Understanding Attainment 8 and Progress 8

Attainment 8 is an average point score based on pupils’ best eight GCSE-level qualifications, with English and maths double-weighted under DfE rules.

Higher Attainment 8 means stronger average results for that cohort. It does not adjust for prior attainment.

Progress 8 estimates how much progress pupils made between the end of primary school and Key Stage 4, compared with pupils nationally with similar starting points.

A score around zero is broadly average progress. Positive scores indicate above-average progress; negative scores indicate below-average progress. Small differences are common and should be read with confidence intervals in the full DfE tables.

We also show the percentage of pupils achieving grade 5 or above (and sometimes grade 4 or above) in both English and maths. These are simpler headline thresholds parents often recognise.

Progress 8 compares pupils' GCSE results with those of other pupils nationally who had similar results at the end of primary school. A score of 0 means pupils made about average progress; above 0 means more than average, below 0 less than average.

Because Progress 8 starts from where pupils began secondary school, it can be a fairer guide than raw results for schools whose pupils start with lower or higher attainment. Small year groups can swing the score from year to year, so look at more than one year where you can.

Attainment 8 averages a pupil's best grades across eight qualifications: English and maths (each counted double), three further subjects from the English Baccalaureate list, and three other approved qualifications. The school figure is the average across all its pupils.