Varndean School
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Varndean School is a council school in Brighton for boys and girls aged 11 to 16. It has 1,487 pupils and room for 1,500. About 23 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit fewer than at most schools. We give it 68 out of 100. That puts it above schools like it, ahead of 60% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2022.
Balfour Road, Brighton, BN1 6NP01273 561281varndean.co.ukMrs Shelley Baker headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 5 October 2022, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Good overall.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
299 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019 | 2018 | Brighton and Hove | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 299 | 293 | 293 | 264 | 260 | 255 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 48.8 | 53.5 | 54.5 | 57.3 | 54.6 | 53.0 | 45.6 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | +0.42 | +0.36 | +0.41 | +0.36 | +0.33 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 56% | 66% | 68% | 71% | 62% | 59% | 45% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 73% | 80% | 82% | 85% | 81% | 75% | 65% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 4.54 | 4.99 | 4.98 | 5.26 | 4.91 | 4.65 | 4.17 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 68% | 66% | 59% | 64% | 57% | 40% | 51% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 33.8 | 39.8 | 42.1 | 43.8 | 38.8 | 42.0 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | 53.8 | 57.5 | 57.5 | 60.4 | 59.3 | 56.5 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 30.9 | 33.4 | 35.2 | 27.5 | 26.9 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started aheadAttainment 8, high prior attainers | – | 69.7 | 65.9 | 74.0 | 65.1 | 66.2 | – | – |
Subjects
Results came out for 25 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.
Strongest subjects
Subjects that did worse than the England average: Food Preparation & Nutrition (36% here, 52% across England), Drama (51% here, 60% across England).
The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.
Every subject against England, 2025
| Subject | Entries | Grades 9 to 7 | Grades 9 to 5 | Grades 9 to 4 | England 9 to 5 | Rank in England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 297 | 21% | 57% | 73% | 54% | 1,173 of 3,210 |
| Mathematics | 297 | 34% | 65% | 79% | 53% | 638 of 3,211 |
| English Literature | 285 | 20% | 63% | 77% | 58% | 1,060 of 3,202 |
| Combined Science | 191 | 7% | 37% | 64% | 36% | 1,296 of 3,084 |
| History | 138 | 23% | 51% | 60% | 52% | 1,496 of 3,126 |
| Geography | 127 | 34% | 64% | 75% | 51% | 670 of 3,116 |
| Spanish | 118 | 21% | 53% | 65% | 54% | 1,039 of 1,941 |
| Physics | 96 | 41% | 94% | 97% | 82% | 862 of 2,546 |
| Chemistry | 95 | 46% | 93% | 98% | 81% | 944 of 2,537 |
| Biology | 94 | 49% | 95% | 100% | 82% | 797 of 2,570 |
| Social Studies | 90 | 23% | 59% | 71% | 54% | 422 of 1,043 |
| French | 88 | 40% | 65% | 67% | 60% | 911 of 1,974 |
| Art and Design | 88 | 21% | 65% | 86% | 58% | 1,122 of 2,818 |
| Drama | 59 | 19% | 51% | 75% | 60% | 590 of 844 |
| Design & Technology | 51 | 33% | 71% | 77% | 50% | 275 of 1,478 |
| Food Preparation & Nutrition | 33 | 18% | 36% | 52% | 52% | 823 of 1,098 |
| Dance | 31 | 42% | 74% | 87% | 58% | 22 of 74 |
| Statistics | 29 | 79% | 97% | 100% | 51% | 62 of 375 |
| Film Studies | 23 | 22% | 57% | 74% | 52% | 49 of 122 |
| Media / Film / TV | 19 | 37% | 53% | 74% | 55% | – |
| Computer Science | 16 | 31% | 75% | 81% | 56% | – |
| Music | 14 | 79% | 100% | 100% | 61% | – |
| Other Modern Languages | 13 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 49% | – |
| German | 12 | 75% | 100% | 100% | 63% | – |
| Physical Education | 7 | 43% | 100% | 100% | 56% | – |
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.
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. 1 of the 3 gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At GCSE, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
Getting a place
Open to all. There is no entrance test.
Fewer than one place in twenty is empty, so in most years more families apply than there are places. Living close by, or already having a child here, makes a real difference. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.
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 Brighton and Hove council's admissions booklet, send it to us.
