Ofsted: Good trending_up Places Available emoji_events #53 in Hertfordshire public Top 22% UK

Birchwood High School

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

personMr Sam Griffin

corporate_fareBIRCHWOOD HIGH SCHOOL

location_onBishop's Stortford, CM23 5BD

language Visit Website phone 1279655936

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2025

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Students

1,418

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Attainment 8

46.1

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GCSE Rank

#53 in Hertfordshire

#1,530 of 3,216 nationally

summarize

Birchwood High School is a Academy converter secondary school in Bishop's Stortford, serving ages 11-18. Rated Good by Ofsted.

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School Summary

Birchwood High School is an academy converter in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, admitting pupils aged 11-18. It has a sixth form offering post-16 education. It is part of BIRCHWOOD HIGH SCHOOL. The school has approximately 1,454 pupils on roll, of whom 20% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 46.1, placing the school #53 in Hertfordshire and #1,530 of 3,216 nationally. 41.60% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 18.0% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

The sixth form offers 23 A-level subjects. 44.1% of A-level entries were graded A*–B, with 14.7% at A*–A. A-level value added: +0.12 — students made above-average progress at sixth form.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2025. 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 0.8× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 16.0:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were 2 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 11.5 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

46.1

Grade 5+ E&M

41.60%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)18.0%

Entering EBacc35.80%

EBacc APS4.02

2024

Progress 8 Score

-0.08

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

48.1

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc40.30%

EBacc APS4.25

2023

Progress 8 Score

-0.45

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

45.1

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc35%

EBacc APS3.94

2022

Progress 8 Score

-0.37

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

48.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc59%

EBacc APS4.49

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc54%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

-0.07

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

46.5

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc52%

EBacc APS4.17

2018

Progress 8 Score

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

49.3

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc21%

EBacc APS4.21

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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

93%

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

Apprenticeships4%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)6%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

95%

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

Apprenticeships2%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

95%

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

Apprenticeships1%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)5%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

95%

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

Apprenticeships1%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)88%

Apprenticeships5%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

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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

+0.12

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make above-average progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Grade Breakdown

Achieving A*2.3%

Achieving A*–A14.7%

Achieving A*–B44.1%

VA Banding Average

Retention rate94.7%

A-level subjects offered23

2024

A-Level Value Added

-0.05

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make broadly expected progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Retention rate94.00%

2023

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Retention rate94.80%

2022

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Retention rate100.0%

Source: DfE A Level and Other 16-18 Results

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

21 January 2025

Inspection Report

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27 June 2019

Inspection Report

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23 May 2018

Inspection Report

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09 May 2017

Inspection Report

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15 January 2016

Inspection Report

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01 July 2015

Inspection Report

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15 January 2013

Inspection Report

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14 February 2012

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

6 Evaluations

2025-01-21

S5 Inspection EIF

Not Judged

info

Why no overall grade?

From autumn 2024, Ofsted stopped issuing a single headline grade (Outstanding / Good / RI / Inadequate). Instead, each inspection area is graded individually. This follows a major review after the death of headteacher Ruth Perry in 2023. The overall effectiveness field is left as "Not judged" in the published data.

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2019-06-27

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 2 Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2018-05-23

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2017-05-09

None Legacy

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Requires improvement

2016-01-15

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2015-07-01

None Legacy

Requires improvement

Education

Requires improvement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

Requires improvement

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

11.3%per term

warning Above Average

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

5.7%(83 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 1,454 pupils. During this period, there were 164 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 11.3%, 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)	1,454	164	11.3%	7.3%	2
2024/25 (Autumn term)	1,454	171	11.8%	7.8%	0
2023/24 (Summer term)	1,436	91	6.3%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	1,425	85	6.0%	7.1%	1
2023/24 (Autumn term)	1,416	83	5.9%	8.2%	1
2022/23 (Summer term)	1,424	95	6.7%	6.6%	1
2022/23 (Spring term)	1,418	91	6.4%	6.4%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	1,411	71	5.0%	5.9%	0
2021/22 (Summer term)	1,393	77	5.5%	4.7%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	1,407	107	7.6%	4.9%	0
2021/22 (Autumn term)	1,416	103	7.3%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	1,375	111	8.1%	3.6%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	1,365	10	0.7%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	1,369	53	3.9%	3.9%	0
2019/20 (Summer term)	1,354	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	1,354	69	5.1%	3.2%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	1,361	83	6.1%	4.2%	1
2018/19 (Summer term)	1,356	44	3.2%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	1,345	36	2.7%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	1,358	55	4.1%	3.8%	0
2017/18 (Summer term)	1,324	47	3.5%	3.4%	1
2017/18 (Spring term)	1,337	26	1.9%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	1,334	23	1.7%	3.7%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	1,391	47	3.4%	3.0%	1
2016/17 (Spring term)	1,389	52	3.7%	3.3%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	1,396	31	2.2%	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 72 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 44 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 38 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 15 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 7 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 5 pupils

Physical Disability 1 pupils