Astor Secondary School, Dover

Ofsted's report card from its 10 March 2026 inspection grades Astor Secondary School on 7 areas: 2 expected standard and 5 needs attention. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Personal development and wellbeing - Expected standard. "Leaders prioritise pupils' personal development."

Post 16 provision - Expected standard. "Leaders have created a highly inclusive post-16 provision."

Achievement - Needs attention. "Over time, pupils, including those who are disadvantaged and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, have not achieved well in national examinations at the end of key stage 4."

Attendance and behaviour - Needs attention. "Too many pupils do not attend school as often as they should."

Curriculum and teaching - Needs attention. "There is too much variability in how well the curriculum is taught."

Inclusion - Needs attention. "Disadvantaged pupils do not achieve as well as they should."

Leadership and governance - Needs attention. "Until recently, leaders did not act quickly enough to identify and address key priorities for improvement, particularly in curriculum and teaching."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should ensure that the school's pupil premium strategy is well informed and evaluated carefully so that it leads to a consistently positive impact on these pupils' education"; "Leaders should work to ensure that teachers skilfully use assessment information and make appropriate adjustments to teaching or the curriculum so that pupils, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities or those who are disadvantaged, learn and achieve as well as they should"; "Leaders should ensure that their attendance strategy is fully embedded and effective in continuing to improve overall attendance, particularly for disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They should also make sure that their actions result in reducing persistent absence further for all pupil groups"; "Leaders should ensure the school's improvement actions are delivered effectively to bring about rapid improvements in all pupils' achievement so that pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education, employment or training".

In its own words: "Astor School was established in 1948, since when it has grown considerably, not merely in size, but also in public esteem. In 2002 it was designated a specialist school and became Astor College for the Arts. It is widely recognised in the area as a college which maintains the highest standards in work, behaviour and personal appearance."

In 2026, pupils at Astor Secondary School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 30.3, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 48.1 in Kent and 47 across England.

12% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 49% in Kent and 47% in England.

That is up from 27.9 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -1.04: pupils made well below average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.

Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 26.6, against 36 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 9.4 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 21 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Art and Design.

For September 2026 entry, 66 families put Astor Secondary School as their first choice and 224 named it as one of their preferences, for 117 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Astor Secondary School are Dover Grammar School for Boys (0.1 miles, Good, selective, Attainment 8 63.1); Dover Grammar School for Girls (0.9 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 56.7); St Edmund's Catholic School (1 mile, Good, Attainment 8 33.7); and Dover Christ Church Academy (1.7 miles, Attainment 8 35.8).

Each of them had higher 2026 results than Astor Secondary School.

Astor Secondary School is one of 4 schools run by Samphire Star Education Trust, an academy trust.

41 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Astor Secondary School (as of April 2026): 63% would recommend the school, 56% say their child is happy there and 31% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that they are kept well informed about progress (63%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (31%).

Of the 127 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 80% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 48% to a further education college, 2% to an apprenticeship and 3% into work.

Of the 45 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 36% went on to university or other higher education, 2% to apprenticeships and 27% into work.

60.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 159 pupils (21.7%) received SEN support and 12 (1.6%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is social, emotional and mental health needs.

Astor Secondary School had 57 teachers in 2026, one for every 13 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical secondary school, at about one for every 17.

The nearest railway station is Dover Priory Rail Station, about 1160 metres away (roughly a 14-minute walk).

10 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Elms Vale Road (opp 127), 230 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Astor Secondary School stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 309 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and criminal damage and arson. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Kent (101), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, Astor Secondary School issued 358 suspensions, 46.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to Astor Secondary School are St Martin's School (0.2 miles), Vale View Community School (0.3 miles), Priory Fields School (0.4 miles) and White Cliffs Primary and Nursery School (0.4 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.