Ofsted: Outstanding schoolGrammar School trending_up High Demand emoji_events #4 in Essex public Top 1% UK

Colchester County High School for Girls

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

personMrs Gillian Marshall

corporate_fareALPHA TRUST

location_onColchester, CO3 3US

language Visit Website phone 1206576973

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Ofsted

Outstanding

Inspected 2023

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Students

1,149

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Attainment 8

80.6

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GCSE Rank

#4 in Essex

#14 of 3,216 nationally

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Colchester County High School for Girls is a Academy converter secondary school in Colchester, serving ages 11-18. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted — the highest possible grade. Highly competitive: 1.5× more applications than places — plan well ahead.

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School Summary

Colchester County High School for Girls is an academy converter in Colchester, Essex, admitting pupils aged 11-18. It has a sixth form offering post-16 education. It is part of ALPHA TRUST. The school has approximately 1,210 pupils on roll, of whom 5% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 80.6, placing the school #4 in Essex and #14 of 3,216 nationally. 100.00% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 84.8% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

The sixth form offers 21 A-level subjects. 82.6% of A-level entries were graded A*–B, with 57.8% at A*–A. A-level value added: 0.02 — sixth-form progress was broadly average.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2023. The school's current overall rating is Outstanding. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Outstanding, behaviour and attitudes Outstanding, personal development Outstanding, and leadership and management Outstanding.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.5× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 17.5:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.5 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

80.6

Grade 5+ E&M

100.00%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)84.8%

Entering EBacc91.10%

EBacc APS7.82

2024

Progress 8 Score

0.99

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

80.8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc84.30%

EBacc APS7.76

2023

Progress 8 Score

0.99

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

80.5

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc89%

EBacc APS7.78

2022

Progress 8 Score

0.91

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

83.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc91%

EBacc APS8.15

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc93%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

1.01

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

82.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc86%

EBacc APS7.91

2018

Progress 8 Score

1.22

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

81.8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc92%

EBacc APS8.09

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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

100%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)100%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)0%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

99%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)99%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)0%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)97%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

99%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)99%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)1%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

100%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)99%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)0%

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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.

2025

A-Level Value Added

+0.02

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make broadly expected progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

A-

Students

127

Grade Breakdown

Achieving A*22.8%

Achieving A*–A57.8%

Achieving A*–B82.6%

VA Banding Average

Retention rate98.4%

A-level subjects offered21

2024

A-Level Value Added

-0.41

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make below-expected progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

B-

Students

129

Retention rate98.40%

2023

Avg Grade

B+

Students

127

Retention rate97.60%

2022

Avg Grade

A-

Students

139

Retention rate100.0%

Source: DfE A Level and Other 16-18 Results

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

28 November 2023

Inspection Report

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14 February 2012

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2023-11-28

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

Outstanding

Behaviour

Outstanding

Development

Outstanding

Leadership

Outstanding

2009-01-21

Section 5 RTI Historic EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

2006-03-14

None EIF

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

0.7%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.7%(8 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 1,210 pupils. During this period, there were 8 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.7%, 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
2024/25 (Spring term)	1,210	8	0.7%	7.3%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	1,205	4	0.3%	7.8%
2023/24 (Summer term)	1,182	8	0.7%	7.4%
2023/24 (Spring term)	1,183	8	0.7%	7.1%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	1,180	3	0.3%	8.2%
2022/23 (Summer term)	1,148	9	0.8%	6.6%
2022/23 (Spring term)	1,149	9	0.8%	6.4%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	1,140	8	0.7%	5.9%
2021/22 (Summer term)	1,124	0	0.0%	4.7%
2021/22 (Spring term)	1,129	3	0.3%	4.9%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	1,127	2	0.2%	4.4%
2020/21 (Summer term)	1,099	6	0.5%	3.6%
2020/21 (Spring term)	1,097	0	0.0%	1.0%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	1,099	0	0.0%	3.9%
2019/20 (Summer term)	1,031	1	0.1%	0.0%
2019/20 (Spring term)	1,031	0	0.0%	3.2%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	1,032	0	0.0%	4.2%
2018/19 (Summer term)	981	1	0.1%	3.1%
2018/19 (Spring term)	982	5	0.5%	3.8%
2018/19 (Autumn term)	985	0	0.0%	3.8%
2017/18 (Summer term)	932	0	0.0%	3.4%
2017/18 (Spring term)	934	0	0.0%	3.0%
2017/18 (Autumn term)	936	2	0.2%	3.7%
2016/17 (Summer term)	920	6	0.7%	3.0%
2016/17 (Spring term)	921	0	0.0%	3.3%
2016/17 (Autumn term)	922	1	0.1%	3.1%

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.

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 11 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 4 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 2 pupils

Hearing Impairment 1 pupils