The Abbey School Reading
An independent school in Reading for ages 3–19: destination measures are not published for independent schools, so this page relies on the school’s own results and subjects.
- Ofsted
- —
- Places
- —
- Pupils
- 807
Ofsted: Not covered by Ofsted school inspections. Places: the last distance at which places were offered is not on file (it comes from Reading’s allocation statistics). Pupils: of 1,134 places, including the sixth form.
Where do pupils go at 16?
The Department for Education has not published destination figures for this school (new school, small cohort or not a state-funded school).
Where do sixth-formers go at 18?
No published destinations for sixth-form leavers yet.
Which universities did they go to?
Named universities — most schools do not publish this; the official DfE figures above only say how many went to university and how selective those universities were.
universities’ answers to sch.today’s Freedom of Information requests · request tracker
What universities’ own admissions data say3
For each entry year: how many of this school’s students applied, received an offer and enrolled. Counts under five are shown as “<5” to protect individuals. Applications exclude Clearing; enrolments are students who completed registration.
| University | Entry year | Applied | Offers | Enrolled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Bristol | 2025 | 29 | 28 | <5 |
| 2024 | 32 | 26 | 5 | |
| 2023 | 29 | 20 | 8 |
A university’s enrolment count and a school’s own destinations list can differ: the school counts places accepted in the summer, the university counts students registered in the autumn.
How do GCSE results compare?
Attainment 8 — average GCSE points across eight subjects, English and maths counted twice; grade 5 in everything scores 50. Not comparable for independent schools, which often enter pupils for IGCSEs that the Department for Education does not count.
DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · 118 pupils in Year 11
0% got grade 5 or above in both English and maths (Reading 51%, England 45%).
Grade 5 — a “strong pass”; grade 4 is a “standard pass”. Progress 8 is not published for 2025: this cohort had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020–21, so there is no baseline.
All GCSE measures10
| Measure | The Abbey School Reading | Reading | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 27.6 | 50.2 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 51% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 0% | 66% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 0% | 53% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 1.19 | 4.64 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | — | 23% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | — | 32.5 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | — | 55.5 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | — | 34% | 19% |
What do pupils study?
Mapped — the share of the 3,288 learning outcomes the Department for Education sets for these stages that the subjects taken here cover, weighted by how many pupils take each.
DfE subject entries 2025 · curriculum catalogue by sch.today
Drama stands out at GCSE — 23% of the year group took it, against 7% across England. At A level it is Economics: 33% of students (England 13%).
Fields of knowledge — twelve fields the curriculum catalogue sorts every learning outcome into; the bars show the GCSE and A level ring.
GCSE subjects18
Entries as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 115 | 97% | 89% | 59% | 20% | 100% |
| Geography | 54 | 46% | 41% | 81% | 25% | 100% |
| History | 50 | 42% | 41% | 78% | 26% | 100% |
| Religious Studies | 42 | 36% | 31% | 86% | 32% | 100% |
| Drama | 27 | 23% | 7% | 63% | 27% | 100% |
| Computer Science | 27 | 23% | 13% | 74% | 30% | 96% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 22 | 19% | 8% | 77% | 21% | 100% |
| Music | 22 | 19% | 5% | 86% | 33% | 100% |
| Fine Art | 19 | 16% | 9% | 100% | 28% | 100% |
| Physical Education | 13 | 11% | 11% | 77% | 24% | 100% |
| Latin | 10 | 8% | 1% | 70% | 74% | 100% |
| Textiles | 8 | 7% | 2% | 88% | 27% | 100% |
| 3D Design | 8 | 7% | 2% | 88% | 16% | 100% |
| Chinese | 4 | 3% | 1% | — | 75% | — |
| Russian | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 87% | — |
| Classical Greek | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 92% | — |
| Polish | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
| Portuguese | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 50% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications3
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Additional Mathematics FSMQ | 22 | 28% | — |
| Music performance: Group | 2 | 3% | — |
| Music performance: Group | 1 | 1% | — |
A level subjects27
Entries as a share of A level students, compared with the share across England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychology | 35 | 45% | 23% |
| Mathematics | 32 | 41% | 31% |
| Economics | 26 | 33% | 13% |
| Biology | 24 | 31% | 20% |
| Chemistry | 15 | 19% | 17% |
| English Literature | 13 | 17% | 11% |
| History | 12 | 15% | 13% |
| Religious Studies | 11 | 14% | 4% |
| English Language | 8 | 10% | 4% |
| Physics | 8 | 10% | 12% |
| Business Studies | 7 | 9% | 13% |
| Spanish | 6 | 8% | 2% |
| French | — | — | 1% |
| Geography | — | — | 10% |
| German | — | — | 0% |
| Classical Greek | — | — | 0% |
| Latin | — | — | 0% |
| 3D Design | — | — | 1% |
| Further Mathematics | — | — | 5% |
| Music | — | — | 0% |
| Physical Education | — | — | 3% |
| Classical Civilisation | — | — | 1% |
| Chinese | — | — | 0% |
| Textiles | — | — | 1% |
| Fine Art | — | — | 3% |
| Drama | — | — | 2% |
| Computer Science | — | — | 5% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses6
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 27 | 35% | — |
| Baccalaureate | International Baccalaureate | 19 | 24% | — |
| Further Mathematics | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Mathematics | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Further Mathematics | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Mathematics | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
A level results8
| Measure | The Abbey School Reading | Reading | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 180 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 78 | 754 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | B+ | B- | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 44.06 | 37.73 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | B+ | B | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 36% | 36% | 18% |
| Average grade, applied general courses | — | — | — |
| Average grade, T levels | — | — | — |
Fields of knowledge, all stages12
Ideas pupils meet most, weighted by the share of the cohort taking the subjects that teach them:
Coverage counts a subject’s outcomes in proportion to the share of the cohort entered for it; Combined Science counts as two thirds of the three separate sciences. Levels follow ISCED 2011 as UNESCO maps it for the UK: Key Stage 3 is ISCED 2; GCSE and A level are both ISCED 3. Methodology: about the data.
Which jobs use what’s taught here?
A match of what’s taught, not of entry requirements: the standards whose knowledge and skills share the most ideas with the GCSEs and A levels taken here, weighted by how many pupils take each subject.
Level 3 / Level 6 — England’s qualification levels: 3 is A level standard, 4–5 are higher apprenticeships, 6 is a bachelor’s degree.
Skills England apprenticeship standards (Open Government Licence v3.0) · ESCO occupations, © European Union, matched by sch.today · how the match works
More apprenticeships9
How do you get a place?
Independent schools admit directly and set their own dates and entrance tests; council allocation statistics do not cover them.
- Year 6Register with the school; entrance assessments are usually in the autumn or January, offers in February
- Dec–FebYear 11: apply directly to the sixth form; most close applications in these months
Compare with nearby schools
More Reading schools3
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.