queen Mary’s Grammar School (7th) in Walsall at £256, Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School (9th) in Rossendale at £264 with the Lancaster Girls’ Grammar School placing tenth with a property price per a GCSE point of £271.
Russell Quirk, founder and CEO of eMoov.co.uk, had this to say: “Choosing a school is one of those life mile markers that often goes hand in hand with moving house, so doing your research into both can make a big difference in securing a good education for your child and a realistic move for your family as a whole.
The stress of moving coupled with the restrictions of catchment areas can be a mine field so often it’s necessary to have a third and fourth plan let alone a second. The main thing to remember in both instances is to keep a calm head and persevere and so we hope this research can help people to do so.”
To see the full top 50 table click here
