Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre, Cheltenham

In its own words: "Our staff and students are ambitious , curious , proud , purposeful , respectful and supportive . It’s not at all unusual for several generations from the same family to have been part of Bournside School as we’ve been part of the community for many years having moved to our present site in Warden Hill in 1972."

Clubs and activities named on the school's website include dance, drama, chess, robotics, gardening, film, debating and Duke of Edinburgh.

In 2026, pupils at Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre averaged an Attainment 8 score of 49.6, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 51.2 in Gloucestershire and 47 across England.

47% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 54% in Gloucestershire and 47% in England.

That is up from 48.1 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.44: pupils made 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 37.6, against 53 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 15.4 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 30 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Business Studies and Geography.

For September 2026 entry, 276 families put Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre as their first choice and 807 named it as one of their preferences, for 292 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 40 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre are The High School Leckhampton (0.7 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 59.7); Pate's Grammar School (1.5 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 82.4); All Saints' Academy, Cheltenham (1.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 37.7); and Pittville School (2.3 miles, Good, Attainment 8 44.2).

Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre's 2026 results were higher than 2 of these 4 schools.

Of the 293 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 87% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 25% to a further education college, 4% to an apprenticeship and 2% into work.

Of the 153 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 50% went on to university or other higher education, 5% to apprenticeships and 28% into work. 9% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

In 2026, 213 pupils (11.5%) received SEN support and 49 (2.7%) 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 moderate learning difficulty.

The nearest railway station is Cheltenham Spa Rail Station, about 1190 metres away (roughly a 15-minute walk).

7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Bournside School (opposite), 120 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In 2024/25, Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre issued 177 suspensions, 9.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 3 permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to Cheltenham Bournside School and Sixth Form Centre are St James' Church of England Primary School (0.3 miles), Warden Hill Primary School (0.4 miles), Greatfield Park Primary School (0.4 miles) and Lakeside Primary School (0.7 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.