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Westcliff High School for Boys Academy

Secondary · Westcliff-on-Sea · SS0 0BP

Data updated

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Outstanding

Graded inspection under the pre-November 2025 system

This is an overall-effectiveness grade from the previous inspection framework. The school has not yet had a report-card inspection.

Quality of education: OutstandingBehaviour & attitudes: OutstandingPersonal development: OutstandingLeadership & management: OutstandingSafeguarding effective: Yes

Inspected 21 November 2023

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

1,309 pupils · 101% of 1,300 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
11–18
Gender
Boys
Admissions
Selective
Free school meals
5.2% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
17.6% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
2.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
0.3% of pupils (2024/2025)
Sixth form
Yes
Website
http://www.whsb.essex.sch.uk
URN
136272

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 280 families named it first for 182 Year 7 places, 1.54 first choices per place. We hold 4 Year 7 admissions rounds for it, 2023 to 2026; none was decided by a published distance. Ofsted last graded it Outstanding on 21 November 2023, under the framework used before November 2025. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 3.4% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026

1.54 first-choice applications per place

182 places offered · 280 first-choice applications · heavily oversubscribed

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures. Places for 2026 entry were decided by test scores, not distance.

Admissions cutoff distance: Year 7

Places for 2026 entry were decided by test scores, not distance.

Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

GCSE results (2024/2025)

177 pupils at the end of key stage 4 in 2024/2025

Attainment 8 score
77.6
England 46.1
Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs
100%
England 64.8%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
97.7%
England 45.4%
EBacc average point score
7.5
England 4.1

Progress 8 is suspended nationally for 2024/25 and 2025/26. These cohorts sat no key stage 2 tests (COVID), so there is no baseline to measure progress from.

A-level results (2024/2025)

A-level points per entry (England: 35 ≈ B-) B+
43.3
England 35

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Attainment 8, 2024/2025

This school77.6
Median of its 12 closest peers74.2
Southend-on-Sea average54.7
England46.1

On attainment 8, this school is ahead of the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8
Westcliff High School for GirlsWestcliff-on-Sea · under 1 mile awayOutstanding75.6
The Latymer SchoolLondon · 32 miles awayStrong standard80.1
Chelmsford County High School for GirlsChelmsford · 16 miles awayOutstanding80.7
Sir Henry Floyd Grammar SchoolAylesbury · 66 miles awayOutstanding73.2
Heckmondwike Grammar SchoolHeckmondwike · 178 miles awayStrong standard80.2
Southend High School for GirlsSouthend-on-Sea · 3 miles awayOutstanding75
The King's School, GranthamGrantham · 109 miles awayGood72.7
Pate's Grammar SchoolCheltenham · 122 miles awayOutstanding82.7
Royal Latin SchoolBuckingham · 77 miles awayGood73.5
Invicta Grammar SchoolMaidstone · 20 miles awayOutstanding70.8
The Rochester Grammar SchoolRochester · 14 miles awayGood68.4
The Queen Elizabeth's High School, GainsboroughGainsborough · 142 miles awayGood62.5

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 32% (Southend-on-Sea 56%, England 59%) · Asian Indian 21% (Southend-on-Sea 7%, England 4%) · Black African 9% (Southend-on-Sea 9%, England 5%) · Any other Asian background 8% (Southend-on-Sea 4%, England 3%) · Asian Bangladeshi 8% (Southend-on-Sea 3%, England 2%) · Asian Pakistani 5% (Southend-on-Sea 2%, England 5%) · Any other White background 4% (Southend-on-Sea 6%, England 7%) · Asian Chinese 3% (Southend-on-Sea 1%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Asian 3% (Southend-on-Sea 2%, England 2%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (Southend-on-Sea 3%, England 3%) · Any other Black background 2% (Southend-on-Sea 1%, England 1%) · Any other ethnic group 1% (Southend-on-Sea 1%, England 3%) · other groups together 1%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
3.4%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
4.7%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

0.85 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Southend-on-Sea: 14.34 suspensions and 0.19 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
18.8
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

92% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 8% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, secondary academies: 0.45% vacant, 0.33% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

46.2% of teachers took sickness absence, 6.9 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £50,299; 5.6% on the leadership pay range · England, secondary schools: £53,766, 11.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£6,465
Typical secondary school£7,846

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for secondary schools in brackets: Staff 83% (77%) · premises 2% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 5% (6%) · supplies and services 10% (11%) · educational supplies 8% (6%) · bought-in professional services 2% (1%) · catering 2% (3%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £1,344,000; in-year balance +£516,000

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Where pupils go after GCSEs

In sustained education, work or training
99%
Continuing in education
99%
Apprenticeship
0%
Employment
0%

Where students go after sixth form

To university / higher education
70%
Apprenticeship
5%
Employment
12%
Any sustained destination
88%

Destinations measured the year after leaving, DfE destination measures in the 2024/2025 performance tables.

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
2/10among the most deprived fifth of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
2/10among the most deprived fifth of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher21.1%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications27.1%18.1%
In managerial or professional work24.2%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways28.5%18.1%
Residents in very good health41.5%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier44.6%62.3%
Social housing41.5%17.1%
Privately rented13.5%20.5%
Detached houses7.3%22.9%
Flats28.4%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms7.3%21.1%
Households with no car or van26.4%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01015820 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£410,000635 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£304,000–£525,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (109)£520,000
Semi-detached (230)£450,000
Terraced (164)£405,000
Flat (132)£245,000

Homes around this school are dearer than three quarters of school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
3an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
6an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
16an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
2an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools