School Chooser

Bromley Beacon Academy

Special · ages 7-18MixedAcademy186 pupilsSixth form Free breakfast clubOrpingtonBromley
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, March 2024
Strong pass in English and maths0%England 46%
Attendance70.9%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families90%Far more than most schools
PlacesFull186 pupils, 168 places
Pupils per teacher6.2School workforce census

Bromley Beacon Academy is a sponsored special academy in Orpington for boys and girls aged 7 to 18. It has 186 pupils, 18 more than it has places for. About 90 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2024.

Avalon Road, Orpington, BR6 9BD01689 821205bromleybeaconacademy.org.ukBishop Philip Tagoe headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 20 March 2024 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.

Results

GCSE results, summer 2025

21 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.

Average GCSE score3.6
England 46.8
Official name: Attainment 8
Strong pass in English and maths0%
England 46%
Official name: Grade 5+ in English and maths
Standard pass in English and maths0%
England 66%
Official name: Grade 4+ in English and maths
Progress from age 11-2.67In each subject, pupils here finished well over a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level. (From 2023/24, the latest year there is. The government didn't work it out for the 2025 year group.)Official name: Progress 8
Trend
Average GCSE score
2018 to 2025
2018: 1.91.920182019: 1.91.920192022: 3.93.920222023: 4.44.420232024: 4.44.420242025: 3.63.62025
Since 2018: +1.7
All GCSE measures, year by year
Measure202520242023202220192018BromleyEngland
Pupils at the end of Year 11212226222318
Average GCSE scoreAttainment 83.64.44.43.91.91.951.846.8
Progress from age 11Progress 8-2.67-2.43-2.72-2.62-2.93
Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%55%46%
Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%73%66%
Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score0.120.270.150.210.110.144.744.15
Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry0%0%0%0%0%0%55%41%
Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers2.02.84.50.21.0

Subjects

Results came out for 1 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.

Subjects that did worse than the England average: Mathematics (0% here, 53% across England).

What is taught here

The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.

Every subject against England, 2025
Mathematics21 entries
0%England 53%
SubjectEntriesGrades 9 to 7Grades 9 to 5Grades 9 to 4England 9 to 5Rank in England
Mathematics210%0%0%53%

In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

8 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 110%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level0%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score94.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score92.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 0%0%20172018: 0%0%20182019: 0%0%20192023: 0%0%20232024: 0%0%20242025: 0%0%2025
Since 2017: +0%
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017BromleyEngland
Pupils tested81196610
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%70%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%13%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score94.096.083.098.087.093.0107.1105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score92.089.086.094.092.093.0106.4104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score92.099.086.095.083.088.0106.7105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard25%9%0%50%0%10%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard13%0%0%0%0%0%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)0%18%0%0%0%10%
Reading progressReading progress score-4.8-9.1
Maths progressMaths progress score-8.7-6.7

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Bromley council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll186Census January 2026
Places168111% full
Pupils from low-income families87%90% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English1%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support0%0 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan100%186 pupils with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)79%£155,350 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls163 / 23
White British pupils63%

Specialist SEND provision. A special school for pupils with social, emotional and mental health.

To get a place in the unit or resourced provision, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school. Other schools in Bromley with social, emotional and mental health provision.

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (184), Specific learning difficulty (1), language and communications needs (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll186173159163167151
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals87%84%88%88%75%80%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language1%1%1%1%0%0%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support0%0%0%0%0%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans100%100%100%100%100%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 70.9% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance70.9%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school65.5%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils90.22024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission15.8%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence29.2%30.8%29.8%26.6%26.0%20.0%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence13.3%12.9%14.3%16.1%21.3%11.0%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence15.8%17.9%15.5%10.5%4.7%8.9%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence65.5%67.4%58.3%69.1%87.2%51.9%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate90.284.975.597.045.7
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

What pupils do next

After GCSEs

Where the 26 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.

Still in education, work or training85%and stayed there for at least six months
Earlier years
Destination2022/23 leavers2021/22 leavers2020/21 leavers2019/20 leavers
Still in education, work or training85%55%75%79%
Education85%55%69%71%
Apprenticeship0%0%6%0%
Work0%0%0%8%
Not in education, work or training4%27%13%21%

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers30.0full-time equivalent, 30 people
Pupils per teacher6.2Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers70%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants29.7full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£54,636
Teachers who left in the year23%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher7.62024/25

Money

From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other special schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£37,503England £30,720. Total £6.5m
Income per pupil£41,792England £33,526. Total £7.2m
Spent on teachers per pupil£11,763England £11,966
Money in reserve16%A healthy amount put by: £1.1m, £6,488 per pupil. England 16%
Money in against money out+£742kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£37,503spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m14012 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate75 per 1,000 people18% lower than the England average
Typical house price£515,000Bromley
Nearest bus stop60 mCraven Road (BR6), 8 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Orion BlenheimAcademy300 m196Not inspected77Compare
Harris Academy OrpingtonAcademy570 m499Good 202351Compare
St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar SchoolChurch of England (grammar)0.6 miles1,084No overall grade 2024100Compare
Harris Primary Academy OrpingtonAcademy0.7 miles269Not inspected55Compare
The Highway Primary SchoolAcademy0.8 miles207Good 202473Compare
Dorton College of Further EducationSpecial post 16 institution0.8 milesNot inspectedCompare
St Philomena's Primary SchoolAcademy0.9 miles202Good 202390Compare
Chelsfield Primary SchoolAcademy1.0 miles97No overall grade 202419Compare

Questions parents ask

Is Bromley Beacon Academy a good school?

Bromley Beacon Academy doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in March 2024.

What is Bromley Beacon Academy's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Bromley Beacon Academy good at its last full inspection on 20 March 2024.

How good are Bromley Beacon Academy's GCSE results?

In summer 2025, 0% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 3.6, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished well over a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.

How good are Bromley Beacon Academy's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 0% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 0% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.

How many pupils does Bromley Beacon Academy have?

186 pupils aged 7 to 18 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 168 places, so it is 111% full.

What is attendance like at Bromley Beacon Academy?

Pupils were in school 70.9% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 66% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

Does Bromley Beacon Academy have specialist SEND provision?

Yes. It is a special school for social, emotional and mental health. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.

Does Bromley Beacon Academy have a breakfast club?

Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.

Does Bromley Beacon Academy have a sixth form?

Yes.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Avalon Road, Orpington, BR6 9BD
Telephone
01689 821205
Website
bromleybeaconacademy.org.uk
Headteacher
Bishop Philip Tagoe
Free breakfast club
Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
Type of school
Sponsored special academy (Academy special sponsor led, academies)
Phase
Special school, ages 7-18, with sixth form
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
London South East Academies Trust (19 schools)
Local authority
Bromley
Ward
Orpington
Constituency
Orpington
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 February 2016 (new provision)
URN
141989 · LAESTAB 3057001 · UKPRN 10049505
Formerly
Burwood School

Recent changes

  • New KS4 results for 2024/25

Where these figures come from