All Saints' Church of England Academy
Academy sponsor led · 598 pupils
86% stayed in education · Attainment 8 35.6
Community school
Ferndown Upper School
- Pupils on roll
- 1,134of 1,146 places
- Free school meals
- 20.9%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 249
- Ofsted
- Report card, 3 March 2026Read the Ofsted report
Curriculum and teaching Expected standardAchievement Strong standardAttendance and behaviour Strong standardPersonal development and wellbeing Strong standardInclusion Strong standardLeadership and governance Strong standardPost-16 provision Expected standardSafeguarding Met
What the data says
Of the 225 pupils who finished Year 11 at Ferndown Upper School in 2023, 61% stayed on in Ferndown Upper School’s own sixth form (Dorset average 43%), 25% went to a further education college and 1% started an apprenticeship.
Chemistry is unusually popular at GCSE: 94% of the year group took it, against 23% of pupils across England.
Among the 119 students who left the sixth form in 2023, 30% went to university (Dorset 27%, England 37%), and 17% of level 3 students progressed to one of the most selective universities, against 19% nationally.
Most pupils take the three separate sciences: at least 94% sat Biology, Chemistry and Physics as individual GCSEs, compared with about 23% nationally.
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Dorset and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Ferndown Upper School | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 225 | 3,781 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 92% | 94% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 88% | 85% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 61% | 43% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 0% | — | 13% |
| — further education college | 25% | 39% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 3% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 1% | 5% | 3% |
| Employment | 4% | 4% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 6% | 5% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 2% | 2% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
University (higher education)Further educationOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Ferndown Upper School | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students in the cohort | 119 | 2,810 | 541,441 |
| Any sustained destination | 82% | 80% | 79% |
| University (higher education) | 30% | 27% | 37% |
| — most selective universities (top third), of level 3 students | 17% | 19% | 19% |
| Further education | 2% | 5% | 5% |
| Apprenticeship | 5% | 7% | 7% |
| Employment | 36% | 40% | 28% |
| No sustained destination | 10% | 15% | 16% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Ferndown Upper School | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 45.7 | 43.2 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 45% | 41% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 70% | 62% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 12% | 38% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.53 | 3.79 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 20% | 24% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 39.3 | 31.1 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 47.3 | 46.9 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 2% | 4% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 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 | 243 | 98% | 89% | 13% | 20% | 72% |
| Mathematics | 242 | 97% | 88% | 21% | 22% | 79% |
| English Literature | 237 | 95% | 86% | 15% | 21% | 72% |
| Biology | 236 | 95% | 23% | 11% | 45% | 64% |
| Chemistry | 234 | 94% | 23% | 12% | 47% | 59% |
| Physics | 233 | 94% | 23% | 13% | 46% | 64% |
| Business Studies | 119 | 48% | 18% | 13% | 20% | 61% |
| Religious Studies | 89 | 36% | 31% | 18% | 32% | 63% |
| History | 70 | 28% | 41% | 21% | 26% | 67% |
| Design and Technology | 55 | 22% | 11% | 4% | 23% | 58% |
| Photography | 54 | 22% | 6% | 9% | 19% | 87% |
| Geography | 47 | 19% | 41% | 15% | 25% | 64% |
| Spanish | 41 | 16% | 19% | 27% | 27% | 66% |
| Sociology | 40 | 16% | 4% | 8% | 21% | 55% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 37 | 15% | 8% | 11% | 21% | 57% |
| Physical Education | 31 | 12% | 11% | 29% | 24% | 100% |
| Statistics | 29 | 12% | 5% | 62% | 20% | 100% |
| Fine Art | 28 | 11% | 9% | 14% | 28% | 79% |
| Textiles | 25 | 10% | 2% | 20% | 27% | 76% |
| Computer Science | 25 | 10% | 13% | 20% | 30% | 76% |
| Media Studies | 22 | 9% | 4% | 14% | 20% | 41% |
| French | 17 | 7% | 18% | 29% | 29% | 59% |
| Music | 10 | 4% | 5% | 10% | 33% | 70% |
| Drama | 10 | 4% | 7% | 10% | 27% | 90% |
| Combined Science | 5 | 2% | 65% | — | 9% | — |
| Art and Design | 1 | 0% | 7% | — | 24% | — |
| Citizenship Studies | 1 | 0% | 3% | — | 19% | — |
| Russian | 1 | 0% | 0% | — | 87% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Health | 51 | 45% | — |
| Multimedia | 47 | 42% | — |
| Health Studies | 41 | 36% | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 18 | 16% | — |
| Health Studies | 1 | 1% | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
| Measure | Ferndown Upper School | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 313 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 113 | 1,518 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | C+ | C+ | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 33.76 | 32.20 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | C+ | C+ | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 10% | 11% | 18% |
| Average grade, applied general courses | — | — | — |
| Average grade, T levels | — | — | — |
A level subjects
Entries as a share of A level students, compared with the share across England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychology | 34 | 30% | 23% |
| Mathematics | 32 | 28% | 31% |
| English Language | 31 | 27% | 4% |
| Physics | 27 | 24% | 12% |
| Sociology | 15 | 13% | 13% |
| Fine Art | 13 | 12% | 3% |
| Biology | 13 | 12% | 20% |
| Product Design | 11 | 10% | 2% |
| Photography | 10 | 9% | 3% |
| Business Studies | 9 | 8% | 13% |
| Chemistry | 9 | 8% | 17% |
| History | 8 | 7% | 13% |
| Textiles | 8 | 7% | 1% |
| Further Mathematics | 8 | 7% | 5% |
| Computer Science | 7 | 6% | 5% |
| Geography | 7 | 6% | 10% |
| English Literature | 7 | 6% | 11% |
| Drama | — | — | 2% |
| Religious Studies | — | — | 4% |
| Spanish | — | — | 2% |
| Philosophy | — | — | 1% |
| Italian | — | — | 0% |
| French | — | — | 1% |
| Music | — | — | 0% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Science | VRQ Level 3 | 15 | 13% | — |
| Sports Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate at Level 3 | 11 | 10% | — |
| English Literature | GCE AS level (All) | 11 | 10% | — |
| Multimedia | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 9 | 8% | — |
| Health Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Diploma at Level 3 | 8 | 7% | — |
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | — | — | — |
| Mathematical Studies | Core Maths Qualifications at Level 3 | — | — | — |
| Biology | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Business Studies | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| English Language | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| French | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Mathematics | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Sociology | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Biology | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Business Studies | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| English Language | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| English Literature | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| French | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Mathematics | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Sociology | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Sports Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Diploma at Level 3 | — | — | — |
| Health Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate at Level 3 | — | — | — |
| Sports Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma at Level 3 | — | — | — |
| Tourism | VRQ Level 3 | — | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Dorset
Atlantic Academy Portland
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 769 pupils
83% stayed in education · Attainment 8 34.0
Beaminster School
Voluntary controlled school · sixth form · 673 pupils
81% stayed in education · Attainment 8 47.0
Budmouth Academy Weymouth
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,466 pupils
84% stayed in education · Attainment 8 42.0
Dorset Studio School
Studio schools · 332 pupils
64% stayed in education · Attainment 8 34.1
Gillingham School
Academy converter · sixth form
82% stayed in education · Attainment 8 42.7
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.