Who goes here
Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (190), Specific learning difficulty (129), emotional and mental health (121), Moderate learning difficulty (63), language and communications needs (16), Hearing impairment (7).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 1,487 | 1,497 | 1,490 | 1,498 | 1,466 | 1,419 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 23% | 20% | 21% | 19% | 17% | 17% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 9% | 9% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 9% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 25% | 23% | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 6% | 5% | 4% | 4% | 3% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 90.8% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 91.4%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19 | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 9.2% | 10.0% | 8.6% | 9.0% | 4.8% | 5.2% | 8.6% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 7.5% | 7.8% | 7.1% | 7.7% | 4.0% | 4.0% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 1.7% | 2.2% | 1.4% | 1.3% | 0.7% | 1.2% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 21.9% | 24.7% | 20.5% | 23.8% | 11.2% | 12.0% | 23.9% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 6.5 | 6.3 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 6.9 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | – | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 293 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Among pupils from low-income families it was 91%, compared with 97% for everyone else.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers | 2020/21 leavers | 2019/20 leavers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 96% | 94% | 95% | 95% |
| Education | 94% | 92% | 94% | 94% |
| Apprenticeship | 1% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Work | 1% | 1% | 1% | 1% |
| Not in education, work or training | 3% | 5% | 3% | 5% |
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
Money
From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other secondary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.
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
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 secondary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dorothy Stringer School | Council | 470 m | 1,626 | Good 2023 | 63 | Compare |
| Patcham High School | Council | 0.9 miles | 1,074 | Good 2023 | 35 | Compare |
| Cardinal Newman Catholic School | Roman Catholic | 1.3 miles | 2,657 | No overall grade 2024 | 80 | Compare |
| Brighton Aldridge Community Academy | Academy | 1.9 miles | 808 | No overall grade 2025 | 18 | Compare |
| Blatchington Mill School | Council | 2.0 miles | 1,622 | Good 2022 | 68 | Compare |
| Hove Park School and Sixth Form Centre | Council | 2.0 miles | 941 | Report card 2026 | 18 | Compare |
| King's School | Free school | 2.4 miles | 925 | Report card 2026 | 86 | Compare |
| Longhill High School | Council | 3.7 miles | 632 | Requires improvement 2024 | 2 | Compare |
Compared with schools like it
Our score compares Varndean School with the 47 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 47 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.
How the score was worked out
The score is out of 100. A 68 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 68% of secondary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 60 to 75. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.
| What we looked at | How much it counts | Against schools like it | Effect on the score | Based on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results over three years | 20% | above | +0.12 | 2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 299 pupils |
| Ofsted inspection | 18% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old) | in line | +0.02 | Ofsted grade, 3.9 years old |
| Progress pupils make | 20% | above | +0.16 | DfE progress measure; 299 pupils |
| Direction of travel over five years | 10% | well below | -0.14 | results and attendance falling year on year |
| Attendance and behaviour | 10% | in line | +0.01 | 2024/25; 1,528 pupils |
| Results, allowing for the mix of pupils | 10% | above | +0.06 | Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 299 pupils |
| What pupils do next | 5% | above | +0.04 | 293 pupils |
| What parents say | 0% | no data | – |
Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.
Questions parents ask
Is Varndean School a good school?
Yes, going by the figures. Varndean School scores 68 out of 100. That is above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 60% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 60 to 75, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.
What is Varndean School's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Varndean School good at its last full inspection on 5 October 2022.
How good are Varndean School's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 56% 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 48.8, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished about half a grade ahead of children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How many pupils does Varndean School have?
1,487 pupils aged 11 to 16 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 1,500 places, so it is 99% full.
Is Varndean School oversubscribed?
Often. Fewer than one place in twenty was empty in 2024/25, so popular year groups fill up.
What is attendance like at Varndean School?
Pupils were in school 90.8% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 91.4%. 22% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
How big are the classes at Varndean School?
The average class had 24.6 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 22.8. 19% of classes had more than 30 pupils.
Does Varndean School have a sixth form?
No. Pupils leave after Year 11 for a sixth form elsewhere, a college or an apprenticeship; 96% of 2022/23 leavers were still in education, work or training six months on.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- Balfour Road, Brighton, BN1 6NP
- Telephone
- 01273 561281
- Website
- www.varndean.co.uk
- Headteacher
- Mrs Shelley Baker
- Type of school
- Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
- Phase
- Secondary school, ages 11-16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Local authority
- Brighton and Hove
- Ward
- Preston Park
- Constituency
- Brighton Pavilion
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- URN
- 114579 · LAESTAB 8464012 · UKPRN 10015965
Recent changes
- New KS4 results for 2024/25
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Class sizes: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, consistent financial reporting 2024/25.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.