Ashlyns School
Foundation school · sixth form · 1,561 pupils
94% stayed in education · Attainment 8 57.9
Academy converter
Sir John Lawes School
- Pupils on roll
- 1,373of 1,200 places
- Free school meals
- 9.7%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 192
- Ofsted
- Outstanding, 28 March 2023Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Sir John Lawes School (URN 117511, until 1 August 2011).
What the data says
Of the 200 pupils who finished Year 11 at Sir John Lawes School in 2023, 78% stayed on in Sir John Lawes School’s own sixth form (Hertfordshire average 58%), 17% went to a further education college and 1% started an apprenticeship.
Among the 173 students who left the sixth form in 2023, 71% went to university (Hertfordshire 42%, England 37%), and 40% of level 3 students progressed to one of the most selective universities, against 19% nationally.
GCSE results in 2025 were well above the national picture: Attainment 8 of 62.8 against 46.1 across England and 50.6 in Hertfordshire, with 76% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Design and Technology is unusually popular at GCSE: 43% of the year group took it, against 11% of pupils across England.
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Hertfordshire and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Sir John Lawes School | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 200 | 14,400 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 97% | 95% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 96% | 92% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 78% | 58% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 1% | 2% | 13% |
| — further education college | 17% | 31% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 1% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 1% | 2% | 3% |
| Employment | 0% | 2% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 3% | 3% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 1% | 2% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
University (higher education)Further educationOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Sir John Lawes School | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students in the cohort | 173 | 14,189 | 541,441 |
| Any sustained destination | 91% | 82% | 79% |
| University (higher education) | 71% | 42% | 37% |
| — most selective universities (top third), of level 3 students | 40% | 24% | 19% |
| Further education | 1% | 5% | 5% |
| Apprenticeship | 3% | 6% | 7% |
| Employment | 16% | 28% | 28% |
| No sustained destination | 6% | 13% | 16% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Sir John Lawes School | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 62.8 | 50.6 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 76% | 53% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 87% | 72% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 52% | 47% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 5.74 | 4.56 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 8% | 18% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 43.3 | 34.2 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 64.5 | 54.1 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 9% | 16% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 191 | 99% | 89% | 40% | 20% | 90% |
| Mathematics | 191 | 99% | 88% | 46% | 22% | 91% |
| English Literature | 191 | 99% | 86% | 39% | 21% | 92% |
| Geography | 134 | 70% | 41% | 50% | 25% | 83% |
| Physics | 117 | 61% | 23% | 65% | 46% | 98% |
| Biology | 117 | 61% | 23% | 62% | 45% | 99% |
| Chemistry | 117 | 61% | 23% | 51% | 47% | 99% |
| Religious Studies | 96 | 50% | 31% | 44% | 32% | 89% |
| Design and Technology | 82 | 43% | 11% | 28% | 23% | 80% |
| Combined Science | 74 | 39% | 65% | 11% | 9% | 72% |
| History | 60 | 31% | 41% | 63% | 26% | 92% |
| French | 56 | 29% | 18% | 68% | 29% | 100% |
| Physical Education | 50 | 26% | 11% | 42% | 24% | 90% |
| Computer Science | 44 | 23% | 13% | 55% | 30% | 93% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 34 | 18% | 8% | 53% | 21% | 79% |
| Spanish | 32 | 17% | 19% | 44% | 27% | 78% |
| Media Studies | 31 | 16% | 4% | 35% | 20% | 84% |
| German | 31 | 16% | 5% | 77% | 33% | 90% |
| Drama | 29 | 15% | 7% | 28% | 27% | 86% |
| Fine Art | 26 | 14% | 9% | 54% | 28% | 92% |
| Film Studies | 21 | 11% | 1% | 48% | 20% | 81% |
| Music | 20 | 10% | 5% | 75% | 33% | 95% |
| Textiles | 18 | 9% | 2% | 56% | 27% | 89% |
| Chinese | 5 | 3% | 1% | — | 75% | — |
| Italian | 2 | 1% | 0% | — | 53% | — |
| Polish | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Additional Mathematics FSMQ | 7 | 4% | — |
| Music performance: Group | 2 | 1% | — |
| Music performance: Group | 1 | 1% | — |
| Music performance: Group | 1 | 1% | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
| Measure | Sir John Lawes School | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 345 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 156 | 8,082 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | B+ | B- | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 42.42 | 36.82 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | B+ | B- | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 28% | 19% | 18% |
| Average grade, applied general courses | — | — | — |
| Average grade, T levels | — | — | — |
A level subjects
Entries as a share of A level students, compared with the share across England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 58 | 37% | 31% |
| Psychology | 37 | 24% | 23% |
| Biology | 37 | 24% | 20% |
| Sociology | 29 | 19% | 13% |
| English Literature | 27 | 17% | 11% |
| Physics | 25 | 16% | 12% |
| Economics | 24 | 15% | 13% |
| Chemistry | 19 | 12% | 17% |
| Further Mathematics | 18 | 12% | 5% |
| Geography | 17 | 11% | 10% |
| Physical Education | 17 | 11% | 3% |
| History | 17 | 11% | 13% |
| Religious Studies | 16 | 10% | 4% |
| Media Studies | 16 | 10% | 4% |
| Computer Science | 15 | 10% | 5% |
| Product Design | 13 | 8% | 2% |
| French | 9 | 6% | 1% |
| Politics | 8 | 5% | 6% |
| Music | 7 | 4% | 0% |
| Graphic Communication | 7 | 4% | 2% |
| Drama | 6 | 4% | 2% |
| Textiles | — | — | 1% |
| Fine Art | — | — | 3% |
| German | — | — | 0% |
| Photography | — | — | 3% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finance / Accounting (General) | VRQ Level 3 | 81 | 52% | — |
| Business Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 30 | 19% | — |
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 17 | 11% | — |
| Multimedia | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 16 | 10% | — |
| Multimedia | BTEC National Extended Diploma L3 - Band N - PPP-D*D*D* | 8 | 5% | — |
| Nutrition / Diet | VRQ Level 3 | — | — | — |
| Health Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Hertfordshire
Barclay Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,044 pupils
91% stayed in education · Attainment 8 49.5
Barnwell School
Foundation school · sixth form · 1,270 pupils
88% stayed in education · Attainment 8 41.5
Beaumont School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,722 pupils
98% stayed in education · Attainment 8 62.6
Birchwood High School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,417 pupils
85% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.1
Bishop's Hatfield Girls' School
Academy converter · sixth form · 942 pupils
97% stayed in education · Attainment 8 51.9
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.