Grays Convent High School
Voluntary aided school · 655 pupils
94% stayed in education · Attainment 8 55.7
Academy converter
William Edwards School
- Pupils on roll
- 984of 1,200 places
- Free school meals
- 22.4%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 233
- Ofsted
- Report card, 10 March 2026Read the Ofsted report
Curriculum and teaching Needs attentionAchievement Needs attentionAttendance and behaviour Expected standardPersonal development and wellbeing Expected standardInclusion Expected standardLeadership and governance Needs attentionPost-16 provision Not applicableSafeguarding Met
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: William Edwards School and Sports College (URN 115354, until 1 August 2011).
What the data says
William Edwards School has no sixth form. Of the 264 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 1% moved to a sixth form college, 58% to a further education college and 8% started an apprenticeship.
Apprenticeships are a real route from here: 8% of leavers started one, roughly twice the England figure of 3%.
French is unusually popular at GCSE: 42% of the year group took it, against 18% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 42.5 against 46.1 across England and 45.2 in Thurrock, with 35% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
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 Thurrock and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | William Edwards School | Thurrock | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 264 | 2,177 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 92% | 91% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 82% | 83% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 22% | 30% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 1% | — | 13% |
| — further education college | 58% | 52% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 8% | 4% | 3% |
| Employment | 3% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 4% | 5% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 4% | 4% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | William Edwards School | Thurrock | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 42.5 | 45.2 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 35% | 45% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 55% | 66% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 42% | 43% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.64 | 3.98 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 16% | 25% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 31.2 | 35.7 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 44.7 | 48.3 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 10% | 18% | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 232 | 100% | 88% | 15% | 22% | 66% |
| English Language | 232 | 100% | 89% | 4% | 20% | 49% |
| English Literature | 231 | 99% | 86% | 12% | 21% | 61% |
| Combined Science | 218 | 94% | 65% | 10% | 9% | 42% |
| Geography | 148 | 64% | 41% | 10% | 25% | 43% |
| French | 98 | 42% | 18% | 9% | 29% | 45% |
| History | 76 | 33% | 41% | 25% | 26% | 57% |
| Business Studies | 63 | 27% | 18% | 19% | 20% | 75% |
| Design and Technology | 41 | 18% | 11% | 15% | 23% | 80% |
| Art and Design | 36 | 15% | 7% | 22% | 24% | 97% |
| Sociology | 36 | 15% | 4% | 28% | 21% | 67% |
| Photography | 35 | 15% | 6% | 17% | 19% | 86% |
| Physical Education | 34 | 15% | 11% | 26% | 24% | 62% |
| Computer Science | 33 | 14% | 13% | 24% | 30% | 61% |
| Media Studies | 17 | 7% | 4% | 12% | 20% | 35% |
| Biology | 14 | 6% | 23% | 21% | 45% | 86% |
| Physics | 14 | 6% | 23% | 29% | 46% | 86% |
| Chemistry | 14 | 6% | 23% | 29% | 47% | 86% |
| Drama | 12 | 5% | 7% | 8% | 27% | 50% |
| Dance | 10 | 4% | 1% | 40% | 27% | 90% |
| Music | 9 | 4% | 5% | 22% | 33% | 100% |
| Polish | 4 | 2% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small Business Management | 67 | — | — |
| Building / Construction Operations (General / Combined) | 56 | — | — |
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 45 | — | — |
| Health Studies | 44 | — | — |
| Sports Studies | 22 | — | — |
| Speech and Drama | 9 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Thurrock
Harris Academy Chafford Hundred
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,435 pupils
92% stayed in education · Attainment 8 55.5
Harris Academy Ockendon
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79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 47.3
Harris Academy Riverside
Free schools · sixth form · 1,111 pupils
91% stayed in education · Attainment 8 47.9
Mossbourne Fobbing Academy
Academy converter · sixth form · 859 pupils
79% stayed in education
Mossbourne Port Side Academy
Academy converter · 443 pupils
78% stayed in education
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.