King Ethelbert School, Birchington
King Ethelbert School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 18 in Birchington, part of Coastal Academies Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in June 2024. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 68th-highest of the 101 schools in Kent with published results, and 2,812th of 3,298 across England. It was 91% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2024)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- Below England average
- Progress (2024)
- Below average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 6 days
Deadline Monday 2 November 2026. Apply to Kent (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
King Ethelbert School in detail
King Ethelbert School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "King Ethelbert School is hugely popular with students who make strong academic progress regardless of their starting points. Our school is like a big family and we aim for all students to be happy, confident and successful at our school, so they are able to reach their potential academically and personally."
Headteacher's welcome (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2026, pupils at King Ethelbert School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 38.7, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 48.1 in Kent and 47 across England.
26% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 49% in Kent and 47% in England.
That is up from 36.8 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.43: pupils made 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 34.6, against 41.4 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 6.8 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 23 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Geography and Business Studies.
Getting a place at King Ethelbert School
For September 2026 entry, 144 families put King Ethelbert School as their first choice and 537 named it as one of their preferences, for 150 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 17 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at King Ethelbert School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to King Ethelbert School are Ursuline College (0.2 miles, Good, Attainment 8 40); Hartsdown Academy (2 miles, Good, Attainment 8 35.3); The Royal Harbour Academy (3.6 miles, Attainment 8 31.1); and St George's Church of England Foundation School (3.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 37.4).
King Ethelbert School's 2026 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.
Ursuline CollegeHartsdown AcademyThe Royal Harbour AcademySt George's Church of England Foundation School
The trust
King Ethelbert School is one of 6 schools run by Coastal Academies Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 47.2 in 2024/25.
Where pupils go next
Of the 138 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 86% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 38% to a further education college, 4% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.
Who goes there
37.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 6% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (88%) and Mixed (5%).
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Westgate-on-Sea Rail Station, about 0.8 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is King Ethelbert School (adjacent), 90 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, King Ethelbert School issued 120 suspensions, 15.1 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to King Ethelbert School are St Saviour's Church of England Junior School (0.5 miles), St Crispin's Infant School (0.6 miles), Birchington Church of England Primary School (0.8 miles) and Garlinge Primary School and Nursery (1.7 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
St Saviour's Church of England Junior SchoolSt Crispin's Infant SchoolBirchington Church of England Primary SchoolGarlinge Primary School and Nursery
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
The school's core values of ASPIRE (attitude, success, pride, inspire resilience and enterprise) underpin all aspects of school life. Pupils uphold these values and respond well to the school's expectations of them. The school have designed a curriculum to ensure that there is ambition for all pupils.
The high-quality pastoral support on offer to all pupils is based on the positive relationships between staff and pupils. There are high expectations for pupils' behaviour. The vast majority respond well to these. Classrooms are mostly calm and orderly. During social times, pupils behave well and are respectful and polite. Pupils are safe here and know who to talk to if they need help or guidance. They say that on rare occasions bullying does occur, but teachers are quick to intervene and act on concerns raised.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
The school is committed to offering a broad and ambitious curriculum for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). At key stage 4, the curriculum offers pupils the chance to study the full range of subjects that make up the English Baccalaureate. Pupils benefit from studying a range of academic and creative subjects which are well-matched to pupils' needs. Consequently, pupils achieve well in a range of subjects across the curriculum.
In many subjects, the curriculum has been carefully planned so that it is clear what pupils will learn. However, in a small number of other subjects, the curriculum is still in the process of being developed. In these subjects, the key knowledge and order that pupils will learn is not always precisely identified. This means that teachers are not always clear on what should be taught and when and pupils' learning is variable.
From Ofsted's June 2024 inspection report: the opening paragraphs of each section, quoted word for word. Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its June 2024 inspection.
Rated Good for
Quality of education, Behaviour & attitudes, Personal development, Leadership & management.
About
King Ethelbert School is a mixed secondary school located in Birchington-on-Sea, Kent, England. A wide variety of subjects are available at GCSE level as well as IB or BTEC in sixth form.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
37.8%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
Yes
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has declined from -0.16 to -0.43 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has declined from 42.6 to 38.7 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has declined from 29% to 26% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 38.7 | 25.5% |
| Disadvantaged(58) | - | 34.6 | 19% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(87) | - | 41.4 | 29.9% |
| Boys(77) | - | 37.1 | 26% |
| Girls(68) | - | 40.4 | 25% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(13) | - | 44.0 | 23.1% |
| Non mobile(141) | - | 38.9 | 26.2% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 3 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 138 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
0
Permanent exclusions
0.00%
Exclusion rate
120
Suspensions
15.11%
Suspension rate
56 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 794 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with King Ethelbert School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to King Ethelbert School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. King Ethelbert School is in Kent; for families living there:
Apply to Kent for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 4
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 3 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Kent is 11 (the median across 711 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at King Ethelbert School
Will you get a place at King Ethelbert School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against King Ethelbert School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for King Ethelbert School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to King Ethelbert School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Kent, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at King Ethelbert School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Kent got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
£9.99 once
One school, inc. VAT. Or £19.99 for up to three schools.
Pro £9 a month, every report included, cancel any time
A report for any school, plus everything else in Pro.
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
91%
Near capacity
792 pupils
870 places
78 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Birchington
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Birchington
Across Kent council
Places available
19,539
Applications
18,644
Got 1st preference
78.9%
Got preferred school
96.2%
All secondary applications across Kent council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(5)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
167
SEN Support
35
EHC Plans
23.9%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
845
Total Pupils
446
Boys
399
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
56
Teachers
15.1:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£57,121
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,261
Per pupil
£5820k
Total funding
£268k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
10.3%
Overall absence
30.6%
Persistent absence
768
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Questions parents ask about King Ethelbert School
What are GCSE results like at King Ethelbert School?
In the 2026 results, pupils at King Ethelbert School achieved an Attainment 8 score of 38.7. 26% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is King Ethelbert School's Ofsted rating?
King Ethelbert School was rated Good at its most recent Ofsted inspection in June 2024.
What is the catchment area for King Ethelbert School?
No fixed boundary. When King Ethelbert School is oversubscribed, Kent allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at King Ethelbert School?
King Ethelbert School was not full in 2025: it ran at 91% of its 870 places.
How big are the classes at King Ethelbert School?
Classes at King Ethelbert School average 21.6 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to King Ethelbert School?
King Ethelbert School has around 845 pupils on roll. 38% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at King Ethelbert School?
10.3% of sessions were missed at King Ethelbert School in 2024/25. 30.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to King Ethelbert School?
Apply through Kent's coordinated admissions process, naming King Ethelbert School on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Monday 2 November 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near King Ethelbert School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 3 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Kent is 11 (the median across 711 schools, same distance and years).
Where is King Ethelbert School?
King Ethelbert School is at Canterbury Road, Birchington, Kent, CT7 9BL.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)