Progress 8 vs Attainment 8: Which Matters More When Choosing a Secondary School
When you compare secondary schools, two numbers come up again and again: Progress 8 vs Attainment 8. They sound similar and are often quoted side by side, but they measure very different things, and confusing them can lead you to the wrong conclusion about a school. This guide explains what each one means, how they differ, and which matters more when you are deciding where your child should go.
It builds on our wider guide to how to compare schools, which sets these measures in context alongside Ofsted and a visit.
What Attainment 8 measures
Attainment 8 is a measure of results. It captures a pupil's average grade across eight qualifications, grouped into three buckets: English and maths, which are double-weighted; three further qualifications from the English Baccalaureate subjects, such as sciences, languages, history or geography; and three more from any approved subjects. A school's Attainment 8 score is the average of its pupils' scores, giving a single figure for how well the cohort did in their GCSEs. It is useful, but it says nothing about where those pupils started.
What Progress 8 measures
Progress 8 is a measure of improvement. It looks at the same eight qualifications, but instead of the raw grade it asks how much progress pupils made from their Key Stage 2 results at the end of primary school to their GCSEs, compared with pupils nationally who had the same starting point. The score is centred on zero: a positive number means the school's pupils did better than similar pupils elsewhere, and a negative number means they did worse. Because it adjusts for prior attainment, Progress 8 is designed to reflect the difference the school itself makes.
Why the distinction matters
The two measures can tell opposite stories. A school in an affluent area with high-attaining intake can post a strong Attainment 8 while adding relatively little, giving a modest or even negative Progress 8. A school serving a more challenging catchment might have a lower Attainment 8 but a high Progress 8, showing it moves its pupils on further than most. If you only read the raw results, you can misjudge how good the teaching actually is. If you only read progress, you miss the absolute level pupils reach. You need both.
Which one should you weigh more heavily?
For judging the quality of a school's teaching, Progress 8 is generally the fairer measure, because it does not simply reward schools for admitting able children. It is the number many educationalists look at first. That said, Attainment 8 still matters, because it tells you the actual grades pupils leave with, which affects sixth-form and college options. A sensible approach is to use Progress 8 to gauge how well a school teaches, and Attainment 8 to see the level its pupils reach, then read both against the national and local averages rather than in isolation.
How to use them well
- Look at trends, not one year. A single year can be a blip; a pattern over several years is more telling.
- Check how recent the data is. These measures were not published in some years because of exam disruption, so the latest figures may be older than you expect.
- Compare like with like. Judge a school against national and local averages, and against schools with a similar intake.
- Do not stop at the numbers. Data builds a shortlist; the Ofsted report and a visit tell you the rest.
Used together, Progress 8 and Attainment 8 give you a rounded picture: how far a school takes its pupils, and how high they reach. For more on reading the rankings, see our guide to school league tables explained, or head back to the Schools Insight homepage.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Progress 8 and Attainment 8?
Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average achievement across eight qualifications, so it reflects the grades pupils actually got. Progress 8 measures how much progress pupils made from the end of primary school to their GCSEs, compared with pupils nationally who had similar starting points. Attainment shows outcomes; Progress shows the value the school added.
Which is more important, Progress 8 or Attainment 8?
For judging how well a school teaches, Progress 8 is usually the fairer measure because it accounts for the ability pupils arrived with, so a school in a tougher area is not unfairly marked down. Attainment 8 tells you the raw results. Most parents should look at both together, alongside the Ofsted report and a visit.
What is a good Progress 8 score?
Progress 8 is centred on zero, which represents average progress nationally. A positive score means pupils made more progress than similar pupils elsewhere, and a negative score means less. As a rough guide, above +0.5 is well above average and below -0.5 is well below, but small differences around zero are not very meaningful.
What is a good Attainment 8 score?
Attainment 8 is scored out of roughly 90 points, based on grades across eight subjects with English and maths double-weighted. National averages have typically sat in the high 40s, so a score comfortably above the national figure is strong. Compare a school's number with the current national and local averages rather than judging it in isolation.
Where can I find a school's Progress 8 and Attainment 8 scores?
Both measures are published on the government's school performance data service, alongside other information such as the proportion of pupils entering the EBacc. Note that these measures were not published in some years because of exam disruption, so always check how recent the figures are before relying on them.