Saffron Walden County High School

Uttlesford · CB11 4UH

General information Secondary School · 11-18 years Who goes here 2157 pupils, 10.3% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted: Outstanding

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 16% on SEN support Behaviour 7.2% absence rate Staff 8% turnover Financials £7,759 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Saffron Walden County High School

General Information

Address: Audley End Road, Saffron Walden, CB11 4UH – View on map
Phone: 01799513030
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Ms Polly Lankester
Age range: 11-18 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 344 families put it first for 290 places – 12 for every 10 places. 84% of them were offered a place. 4 of the 290 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 12 · 2024 13 · 2025 12 · 2026 12
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: None
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

2157 pupils out of 2050 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 154
% eligible for free school meals: 10.3%
Pupil mix: 3 in 10 (similar to the Uttlesford average)
English as an additional language: 6% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 8% a year (Uttlesford 14.8%, typical in England 15.5%) Low turnover
Where they went: about 35% moved to another school, 65% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house. "Low turnover" means it's among the quarter of similar schools in England where teachers are most likely to stay.

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.

Across Essex: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 227 (2.4 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 2
Suspensions for bullying: 216 (2.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 112 (1.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.8)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state secondary schools in Essex (the council area this school is in), not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 7.2%
Persistently absent pupils: 17.6%
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.

Pupils on SEN Support: 16.0%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 3.4%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 126 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 99 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 43 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 18 pupils
Physical disability: 16 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 28 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 25 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 7 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 4 pupils
Physical disability: 3 pupils

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 –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Outstanding 2024 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.

Attainment 8 score: 59.7
Compared with the area: 9.0 points above the Uttlesford average (50.7)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well above (+10.4 points against an expected 49.3)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 85% (Uttlesford 74%, England 65%) Improving
Data year: 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

GCSE results over time

This schoolUttlesford averageEngland↗ Improving Up 4.6 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 9.0 points above the Uttlesford average (50.7).

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.

1st of 4 secondary schools in Uttlesford for Attainment 8

#1Saffron Walden County High School59.7
#2Helena Romanes School46.6
#3Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport44.9

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Saffron Walden County High School59.7
#2Helena Romanes School46.6
#3Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport44.9
#4Forest Hall School40.6

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 94.0%
Went into further education: 89.0%
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

Maths (General)
English Language
English Literature
Science Double Award
History
Religious Studies
Geography
Art & Design
French Language
Business Studies
Sports Studies
Biology
Physics (General)
Chemistry (General)
Speech & Drama
German
Food Technology
Computer Science
Music Studies (General)
D & T
Spanish
Latin
Dance: General
Russian
Italian

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

1st of 3 secondary schools in Uttlesford for Ofsted rating

#1Saffron Walden County High SchoolOutstanding
#2Helena Romanes SchoolGood
#3Joyce Frankland Academy, NewportGood

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.

Rank School Score

#1Saffron Walden County High SchoolOutstanding
#2Helena Romanes SchoolGood
#3Joyce Frankland Academy, NewportGood

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,759 (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.

2nd of 4 secondary schools in Uttlesford for spending per pupil

#1Forest Hall School£8,104
#2Saffron Walden County High School£7,759
#3Helena Romanes School£6,969
#4Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport£6,915

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.

Rank School Score

#1Forest Hall School£8,104
#2Saffron Walden County High School£7,759
#3Helena Romanes School£6,969
#4Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport£6,915

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

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General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Essex: suspensions by reason

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