Ofsted: Good trending_up Places Available emoji_events #3 in Suffolk public Top 13% UK

Bury St Edmunds County High School

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

personMs Sally Kennedy

corporate_fareUNITY SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP

location_onBury St Edmunds, IP32 6RF

language Visit Website phone 1284754857

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Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2022

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Students

659

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Attainment 8

49.8

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GCSE Rank

#4 in Suffolk

#957 of 3,216 nationally

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Bury St Edmunds County High School is a Academy converter secondary school in Bury St Edmunds, serving ages 11-16. Rated Good by Ofsted.

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School Summary

Bury St Edmunds County High School is an academy converter in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, admitting pupils aged 11-16. It has a sixth form offering post-16 education. It is part of UNITY SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP. The school has approximately 739 pupils on roll, of whom 25% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 49.8, placing the school #4 in Suffolk and #957 of 3,216 nationally. 53.00% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 24.9% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

A-level value added: +0.45 — students made above-average progress at sixth form.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2022. The school's current overall rating is Good. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 0.5× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 19.8:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were 3 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 6.1 per 1,000 pupils per term.

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

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

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Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

49.8

Grade 5+ E&M

53.00%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)24.9%

Entering EBacc58.30%

EBacc APS4.64

2024

Progress 8 Score

-0.09

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

46.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc62.40%

EBacc APS4.34

2023

Progress 8 Score

-0.17

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

46.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc63%

EBacc APS4.38

2022

Progress 8 Score

-0.2

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

49.9

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc72%

EBacc APS4.84

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc65%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

-0.08

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

48.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc69%

EBacc APS4.53

2018

Progress 8 Score

0.39

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

50.8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc79%

EBacc APS4.85

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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

98%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)93%

Apprenticeships3%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)1%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

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

Apprenticeships5%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

98%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)94%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)2%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)95%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)87%

Apprenticeships5%

Employment4%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

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Sixth Form (A-Level) Performance

A-level results for students who stayed in sixth form at this school. Value added measures how much progress students made relative to their GCSE starting point.

2024

A-Level Value Added

+0.45

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils do significantly better than expected at A-level.

Avg Grade

Students

Retention rate89.50%

2023

Avg Grade

Students

Retention rate91.40%

2022

Avg Grade

C+

Students

113

Retention rate93.8%

Source: DfE A Level and Other 16-18 Results

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

15 March 2022

Inspection Report

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30 June 2021

Inspection Report

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25 February 2021

Inspection Report

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05 November 2020

Inspection Report

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03 July 2019

Inspection Report

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16 January 2019

Inspection Report

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18 September 2013

Inspection Report

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14 February 2012

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

4 Evaluations

2022-03-15

Serious Weaknesses S5 Reinspection EIF

Good

Education

Good

Behaviour

Requires improvement

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2019-07-03

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2019-01-16

S8 No Formal Designation Visit Legacy

Inadequate

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Inadequate

2013-09-18

None Legacy

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

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

6.6%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

4.1%(30 pupils)

Spring term 2025

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

Permanent Exclusions

2pupils

gavel Exclusion recorded

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 739 pupils. During this period, there were 49 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 6.6%, 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)	739	49	6.6%	7.3%	2
2024/25 (Autumn term)	744	42	5.6%	7.8%	1
2023/24 (Summer term)	856	27	3.2%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	855	49	5.7%	7.1%	1
2023/24 (Autumn term)	856	44	5.1%	8.2%	1
2022/23 (Summer term)	651	20	3.1%	6.6%	0
2022/23 (Spring term)	659	21	3.2%	6.4%	2
2022/23 (Autumn term)	668	25	3.7%	5.9%	2
2021/22 (Summer term)	797	32	4.0%	4.7%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	810	37	4.6%	4.9%	1
2021/22 (Autumn term)	816	45	5.5%	4.4%	2
2020/21 (Summer term)	916	23	2.5%	3.6%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	912	0	0.0%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	917	2	0.2%	3.9%	0
2019/20 (Summer term)	973	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	973	0	0.0%	3.2%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	972	5	0.5%	4.2%	0
2018/19 (Summer term)	1,038	0	0.0%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	1,032	0	0.0%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	1,032	0	0.0%	3.8%	0
2017/18 (Summer term)	1,018	0	0.0%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	1,019	0	0.0%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	1,027	0	0.0%	3.7%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	982	0	0.0%	3.0%	0
2016/17 (Spring term)	983	0	0.0%	3.3%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	995	0	0.0%	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.

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 46 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 37 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 22 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 11 pupils

Physical Disability 5 pupils

Visual Impairment 2 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 2 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 1 pupils