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Backwell School

Secondary · Bristol · BS48 3BX

Data updated

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Good

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: GoodBehaviour & attitudes: GoodPersonal development: GoodLeadership & management: GoodSafeguarding effective: Yes

Inspected 28 January 2020

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

1,595 pupils · 92% of 1,728 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
11–18
Gender
Mixed
Admissions
Non-selective
Free school meals
8.5% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
4.1% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
7.2% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
2.2% of pupils (2024/2025)
Sixth form
Yes
Website
http://www.backwellschool.net
URN
136722

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 276 families named it first for 263 Year 7 places, 1.05 first choices per place. Its last Year 7 place offered on distance for 2026 entry went to 4.134 miles; distance decided places in 11 of the 11 years of Year 7 rounds we hold, 2016 to 2026. Ofsted last graded it Good on 28 January 2020, under the framework used before November 2025. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 6.8% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026

1.05 first-choice applications per place

263 places offered · 276 first-choice applications · 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 by distance, last offered at 4.134 miles for 2026 entry.

Admissions cutoff distance: Year 7

Last child offered a place under the distance criterion (2026 entry) lived within 4.134 miles

measured in a straight line.

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

GCSE results (2024/2025)

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

Attainment 8 score
52.7
England 46.1
Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs
74.6%
England 64.8%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
56%
England 45.4%
EBacc average point score
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-) C+
34.4
England 35

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

Schools with a similar intake

Attainment 8, 2024/2025

This school52.7
Median of its 12 closest peers54.1
North Somerset average47
England46.1

On attainment 8, this school is in line with 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
Ponteland High SchoolPonteland · 254 miles awayGood53
Balcarras SchoolCheltenham · 44 miles awayOutstanding58.5
The Ecclesbourne SchoolBelper · 121 miles awayGood58.3
Howard of Effingham SchoolLeatherhead · 102 miles awayGood57.1
Brookvale Groby Learning CampusLeicester · 107 miles awayGood49.5
Whitley Bay High SchoolWhitley Bay · 256 miles awayOutstanding54.2
South Bromsgrove HighBromsgrove · 69 miles awayGood46.1
Calthorpe Park SchoolFleet · 82 miles awayGood54
Sandringham SchoolSt Albans · 107 miles awayOutstanding65.1
Kings Priory SchoolNorth Shields · 255 miles awayGood57.1
Poynton High SchoolStockport · 136 miles awayGood53
Heathfield Community CollegeHeathfield · 134 miles awayGood50.6

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

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 87% (North Somerset 83%, England 59%) · Any other White background 4% (North Somerset 7%, England 7%) · Mixed White and Asian 3% (North Somerset 1%, England 2%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (North Somerset 1%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 1% (North Somerset 1%, England 2%) · other groups together 3%

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)
6.8%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
14.3%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

7.58 suspensions per 100 pupils and 1 permanent exclusion · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · North Somerset: 25.50 suspensions and 0.07 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
18.1
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

91% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 1% moved to another state school · 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)

73.5% of teachers took sickness absence, 6.3 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 £52,810; 7.6% 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£6,909
Typical secondary school£7,846

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for secondary schools in brackets: Staff 80% (77%) · premises 6% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 4% (6%) · supplies and services 10% (11%) · educational supplies 9% (6%) · bought-in professional services 0% (1%) · catering 1% (3%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £640,000; in-year balance +£590,000

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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
97%
Continuing in education
92%
Apprenticeship
3%
Employment
3%

Where students go after sixth form

To university / higher education
35%
Apprenticeship
5%
Employment
42%
Any sustained destination
84%

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)
10/10among the least deprived tenth of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
10/10among the least deprived tenth of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher52.4%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications6.7%18.1%
In managerial or professional work52.9%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways6.7%18.1%
Residents in very good health58.6%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier93%62.3%
Social housing0.5%17.1%
Privately rented6.5%20.5%
Detached houses56%22.9%
Flats2.3%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms52.1%21.1%
Households with no car or van6.3%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01014737 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£565,000143 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£400,000–£690,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (77)£660,000
Semi-detached (50)£477,500
Terraced (14)£300,000

Homes around this school are among the dearest tenth 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
0a rural school averages 0.3
Collisions at school-run times
2a rural school averages 0.7
All reported collisions
10a rural school averages 3.4
Of those, serious or fatal
2a rural school averages 0.9

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