Alec Hunter Academy
Academy sponsor led · 1,058 pupils
80% stayed in education · Attainment 8 45.7
Academy converter
Thurstable School
- Pupils on roll
- 932of 1,275 places
- Free school meals
- 18.5%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 205
- Ofsted
- School remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next, 20 May 2025Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Thurstable School Sports College and Sixth Form Centre (URN 115329, until 1 August 2011).
What the data says
Thurstable School has no sixth form. Of the 206 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 28% moved to a sixth form college, 31% to a further education college and 2% started an apprenticeship.
German is unusually popular at GCSE: 31% of the year group took it, against 5% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 41.9 against 46.1 across England and 45.1 in Essex, with 42% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
As an 11–16 school, Thurstable School is judged on where pupils go at 16 rather than on A level results.
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 Essex and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Thurstable School | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 206 | 15,970 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 89% | 92% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 85% | 86% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 26% | 37% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 28% | 9% | 13% |
| — further education college | 31% | 38% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 2% | 3% | 3% |
| Employment | 2% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 7% | 5% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 4% | 3% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Thurstable School | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 41.9 | 45.1 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 42% | 43% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 64% | 64% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 47% | 39% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.89 | 3.97 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 15% | 22% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 27.0 | 31.1 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 44.6 | 48.9 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 2% | 9% | 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 | 201 | 98% | 88% | 17% | 22% | 72% |
| English Language | 201 | 98% | 89% | 14% | 20% | 68% |
| English Literature | 199 | 97% | 86% | 10% | 21% | 69% |
| Combined Science | 152 | 74% | 65% | 7% | 9% | 50% |
| Geography | 128 | 62% | 41% | 13% | 25% | 54% |
| History | 105 | 51% | 41% | 23% | 26% | 53% |
| German | 64 | 31% | 5% | 17% | 33% | 80% |
| Media Studies | 45 | 22% | 4% | 11% | 20% | 44% |
| Biology | 45 | 22% | 23% | 18% | 45% | 80% |
| Physics | 42 | 20% | 23% | 29% | 46% | 83% |
| Chemistry | 42 | 20% | 23% | 24% | 47% | 81% |
| Business Studies | 41 | 20% | 18% | 7% | 20% | 32% |
| Fine Art | 39 | 19% | 9% | 8% | 28% | 64% |
| Textiles | 38 | 19% | 2% | 0% | 27% | 42% |
| Design and Technology | 36 | 18% | 11% | 6% | 23% | 50% |
| Spanish | 30 | 15% | 19% | 13% | 27% | 47% |
| Computer Science | 19 | 9% | 13% | 26% | 30% | 63% |
| Music | 16 | 8% | 5% | 19% | 33% | 69% |
| French | 2 | 1% | 18% | — | 29% | — |
| Russian | 1 | 0% | 0% | — | 87% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sports Studies | 43 | — | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 21 | — | — |
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 18 | — | — |
| Health Studies | 16 | — | — |
| Dance: General | 15 | — | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
A level subjects
Entries as a share of A level students, compared with the share across England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychology | 17 | — | 23% |
| Biology | 9 | — | 20% |
| Media Studies | 8 | — | 4% |
| Mathematics | 8 | — | 31% |
| English Literature | 7 | — | 11% |
| Chemistry | 6 | — | 17% |
| History | 6 | — | 13% |
| Geography | 6 | — | 10% |
| Graphic Communication | — | — | 2% |
| Photography | — | — | 3% |
| Textiles | — | — | 1% |
| Economics | — | — | 13% |
| Politics | — | — | 6% |
| Further Mathematics | — | — | 5% |
| Physics | — | — | 12% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Psychology | GCE AS level (All) | 23 | — | — |
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 14 | — | — |
| Business Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 13 | — | — |
| Social Science | VRQ Level 3 | 12 | — | — |
| Mathematics | GCE AS level (All) | 9 | — | — |
| Psychology | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | 6 | — | — |
| Chemistry | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Economics | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Computer Architecture / Systems | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
| Chemistry | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Economics | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Mathematics | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Sports Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
| Sports Studies | BTEC National Extended Diploma L3 - Band N - PPP-D*D*D* | — | — | — |
| Health Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Essex
Anglo European School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,533 pupils
96% stayed in education · Attainment 8 55.6
Beauchamps High School
Foundation school · sixth form · 1,486 pupils
83% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.1
Becket Keys Church of England Free School
Free schools · sixth form · 1,152 pupils
93% stayed in education · Attainment 8 56.0
Bmat Stem Academy
University technical college · sixth form · 240 pupils
84% stayed in education · Attainment 8 28.1
Brentwood County High School
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,097 pupils
78% stayed in education · Attainment 8 43.2
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.