Chichester Free School
All-through · Chichester · PO20 1NP
Data updated
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.
Inspected 8 May 2024
Read the Ofsted report ↗At a glance
1,118 pupils · 110% of 1,020 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)
- School type
- Free schools
- Age range
- 4–19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Admissions
- Non-selective
- Free school meals
- 14.8% of pupils (January 2026)
- English as additional language
- 6.1% of pupils (2024/2025)
- SEN support
- 13.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
- EHC plan
- 1.3% of pupils (2024/2025)
- URN
- 139668
In figures
For September 2026 entry, 80 families named it first for 67 Year 7 places, 1.19 first choices per place. We hold 7 Year 7 admissions rounds for it, 2020 to 2026; none was decided by a published distance. Ofsted last graded it Good on 8 May 2024, under the framework used before November 2025. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 8.2% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.
Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2026
1.00 first-choice applications per place59 places offered · 59 first-choice applications · roughly balanced
First-choice applications per place, by entry year
Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured
Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026
1.19 first-choice applications per place67 places offered · 80 first-choice applications · oversubscribed
First-choice applications per place, by entry year
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 random allocation (ballot), not distance.
Admissions cutoff distance: Reception
Places for 2026 entry were decided by random allocation (ballot), not distance.
Cutoff by admission criterion (2022 entry)
- Criterion 6
- 5128.609 m (≈3.19 mi)
2022 is the most recent year we hold a cutoff for this school. It describes that year, not 2026.
Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work
Admissions cutoff distance: Year 7
Places for 2026 entry were decided by random allocation (ballot), not distance.
Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work
Compare admissions across the area: Chichester school admissions · West Sussex school admissions
Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)
64 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025
GCSE results (2024/2025)
117 pupils at the end of key stage 4 in 2024/2025
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)
no pupils entered
Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means
Schools with a similar intake
Attainment 8, 2024/2025
On attainment 8, this school is behind 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.
| School | Ofsted | Attainment 8 |
|---|---|---|
| Chenderit School | 50 | |
| Whitburn Church of England Academy | 51.6 | |
| Wrotham School | 39.5 | |
| East Leake Academy | 50.4 | |
| Ormskirk School | 42.4 | |
| Brockington College | 46.8 | |
| Penair School | 49.1 | |
| The Thomas Adams School | 43.4 | |
| St Ivo Academy | 47.1 | |
| Burford School | 52.4 | |
| Cox Green School | 45.9 | |
| Southfield School for Girls | 46.8 |
It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works
Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)
White British 82% (West Sussex 74%, England 59%) · Any other White background 6% (West Sussex 7%, England 7%) · Not recorded 2% (West Sussex 1%, England 2%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (West Sussex 2%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 1% (West Sussex 1%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Asian 1% (West Sussex 2%, England 2%) · Asian Indian 1% (West Sussex 2%, England 4%) · Mixed White and Black African 1% (West Sussex 1%, England 1%) · Asian Bangladeshi 1% (West Sussex 1%, England 2%) · other groups together 2%
Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures
Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)
Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)
8.35 suspensions per 100 pupils and 2 permanent exclusions · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · West Sussex: 16.16 suspensions and 0.17 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils
Suspensions and exclusions, last three years Premium
Premium shows the same figures for each of the last three years.
Unlock with SchoolFacts Premium →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
Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.
Teacher retention (2024/25)
94% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 6% 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)
83.1% of teachers took sickness absence, 6.4 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 £47,826; 15.1% on the leadership pay range · England, secondary schools: £53,766, 11.3%
Vacancies, sickness and pay, last three years Premium
Premium shows the same figures for each of the last three years.
Unlock with SchoolFacts Premium →Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted
Spending per pupil (2024-25)
Where the money went (2024-25)
Share of spending, with the median for all-through schools in brackets: Staff 81% (78%) · premises 5% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 5% (8%) · supplies and services 9% (9%) · educational supplies 7% (6%) · bought-in professional services 1% (1%) · catering 1% (4%)
Reserves (2024-25)
Revenue reserve £278,000; in-year balance +£224,000
Spending and reserves, last three years Premium
Premium shows the same figures for each of the last three years.
Unlock with SchoolFacts Premium →Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared
Where pupils go after GCSEs
Where students go after sixth form
suppressed (small cohort)
suppressed (small cohort)
suppressed (small cohort)
suppressed (small cohort)
Destinations measured the year after leaving, DfE destination measures in the 2024/2025 performance tables.
Inspection history since 2015
- 8 May 2024: Good
- 6 February 2019: Good
Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems
The area around the school
- Child poverty (IDACI)
- 5/10around the middle for England
- Overall deprivation (IMD)
- 4/10more deprived than most of England
| Census 2021 | This area | England |
|---|---|---|
| Adults with a degree or higher | 33% | 33.9% |
| Adults with no qualifications | 16.9% | 18.1% |
| In managerial or professional work | 32.8% | 33.2% |
| Households deprived in two or more ways | 17.6% | 18.1% |
| Residents in very good health | 45.4% | 48.5% |
| Homes owned by the occupier | 63.8% | 62.3% |
| Social housing | 25.8% | 17.1% |
| Privately rented | 10.3% | 20.5% |
| Detached houses | 20.6% | 22.9% |
| Flats | 15.3% | 22.2% |
| Homes with four or more bedrooms | 17.9% | 21.1% |
| Households with no car or van | 15% | 23.5% |
These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01031530 · how to read area figures
What homes cost nearby
- Median sale price
- £342,50078 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
- Typical range
- £295,000–£399,000the middle half of sales
- England median
- £300,000all sales over the same period
Homes around this school are dearer than most 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
- 4a rural school averages 0.7
- All reported collisions
- 27a rural school averages 3.4
- Of those, serious or fatal
- 8a 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
See all primary schools in Chichester →