Belfairs Academy
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,558 pupils
85% stayed in education · Attainment 8 45.5
Academy special converter
St Nicholas School
- Pupils on roll
- 108of 108 places
- Free school meals
- 59.3%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 20
- Ofsted
- Report card, 20 January 2026Read the Ofsted report
Curriculum and teaching Expected standardAchievement Expected standardAttendance and behaviour Strong standardPersonal development and wellbeing Expected standardInclusion Expected standardLeadership and governance Expected standardPost-16 provision Not applicableSafeguarding Met
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: St Nicholas School (URN 115444, until 1 September 2017).
What the data says
Of the 18 pupils who finished Year 11 at St Nicholas School in 2023, none moved to a sixth form college, 67% to a further education college and none started an apprenticeship.
GCSE results in 2025 were well below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 2.5 against 46.1 across England and 52.2 in Southend-on-Sea, with 0% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Almost nobody goes straight into an apprenticeship or a job: none took an apprenticeship and none went into work, against 3% and 3% across England.
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 Southend-on-Sea and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | St Nicholas School | Southend-on-Sea | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 18 | 2,303 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 94% | 94% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 94% | 91% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 0% | 58% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 0% | — | 13% |
| — further education college | 67% | 30% | 37% |
| — other education | 28% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 2% | 3% |
| Employment | 0% | 2% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 6% | 4% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 0% | 2% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | St Nicholas School | Southend-on-Sea | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 2.5 | 52.2 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 57% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 0% | 71% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 0% | 50% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 0.00 | 4.64 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 75% | 22% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | — | 35.7 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | — | 56.8 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 0% | 13% | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Art and Design | 13 | 65% | 7% | 0% | 24% | 54% |
Other secondary schools in Southend-on-Sea
Cecil Jones Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,159 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 35.1
Chase High School
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,293 pupils
83% stayed in education · Attainment 8 39.2
Shoeburyness High School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,713 pupils
83% stayed in education · Attainment 8 37.6
Southchurch High School
Academy sponsor led · 722 pupils
82% stayed in education · Attainment 8 38.7
Southend High School for Boys
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,332 pupils
99% stayed in education · Attainment 8 73.8
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.