King's School, Hove

Ofsted's report card from its 19 May 2026 inspection grades King's School on 7 areas: 6 strong standard and 1 expected standard. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Achievement - Strong standard. "Pupils achieve consistently well."

Attendance and behaviour - Strong standard. "Leaders have a clear understanding of pupils' attendance and behaviour."

Curriculum and teaching - Strong standard. "The school offers a wide, ambitious curriculum."

Inclusion - Strong standard. "The school is highly effective in ensuring that all pupils are fully included, particularly those who may experience barriers to their learning or wellbeing."

Leadership and governance - Strong standard. "Leaders have an accurate and insightful understanding of the school's strengths and areas for development."

Personal development and wellbeing - Strong standard. "The school provides a comprehensive programme for pupils' personal development and wellbeing."

Post 16 provision - Expected standard. "Leaders have an accurate view of the quality of sixth-form provision."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should continue to embed their work to improve the quality of teaching by ensuring that teachers consistently check how well pupils have understood new learning so that, as on the vast majority of occasions, any misconceptions are swiftly identified and addressed"; "Leaders should continue work to support greater student achievement in the sixth form so that it matches that in the rest of the school".

In 2026, pupils at King's School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 56.5, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 46.7 in Brighton and Hove and 47 across England.

60% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 47% in Brighton and Hove and 47% in England.

That is up from 53.7 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.84: 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 46.4, against 59 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 12.6 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 22 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Combined Science and Geography.

For September 2026 entry, 212 families put King's School as their first choice and 827 named it as one of their preferences, for 171 places offered. That is 1.2 first choices for every place. 55 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state secondary schools to King's School are Blatchington Mill School (0.8 miles, Good, Attainment 8 52.5); Hove Park School and Sixth Form Centre (1.1 miles, Good, Attainment 8 42); Portslade Aldridge Community Academy (1.5 miles, Good, Attainment 8 44.1); and Cardinal Newman Catholic School (1.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 50.9).

King's School's 2026 results were higher than all 4 of them.

King's School is one of 7 schools run by Russell Education Trust, an academy trust.

Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 54.6 in 2024/25.

Of the 165 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 95% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 10% to a further education college and 1% into work.

In 2026, 208 pupils (22.5%) received SEN support and 50 (5.4%) 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 autism.

The nearest railway station is Aldrington Rail Station, about 1.3 miles away in a straight line.

17 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is West Blatchington School (adjacent), 160 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood King's School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 116 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and other theft. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Brighton and Hove (366).

In 2024/25, King's School issued 43 suspensions, 4.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to King's School are West Blatchington Primary and Nursery School (under 0.1 miles), Hangleton Primary School (0.5 miles), Aldrington CofE Primary School (0.9 miles) and Goldstone Primary School (0.9 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.