The schools are the best thing about Grays that nobody brags about. Nearly four in five graded schools across the borough are good or better. Three are outstanding. Only one is rated inadequate. Grays rebuilt two failing primaries into good ones, and nobody put up a plaque.
Of the 24 schools in Thurrock that hold a published Ofsted grade, 19 are rated good or better. That is roughly four in five. Three of those are outstanding and 16 are good, while four require improvement and one is inadequate. Another 25 settings in the borough have no published overall grade yet, either because they are new or have not been inspected under the current framework, and they say nothing either way. The borough average covers Tilbury, Chafford Hundred and the rest of Thurrock as well as Grays, so the mix on any one walk to school can look different.
The primaries have the better story. Quarry Hill Academy and Thameside Primary School were both formed by merging infant and junior schools that were failing, and both have since had good reports from Ofsted. Belmont Castle Academy is named after a gothic mansion that stood on the site and was knocked down, and The Gateway Primary Free School is the only free school primary in Grays. Thurrock Council allocates places using its published admissions rules, so living two streets from any of them is a reason to apply and nothing more. The Grays primaries that were once written off now have the reports parents look for.
At secondary age the choice gets more particular. Grays Convent High School is a voluntary aided Catholic school for girls, so its admissions criteria are not the same as the academies'. Families who are interested should read its faith criteria early, since a hopeful application will not count without the paperwork it asks for. The Gateway Academy was formed in 2003 by merging a Grays secondary with one in Tilbury. The old Grays site now holds two special schools, Treetops School and Treetops Free School. That Grays secondary had already taught Joe Pasquale and Fatima Whitbread by then, so the land has turned out a comedian and an Olympic javelin medallist. William Edwards School can claim the footballers Chris Cohen and Max Porter. Thames Park Secondary School and The Hathaway Academy complete the town's academy options.
The schools are one of the real strengths of Grays, and better than its drive-past image would suggest. Families who come for the commute could find the school list is the better part of the move.