Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School

What Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School does

Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School (QEGS) is a state-funded free school located in Blackburn, Lancashire, United Kingdom, operated under the QEGS Blackburn Academy Trust Ltd (Companies House registration 08331789). The institution traces its origins to approximately 1509, giving it roughly 500 years of educational heritage, and serves pupils aged 4-19 across four integrated stages: Nursery (early years), Primary (Key Stages 1-2), Secondary (Key Stages 3-4, including GCSE), and Sixth Form (A-Levels, housed at the Singleton House dedicated centre). The school retains an independent-school ethos — emphasising high academic standards, exemplary behaviour, and a broad extra-curricular programme — while operating without tuition fees under UK government education funding.

The school delivers its curriculum through a traditional educational model with no proprietary technology stack; core operations are classroom-based across GCSE and 22+ A-Level subjects (including Latin, Further Mathematics, Classical Civilisation, and Psychology), supported by enrichment in sports, music, and vocational qualifications such as the National Pool Lifeguard Qualification. QEGS supplements its in-house provision through external partnerships, notably with Bolton Music Service (instrumental lessons from September 2026), Edge Hill University (healthcare taster days), WEC Academy (engineering), GCHQ (language outreach), and CyberFirst/In4groups (MEGA Scholarship Programme in cybersecurity).

The business model is non-commercial: QEGS is a not-for-profit educational institution funded primarily by UK state education allocation per pupil, with marginal revenue from Nursery fees and ancillary services. The school employs 51-100 staff, draws pupils from across Lancashire via school bus operations, and markets itself through its website, social media (Facebook, Instagram), open days, and a prospectus. There is no evidence of venture capital, private equity, or public market involvement, and the institution is governed by a board of trustees under the Academy Trust structure.

Name

Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School

Legal name

QEGS Blackburn Academy Trust Ltd

Website

https://qegsblackburn.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School is a state-funded free school in Blackburn, Lancashire, delivering education to ages 4-19 across Nursery, Primary, Secondary, and Sixth Form under an academy trust, offering an independent-school ethos without tuition fees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Nonsectarian Independent Day Schools (EDAJABAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Middle Schools (EDAJAAAC)

Keywords

• Primary education
• Secondary education
• Sixth form education
• Nursery schooling
• State-funded school

Headquarters

HQ city

Blackburn, Lancashire

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. State Education Funding: QEGS is a state-funded free school. While it no longer charges fees, it retains an independent-school ethos. The school is funded by government education funding rather than tuition fees.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School is a co-educational state-funded free school in Blackburn, Lancashire, delivering Nursery, Primary, Secondary, and Sixth Form education (ages 4-19). It provides a comprehensive curriculum including 22+ A-Level subjects and a wide range of GCSE options, alongside extra-curricular services such as instrumental music lessons and vocational qualifications like the National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ). The school operates as a not-for-profit under the QEGS Blackburn Academy Trust, with no tuition fees charged to students.

Product overview

Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School is a 4-19 co-educational free school in Blackburn with Darwen, offering state-funded education from Nursery through Sixth Form. The school comprises four distinct educational programs: Nursery (early years), Primary School (Key Stages 1-2), Secondary School (Key Stages 3-4/GCSE), and Sixth Form (A-Levels). The school maintains an independent-school ethos while being state-funded, with strong emphasis on academic standards, exemplary behaviour, and extra-curricular commitment. Beyond core academic programs, QEGS offers supplementary services including instrumental music lessons (via Bolton Music Service partnership) and vocational qualifications such as the National Pool Lifeguard Qualification.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Singleton House: Dedicated Sixth Form centre for A Level students
• The Garstang

Products and services

• QEGS Nursery
• QEGS Primary School
• QEGS Secondary School
• QEGS Sixth Form
• Instrumental Music Lessons
• National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ)

