Beacon Academy, Crowborough

In its own words: "At Beacon Academy, it is our vision to provide the best possible education for all our students and to remain an exceptional educational establishment locally and nationally. Our curriculum for our students is rightly ambitious - it is as broad as it is balanced."

From the headteacher's welcome: "We are delighted to welcome you to Beacon Academy, a forward-thinking, inclusive and community-minded school with a sustained and established reputation for academic excellence, outstanding pastoral care and highly successful student development. We understand that choosing a secondary school is one of the most important decisions you will make for your children and family."

In 2026, pupils at Beacon Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 49.4, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 44.5 in East Sussex and 47 across England.

57% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 44% in East Sussex and 47% in England.

That is in line with 2025, when the score was 50.2.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.5: pupils made well above 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 34.4, against 51.7 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 17.3 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 25 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Geography and History.

For September 2026 entry, 238 families put Beacon Academy as their first choice and 398 named it as one of their preferences, for 255 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 12 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

Beacon Academy is one of 3 schools run by Mark Education Trust, an academy trust.

Of the 259 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 88% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 36% to a further education college, 3% to an apprenticeship and 5% into work.

Of the 118 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 50% went on to university or other higher education, 3% to apprenticeships and 34% into work. 17% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

12.6% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 4.9% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 191 pupils (11.6%) received SEN support and 37 (2.3%) 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 a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia.

The nearest railway station is Crowborough Rail Station, about 0.9 miles away in a straight line.

8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Sir Henry Fermor School (outside), 210 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Beacon Academy stands in is among the 20% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. On income deprivation affecting children it is in the 7th decile, where the 1st is the most deprived. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 99 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in East Sussex (65), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, Beacon Academy issued 241 suspensions, 14.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to Beacon Academy are Sir Henry Fermor Church of England Primary School (0.1 miles), St Marys Catholic Primary School (0.2 miles), Ashdown Primary School (0.4 miles) and Jarvis Brook Primary School (1.1 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.