Ofsted: Good trending_up Places Available emoji_events #24 in Somerset public Top 34% UK

Whitstone

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

personMr Guy Swallow

corporate_fareWHITSTONE SCHOOL ACADEMY TRUST

location_onShepton Mallet, BA4 5PF

language Visit Website phone 1749345555

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2022

groups

Students

555

trending_up

Attainment 8

40.5

leaderboard

GCSE Rank

#26 in Somerset

#2,472 of 3,216 nationally

summarize

Whitstone is a Academy converter secondary school in Shepton Mallet, serving ages 11-16. Rated Good by Ofsted.

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School Summary

Whitstone is an academy converter in Shepton Mallet, Somerset, admitting pupils aged 11-16. It is part of WHITSTONE SCHOOL ACADEMY TRUST. The school has approximately 578 pupils on roll, of whom 25% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 40.5, placing the school #26 in Somerset and #2,472 of 3,216 nationally. 35.10% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 7.3% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

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 Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 1.0× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 15.4:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were 2 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 44.5 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

40.5

Grade 5+ E&M

35.10%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)7.3%

Entering EBacc25.20%

EBacc APS3.61

2024

Progress 8 Score

0.06

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

43.6

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc18.80%

EBacc APS3.86

2023

Progress 8 Score

-0.30

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

43.9

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc19%

EBacc APS3.73

2022

Progress 8 Score

-0.28

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

44.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc12%

EBacc APS3.65

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc5%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

-0.76

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

39.3

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc7%

EBacc APS3.34

2018

Progress 8 Score

-0.36

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

42.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc10%

EBacc APS3.43

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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

92%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)72%

Apprenticeships13%

Employment6%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)8%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

92%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)79%

Apprenticeships4%

Employment9%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)8%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

93%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)76%

Apprenticeships10%

Employment7%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)5%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

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

Apprenticeships4%

Employment6%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

95%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)78%

Apprenticeships11%

Employment7%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)5%

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

26 April 2022

Inspection Report

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09 February 2017

Inspection Report

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20 February 2013

Inspection Report

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14 February 2012

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

4 Evaluations

2022-04-26

S5 Inspection EIF

Good

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2017-02-09

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2013-02-20

S5 Inspection Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2010-10-06

None EIF

Requires improvement

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

35.8%per term

warning Above Average

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

12.3%(71 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 578 pupils. During this period, there were 207 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 35.8%, which is above 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)	578	207	35.8%	7.3%	2
2024/25 (Autumn term)	584	311	53.3%	7.8%	0
2023/24 (Summer term)	581	202	34.8%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	584	78	13.4%	7.1%	1
2023/24 (Autumn term)	590	67	11.4%	8.2%	0
2022/23 (Summer term)	548	26	4.7%	6.6%	0
2022/23 (Spring term)	555	38	6.8%	6.4%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	559	42	7.5%	5.9%	0
2021/22 (Summer term)	553	41	7.4%	4.7%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	559	50	8.9%	4.9%	0
2021/22 (Autumn term)	560	45	8.0%	4.4%	0
2020/21 (Summer term)	530	56	10.6%	3.6%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	536	11	2.1%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	548	64	11.7%	3.9%	0
2019/20 (Summer term)	520	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	520	54	10.4%	3.2%	1
2019/20 (Autumn term)	528	34	6.4%	4.2%	1
2018/19 (Summer term)	509	21	4.1%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	506	24	4.7%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	514	26	5.1%	3.8%	1
2017/18 (Summer term)	492	23	4.7%	3.4%	1
2017/18 (Spring term)	493	10	2.0%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	497	18	3.6%	3.7%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	453	11	2.4%	3.0%	0
2016/17 (Spring term)	454	6	1.3%	3.3%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	455	9	2.0%	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.

Moderate Learning Difficulty 37 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 22 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 17 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 17 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 17 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 7 pupils

Severe Learning Difficulty 3 pupils

Physical Disability 2 pupils

Hearing Impairment 1 pupils

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Whitstone

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 Somerset

The Castle School

Sexey's School

Huish Episcopi Academy

The Blue School

Haygrove School

The Kings of Wessex Academy