Quantifiable outcome

• High academic standards demonstrated through year-after-year results

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Edge Hill UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 June 2025Year 12 students explored careers in healthcare at Edge Hill University's Health, Social Care and Medical Taster Day. Event included presentations, clinical skills demonstrations, and tours of university facilities.
• GCHQminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 March 2025Year 9 students attended a Language Outreach event with GCHQ highlighting the vital role languages play in intelligence and security, with focus on learning Mandarin Chinese for codebreaking activities.
• WEC AcademyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 March 2025QEGS pupils visited WEC Academy in Darwen for engineering taster morning. Students learned about engineering apprenticeships, toured welding and fabrication facilities, and participated in practical challenges including virtual reality welding.
• Bolton Music ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerQEGS works with Bolton Music Service to offer high-quality instrumental music lessons in school. Lessons available for pupils of all abilities from September 2026, covering a range of instruments with shared and individual lesson options.
• Mind LancashirecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBlackburn with Darwen in partnership with Mind Lancashire offers Virtual Coaching sessions for Young People. Wellbeing coaching is a person-centred approach focusing on moving forward, identifying areas of difficulty, and developing positive coping strategies.
• MGA Productions (with BAE Systems, Royal Air Force, Royal Navy)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInteractive theatre roadshow delivered by MGA Productions in collaboration with BAE Systems, RAF, and Royal Navy. The AI-themed careers event introduced students to STEM career opportunities through hands-on activities.
• Blackburn CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerQEGS students participated in the MEGAHub Cyber and Esports Tournament hosted by Blackburn College. QEGS Team C won the Cyber Challenge Zone, earning gold medals and vouchers.
• Christ Church College, OxfordminorOthersTwo Year 13 students gained places at Oxford University studying at Christ Church College - one in Law and one in Classics and French.
• CyberFirst and In4groupsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEGA Scholarship Programme - an initiative opening doors to future careers in tech and cybersecurity. Students receive career insights, workplace visits, work on real-world projects, and £1000 towards tech equipment.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AKS Lytham: Independent day school in Lytham, Lancashire, serving ages 0-18. Direct peer: full-continuum day school in Lancashire with comparable size and offer, competing for pupils from the same region.
• Lancaster Royal Grammar School: Selective grammar school in Lancaster founded 1472, now operating as an academy trust with both fee-paying and state-funded arms. Direct peer: closest grammatical-heritage and academy-trust peer, serving ages 11-18 with strong academic reputation within Lancashire.
• Bury Grammar School: Independent day school in Greater Manchester serving ages 3-18 across Nursery, Junior, Senior and Sixth Form. Direct peer: same 4-18 day-school model, grammar heritage, similar pupil-cohort range and competitive geography to QEGS.
• Bolton School: Independent day school in Bolton serving ages 0-19 across Nursery, Junior, Senior and Sixth Form. Direct peer: comparable full-continuum day-school model in Lancashire, similar breadth of curriculum and extra-curricular, overlapping catchment with QEGS Blackburn.
• Westholme School: Independent day school located in Blackburn, directly within QEGS's home town. Direct peer: same-town competitor offering Nursery through Sixth Form, fighting for the same local fee-paying and aspirational parents.
• Kirkham Grammar School: Independent day school in Kirkham, Lancashire, serving ages 3-18. Direct peer: similar full-continuum day school in the same Lancashire catchment, competing for the same fee-sensitive but academically ambitious families.
• Clitheroe Royal Grammar School: Selective grammar school in Clitheroe, Lancashire, with academy-trust status. Direct peer: direct grammatical-heritage and academy-trust parallel to QEGS in Lancashire, serving overlapping families in the Ribble Valley catchment.

Regional players

• Sedbergh School: Independent co-educational boarding and day school in Cumbria, serving ages 3-19. Regional player: comparable heritage grammar-school identity and full-continuum offer in the broader North West, but boarding-led model and Cumbrian base limit direct overlap with QEGS's Blackburn catchment.

Broad incumbents

• Manchester Grammar School: One of the largest and most prestigious independent boys' day schools in the UK, located in Manchester. Broad incumbent: significantly larger scale, but draws academically ambitious Sixth Form entrants from the same Lancashire catchment, including students who could otherwise choose QEGS.
• Stonyhurst College: Prestigious Catholic independent boarding and day school in Lancashire, serving ages 3-18. Broad incumbent: larger, more prestigious brand in the same Lancashire region, drawing pupils who might otherwise attend QEGS Sixth Form.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/QEGSBlackburn
• Instagraminstagram.com/qegs_blackburn
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/queen-elizabeth's-grammar-school

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School