A grammar school has confirmed it is changing its name as it still awaits a decision on whether it will be allowed to accept girls.

Chatham Grammar School for Boys is hoping to become a coeducational from September next year. As part of the move it said it would change its name.

As the school in Letworth Avenue still awaits a decision from the Department for Education, it has announced its name will definitely be changing to Holcombe Grammar School as this was the most popular choice during a consultantation at the end of last year.

A letter to patents from head teacher Juliet Diaz states: “Holcombe is, of course, the name of the old house around which the school is built so the name itself is not new, rather a return to the original.”

The school said it will be using the name Holcombe more and more over the next year so that by September 2017 all documents and school-related items will bear the new name.

Principal Juliet Diaz said: “We are delighted to announce that from September 1, 2017, Chatham Grammar School for Boys will officially become Holcombe Grammar School.

“The new name was chosen by parents and students after a consultation at the end of last year, and has now been approved by governors.

“We are extremely excited about the new name, which reflects the progress the school has made in recent years since joining the Thinking Schools Academy Trust.

"The school achieved record GCSE and A level results in 2014 and 2015, is rated good by Ofsted, and is extremely well-placed to build on this.

“We look forward to continuing to deliver the highest quality of education to young people in the area, where we have an expanding school-age population.”

The school said it will know the government’s decision on accepting girls by the time applications for next year open this September.

Ms Diaz said the notification from the Department for Education was “imminent”.

The move has already been met with some opposition from Chatham MP Tracey Crouch and Medway Council due to concerns about the reduction in the availability of boys’ grammar places.

The school has said becoming coeducational is “an exciting proposition that will help serve the needs of all students in the local area”.