Most sought-after schools in Thurrock

Ordered by how many families put the school first, for each place it gave out.

This list is sorted by one number: first preferences per place. For each school it is the number of families who named it first, divided by the number of offers it made, in the newest year we hold. A higher number means more families wanted a place than there were places.

This is not a list of the best schools. It does not measure how good a school is, how happy the children are, or how well they do. It also does not tell you whether a child would get a place: that depends on where you live, the year, and the council's rules. It only shows how many people applied.

#	School	First preferences per place	Newest intake	Latest Ofsted
1	Harris Academy Chafford Hundred Grays, secondary	1.81	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
2	Quarry Hill Academy Grays, primary	1.66	2026	School remains Outstanding (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
3	Abbots Hall Primary School Stanford-le-Hope, primary	1.50	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
4	Dilkes Academy South Ockendon, primary	1.45	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
5	Graham James Primary Academy Stanford-le-Hope, primary	1.24	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
6	St Clere's School Stanford-le-Hope, secondary	1.22	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
7	Stifford Clays Primary School Grays, primary	1.21	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
8	St Mary's Catholic Primary School Tilbury, primary	1.20	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
9	Harris Academy Ockendon South Ockendon, secondary	1.12	2026	Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
10	The Gateway Academy Grays, secondary	1.12	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
11	Arthur Bugler Primary School Stanford-le-Hope, primary	1.10	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
12	Harris Primary Academy Chafford Hundred Grays, primary	1.09	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
13	Orsett Heath Academy Grays, secondary	1.09	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
14	Giffards Primary School Stanford-le-Hope, primary	1.03	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
15	Harris Primary Academy Mayflower Chafford Hundred, primary	1.03	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
16	Thames Park Secondary School Grays, secondary	1.03	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
17	Holy Cross Catholic Primary School South Ockendon, primary	1.00	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
18	Purfleet Primary Academy Purfleet-on-Thames, primary	0.99	2026	Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
19	Belmont Castle Academy Grays, primary	0.98	2026	Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
20	Deneholm Primary School Grays, primary	0.98	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
21	Tudor Court Primary School Grays, primary	0.98	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
22	Orsett Church of England Primary School Grays, primary	0.97	2026	Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
23	Herringham Primary Academy Grays, primary	0.96	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
24	Aveley Primary School South Ockendon, primary	0.95	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
25	Kenningtons Primary Academy South Ockendon, primary	0.93	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
26	Lansdowne Primary Academy Tilbury, primary	0.93	2026	Strong standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
27	Thameside Primary School Grays, primary	0.93	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
28	Tilbury Pioneer Academy Tilbury, primary	0.93	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
29	Warren Primary School Grays, primary	0.93	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
30	East Tilbury Primary School East Tilbury, primary	0.92	2026	Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
31	Little Thurrock Primary School Grays, primary	0.92	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
32	Shaw Primary Academy South Ockendon, primary	0.91	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
33	St Thomas of Canterbury Catholic Primary School Grays, primary	0.91	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
34	The Gateway Primary Free School Grays, primary	0.91	2026	Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
35	Woodside Academy Grays, primary	0.90	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
36	Chadwell St Mary Primary School Grays, primary	0.89	2026	Improved significantly (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
37	West Thurrock Academy Grays, primary	0.89	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
38	Bonnygate Primary School South Ockendon, primary	0.88	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
39	Horndon-On-the-Hill CofE Primary School Stanford-le-Hope, primary	0.87	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
40	Harris Academy Riverside Purfleet, secondary	0.82	2026	Strong standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
41	Somers Heath Primary School South Ockendon, primary	0.80	2026	Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework))
42	Benyon Primary School South Ockendon, primary	0.78	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
43	Mossbourne Herd Lane Academy Stanford-le-Hope, primary	0.78	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
44	Bulphan Church of England Academy Bulphan, primary	0.75	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
45	Stanford-Le-Hope Primary School Stanford-le-Hope, primary	0.74	2026	Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
46	Mossbourne Fobbing Academy Stanford-le-Hope, secondary	0.69	2026	Inadequate (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
47	Grays Convent High School Grays, secondary	0.60	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
48	Ormiston Park Academy South Ockendon, secondary	0.57	2026	Requires improvement (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
49	William Edwards School Grays, secondary	0.57	2026	Needs attention (Ofsted report card (current framework))
50	Mossbourne Port Side Academy Stanford-le-Hope, secondary	0.51	2026	Requires improvement (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))
51	The Hathaway Academy Grays, secondary	0.51	2026	School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection)
52	St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Stanford-le-Hope, primary	0.50	2026	Requires improvement (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework))

Figures from the Department for Education, applications and offers. 52 schools in Thurrock have a published per-place figure. Schools with too few places for the figure to mean anything are left off. All schools in Thurrock · How we compare schools.