Cotham School - The School Companion

Cotham School

General Information

Address: Cotham Lawn Road, Cotham, Bristol, BS6 6DT
Phone: 01179198000
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Headteacher Joanne Butler
Age range: 11-18 years
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Number of pupils: 1654
School capacity: 1642
Pupils eligible for free school meals: 478
% eligible for free school meals: 39.5%
Nursery provision: No

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Behaviour information for this school has not been added yet.

Attendance

Overall absence: 9.0%
Persistently absent pupils: 28.8%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

SEN provision information for this school has not been added yet.

Pupils on SEN Support: 20.7%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 1.1%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 123 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 106 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 56 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 18 pupils
Physical disability: 13 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Social, emotional and mental health: 10 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 4 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 2 pupils
Physical disability: 1 pupil
Severe learning difficulty: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

Behaviour

–

Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

Would recommend –

Give this school your first review

Educational Attainment

Good 2023 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Educational attainment data for this school has not been added yet.

Attainment 8 score: 51.8
Data year: 2024/25

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

Ranked #8 of 20 Attainment 8 schools of this type in the area

#6St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School54.2
#7Trinity Academy52.1
#8Cotham School51.8
#9Fairfield High School48.9
#10Bristol Metropolitan Academy46.9

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

#1Redland Green School59.0
#2E-Act Montpelier High School57.3
#3St Bede's Catholic College57.1
#4Bristol Free School56.3
#5Bristol Cathedral Choir School54.6
#6St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School54.2
#7Trinity Academy52.1
#8Cotham School51.8
#9Fairfield High School48.9
#10Bristol Metropolitan Academy46.9
#11Oasis Academy John Williams46.9
#12Ashton Park School45.8
#13Blaise High School45.0
#14Orchard School Bristol44.7
#15St Bernadette Catholic Secondary School44.5
#16Oasis Academy Brislington44.3
#17Bristol Brunel Academy43.6
#18Bedminster Down School41.7
#19The City Academy Bristol38.5
#20Oasis Academy Brightstowe38.2

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 94.0%
Went into further education: 93.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

English Language
Maths (General)
English Literature
Science Double Award
Geography
History
Spanish
Physics (General)
Biology
Chemistry (General)
Business Studies
French Language
Computer Science
Sociology
German
Art & Design
Food Technology
Religious Studies
Ancient History
Chinese
Italian
Arabic
Turkish
Portuguese
Russian

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

Ranked #8 of 15 Ofsted Rating schools of this type in the area

#6Bristol Free SchoolGood
#7Bristol Metropolitan AcademyGood
#8Cotham SchoolGood
#9Fairfield High SchoolGood
#10Oasis Academy BrislingtonGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

#1Ashton Park SchoolGood
#2Bedminster Down SchoolGood
#3Blaise High SchoolGood
#4Bristol Brunel AcademyGood
#5Bristol Cathedral Choir SchoolGood
#6Bristol Free SchoolGood
#7Bristol Metropolitan AcademyGood
#8Cotham SchoolGood
#9Fairfield High SchoolGood
#10Oasis Academy BrislingtonGood
#11Oasis Academy John WilliamsGood
#12Redland Green SchoolGood
#13St Bede's Catholic CollegeGood
#14Trinity AcademyGood
#15E-Act Montpelier High SchoolInadequate

Financials

Financial summary information for this school has not been added yet.

Spending per pupil: £7,817 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

Ranked #16 of 22 Spending Per Pupil schools of this type in the area

#14St Bernadette Catholic Secondary School£7,903
#15Oasis Academy John Williams£7,847
#16Cotham School£7,817
#17Trinity Academy£7,733
#18Ashton Park School£7,681

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

#1The City Academy Bristol£9,603
#2Oasis Academy Brightstowe£9,398
#3Bristol Brunel Academy£9,220
#4Bristol Metropolitan Academy£9,129
#5Oasis Academy Brislington£8,901
#6Orchard School Bristol£8,731
#7Bedminster Down School£8,528
#8Oasis Academy Daventry Road£8,485
#9Blaise High School£8,043
#10Bristol Cathedral Choir School£7,984
#11E-Act Montpelier High School£7,955
#12St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School£7,935
#13Fairfield High School£7,922
#14St Bernadette Catholic Secondary School£7,903
#15Oasis Academy John Williams£7,847
#16Cotham School£7,817
#17Trinity Academy£7,733
#18Ashton Park School£7,681
#19St Bede's Catholic College£7,664
#20Oasis Academy Temple Quarter£7,018
#21Bristol Free School£6,773
#22Redland Green School£6,596

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

General Information

Behaviour

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered