Ofsted: Good trending_up Popular emoji_events #4 in East Sussex public Top 14% UK

Chailey School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMrs Helen Key

location_onLewes, BN8 4PU

language Visit Website phone 1273890407

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2017

groups

Students

827

trending_up

Attainment 8

49.3

leaderboard

GCSE Rank

#5 in East Sussex

#1,031 of 3,216 nationally

summarize

Chailey School is a Community school secondary school in Lewes, serving ages 11-16. Rated Good by Ofsted. Demand is above capacity (1.3×) — apply through your local authority on time.

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School Summary

Chailey School is a community school in Lewes, East Sussex, admitting pupils aged 11-16. The school has approximately 855 pupils on roll, of whom 13% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 49.3, placing the school #5 in East Sussex and #1,031 of 3,216 nationally. 52.40% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 25.7% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2017. The school's current overall rating is Good.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.3× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 16.9:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 3.8 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

analytics

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

49.3

Grade 5+ E&M

52.40%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)25.7%

Entering EBacc71.40%

EBacc APS4.66

2024

Progress 8 Score

0.36

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

53.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc72.90%

EBacc APS5.01

2023

Progress 8 Score

-0.08

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

47.7

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc77%

EBacc APS4.51

2022

Progress 8 Score

0.01

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

51.7

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc77%

EBacc APS4.83

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc78%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

0.04

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

49.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc46%

EBacc APS4.48

2018

Progress 8 Score

0.56

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

52.9

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc70%

EBacc APS4.87

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Student Destinations (After Secondary)

This module shows what students did after finishing Key Stage 4 (GCSEs). It reflects how well the school prepares pupils for the real world.

2025

Stayed in Education / Employment

91%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)84%

Apprenticeships4%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)89%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment5%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)92%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment2%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

92%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)91%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)6%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

93%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)85%

Apprenticeships5%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)6%

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

19 January 2022

Inspection Report

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10 January 2017

Inspection Report

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08 February 2012

Inspection Report

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30 June 2010

Inspection Report

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02 February 2009

Inspection Report

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10 October 2006

Inspection Report

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08 May 2001

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2017-01-10

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2012-02-08

S5 Inspection Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2006-10-10

None EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

4.2%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 7.3% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

3.2%(27 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 855 pupils. During this period, there were 36 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 4.2%, which is below the termly national average of 7.3%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg	Perm. Excl.
2024/25 (Spring term)	855	36	4.2%	7.3%	0
2024/25 (Autumn term)	869	29	3.3%	7.8%	0
2023/24 (Summer term)	835	23	2.8%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	840	12	1.4%	7.1%	1
2023/24 (Autumn term)	851	25	2.9%	8.2%	0
2022/23 (Summer term)	828	36	4.3%	6.6%	1
2022/23 (Spring term)	827	35	4.2%	6.4%	1
2022/23 (Autumn term)	836	37	4.4%	5.9%	1
2021/22 (Summer term)	798	15	1.9%	4.7%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	788	16	2.0%	4.9%	1
2021/22 (Autumn term)	798	12	1.5%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	785	19	2.4%	3.6%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	787	10	1.3%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	782	34	4.3%	3.9%	1
2019/20 (Summer term)	759	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	759	11	1.4%	3.2%	1
2019/20 (Autumn term)	764	16	2.1%	4.2%	2
2018/19 (Summer term)	753	17	2.3%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	756	23	3.0%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	756	22	2.9%	3.8%	1
2017/18 (Summer term)	724	14	1.9%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	731	22	3.0%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	734	25	3.4%	3.7%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	730	9	1.2%	3.0%	0
2016/17 (Spring term)	728	26	3.6%	3.3%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	724	5	0.7%	3.1%	0

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Specific Learning Difficulty 38 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 32 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 30 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 13 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 7 pupils

Hearing Impairment 3 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 3 pupils

Visual Impairment 2 pupils

Physical Disability 2 pupils

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Chailey School

School Summary

Academic Performance

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

Student Destinations (After Secondary)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Secondary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Secondary Schools in East Sussex

Claverham Community College

Heathfield Community College

Beacon Academy

Seaford Head School

King's Academy Ringmer

Uckfield College