Abbeywood Community School
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,294 pupils
85% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.0
Academy converter
Downend School
- Pupils on roll
- 1,415of 1,425 places
- Free school meals
- 11.3%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 233
- Ofsted
- Standards maintained, 23 October 2024Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Downend Comprehensive School (URN 109321, until 1 March 2013).
What the data says
Of the 220 pupils who finished Year 11 at Downend School in 2023, 43% stayed on in Downend School’s own sixth form (South Gloucestershire average 36%), 28% went to a further education college and 6% started an apprenticeship.
Among the 93 students who left the sixth form in 2023, 51% went to university (South Gloucestershire 26%, England 37%), and 5% of level 3 students progressed to one of the most selective universities, against 19% nationally.
Media Studies is unusually popular at GCSE: 22% of the year group took it, against 4% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were above the national picture: Attainment 8 of 51.0 against 46.1 across England and 42.9 in South Gloucestershire, with 54% 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 South Gloucestershire and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Downend School | South Gloucestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 220 | 2,687 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 96% | 93% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 87% | 82% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 43% | 36% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 16% | 11% | 13% |
| — further education college | 28% | 34% | 37% |
| — other education | — | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 6% | 7% | 3% |
| Employment | 2% | 4% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 2% | 4% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 2% | 3% | 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 | Downend School | South Gloucestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students in the cohort | 93 | 2,977 | 541,441 |
| Any sustained destination | 92% | 79% | 79% |
| University (higher education) | 51% | 26% | 37% |
| — most selective universities (top third), of level 3 students | 5% | 9% | 19% |
| Further education | 1% | 6% | 5% |
| Apprenticeship | 10% | 10% | 7% |
| Employment | 31% | 36% | 28% |
| No sustained destination | 5% | 15% | 16% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Downend School | South Gloucestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 51.0 | 42.9 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 54% | 43% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 76% | 62% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 35% | 25% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.61 | 3.73 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 11% | 18% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 33.3 | 31.4 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 53.2 | 45.4 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 6% | 11% | 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 | 232 | 100% | 89% | 19% | 20% | 77% |
| Mathematics | 232 | 100% | 88% | 27% | 22% | 81% |
| English Literature | 227 | 97% | 86% | 15% | 21% | 78% |
| Combined Science | 184 | 79% | 65% | 18% | 9% | 73% |
| History | 140 | 60% | 41% | 41% | 26% | 77% |
| Geography | 127 | 55% | 41% | 24% | 25% | 72% |
| Business Studies | 104 | 45% | 18% | 23% | 20% | 68% |
| French | 81 | 35% | 18% | 36% | 29% | 93% |
| Fine Art | 63 | 27% | 9% | 16% | 28% | 87% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 55 | 24% | 8% | 24% | 21% | 76% |
| Media Studies | 52 | 22% | 4% | 8% | 20% | 58% |
| Biology | 42 | 18% | 23% | 64% | 45% | 93% |
| Physics | 41 | 18% | 23% | 51% | 46% | 98% |
| Chemistry | 40 | 17% | 23% | 65% | 47% | 98% |
| Design and Technology | 37 | 16% | 11% | 43% | 23% | 86% |
| Religious Studies | 20 | 9% | 31% | 20% | 32% | 60% |
| Computer Science | 18 | 8% | 13% | 22% | 30% | 50% |
| Drama | 16 | 7% | 7% | 38% | 27% | 88% |
| Music | 7 | 3% | 5% | 57% | 33% | 100% |
| Polish | 2 | 1% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
| Art and Design | 1 | 0% | 7% | — | 24% | — |
| Arabic | 1 | 0% | 1% | — | 47% | — |
| Spanish | 1 | 0% | 19% | — | 27% | — |
| Punjabi | 1 | 0% | 0% | — | 48% | — |
| German | 1 | 0% | 5% | — | 33% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sports Studies | 69 | 71% | — |
| Manufacturing Engineering | 30 | 31% | — |
| Electronic / Electrical Engineering | 16 | 16% | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
| Measure | Downend School | South Gloucestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 178 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 97 | 989 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | C+ | C | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 31.84 | 30.73 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | B- | C+ | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 21% | 15% | 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 | 33 | 34% | 23% |
| History | 29 | 30% | 13% |
| Geography | 23 | 24% | 10% |
| Mathematics | 23 | 24% | 31% |
| Biology | 20 | 21% | 20% |
| Physics | 17 | 18% | 12% |
| Chemistry | 17 | 18% | 17% |
| Sociology | 16 | 16% | 13% |
| English Language | 13 | 13% | 4% |
| English Literature | 9 | 9% | 11% |
| Further Mathematics | — | — | 5% |
| Media Studies | — | — | 4% |
| French | — | — | 1% |
| Drama | — | — | 2% |
| Chinese | — | — | 0% |
| Fine Art | — | — | 3% |
| Japanese | — | — | 0% |
| Art and Design | — | — | 1% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Science | VRQ Level 3 | 33 | 34% | — |
| Health Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate at Level 3 | 14 | 14% | — |
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 11 | 11% | — |
| Engineering Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 10 | 10% | — |
| Business Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate at Level 3 | 9 | 9% | — |
| Mathematical Studies | Core Maths Qualifications at Level 3 | 7 | 7% | — |
| Sports Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate at Level 3 | — | — | — |
| Mathematics | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Psychology | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Psychology | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Business Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Certificate at Level 3 | — | — | — |
| Health Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Certificate at Level 3 | — | — | — |
Other secondary schools in South Gloucestershire
Bradley Stoke Community School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,393 pupils
89% stayed in education · Attainment 8 50.6
Brimsham Green School
Community school · sixth form · 1,095 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 44.9
Chipping Sodbury School
Academy converter · sixth form · 775 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 43.7
Digitech Studio School
Studio schools · sixth form · 608 pupils
67% stayed in education · Attainment 8 31.2
Hanham Woods Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 825 pupils
72% stayed in education · Attainment 8 44.1
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.