The Deanes, Benfleet
The Deanes is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Benfleet, part of South East Essex Academy Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in September 2023. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 77th-highest of the 80 schools in Essex with published results, and 3,210th of 3,298 across England. It was 59% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2023)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
- Progress (2024)
- Well below average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 5 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Essex (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
The Deanes in detail
Results
In 2026, pupils at The Deanes averaged an Attainment 8 score of 32.2, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 46.5 in Essex and 47 across England.
14% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 45% in Essex and 47% in England.
That is down from 34.4 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.71: 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 27.6, against 34.6 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 7 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 21 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Statistics and Geography.
Getting a place at The Deanes
For September 2026 entry, 98 families put The Deanes as their first choice and 558 named it as one of their preferences, for 144 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to The Deanes are The King John School (0.8 miles, Good, Attainment 8 51.6); The FitzWimarc School (1.6 miles, Good, Attainment 8 47.3); The Sweyne Park School (1.9 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 41.3); and Harris Academy Benfleet (2 miles, Good, Attainment 8 39).
Each of them had higher 2026 results than The Deanes.
The King John SchoolThe FitzWimarc SchoolThe Sweyne Park SchoolHarris Academy Benfleet
The trust
The Deanes is one of 9 schools run by South East Essex Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Where pupils go next
Of the 97 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 84% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 75% to a further education college, 2% to an apprenticeship and 2% into work.
Who goes there
2% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 132 pupils (22.4%) received SEN support and 49 (8.3%) 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 social, emotional and mental health needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Rayleigh Rail Station, about 1.5 miles away in a straight line.
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is The Deanes (inside), 50 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, The Deanes issued 281 suspensions, 47.9 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to The Deanes are Westwood Academy (0.6 miles), Thundersley Primary School (0.7 miles), Wyburns Primary School (1.1 miles) and Kingston Primary School (1.1 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Westwood AcademyThundersley Primary SchoolWyburns Primary SchoolKingston Primary School
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
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 3 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its September 2023 inspection.
Rated Good for
Quality of education, Behaviour & attitudes, Personal development, Leadership & management.
About
The Deanes is a co-educational secondary school located in Thundersley in the English county of Essex.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
25.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has declined from -0.46 to -0.71 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has declined from 37.6 to 32.2 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has declined from 28% to 14% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 32.2 | 14.4% |
| Disadvantaged(38) | - | 27.6 | 7.9% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(73) | - | 34.6 | 17.8% |
| Boys(53) | - | 33.0 | 15.1% |
| Girls(58) | - | 31.4 | 13.8% |
Show more breakdowns (1)
| Non mobile(100) | - | 32.7 | 14% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 1 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 97 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
0
Permanent exclusions
0.00%
Exclusion rate
281
Suspensions
47.87%
Suspension rate
119 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 587 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with The Deanes
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to The Deanes from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. The Deanes is in Essex; for families living there:
- Essex's school travel policy: Education Transport Policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 11
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 6
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 11 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 6 serious and 5 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 1 on a bicycle.
1 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 Essex is 9 (the median across 614 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 The Deanes
Will you get a place at The Deanes? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against The Deanes's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for The Deanes:
- The straight-line distance from your home to The Deanes.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Essex, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at The Deanes for 2017 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Essex 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.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
59%
Available places
587 pupils
989 places
402 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Benfleet
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Benfleet
Across Essex council
Places available
17,590
Applications
16,568
Got 1st preference
83.4%
Got preferred school
97.0%
All secondary applications across Essex council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(2)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
132
SEN Support
49
EHC Plans
30.8%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
588
Total Pupils
309
Boys
279
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
41
Teachers
14.3:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£55,991
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,321
Per pupil
£4626k
Total funding
£191k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
11.5%
Overall absence
32.6%
Persistent absence
648
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
The Deanes
Showing 10 of 14 linked schools
Questions parents ask about The Deanes
What are GCSE results like at The Deanes?
In the 2026 results, pupils at The Deanes achieved an Attainment 8 score of 32.2. 14% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is The Deanes's Ofsted rating?
The Deanes was rated Good at its most recent Ofsted inspection in September 2023. At its previous graded inspection in 2019 it was rated Requires Improvement.
What is the catchment area for The Deanes?
No fixed boundary. When The Deanes is oversubscribed, Essex allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at The Deanes?
The Deanes was not full in 2025: it ran at 59% of its 989 places.
How big are the classes at The Deanes?
Classes at The Deanes average 21.9 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to The Deanes?
The Deanes has around 588 pupils on roll. 25% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at The Deanes?
11.5% of sessions were missed at The Deanes in 2024/25. 32.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to The Deanes?
Apply through Essex's coordinated admissions process, naming The Deanes on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near The Deanes?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 11 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 6 serious and 5 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 1 on a bicycle. 1 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 Essex is 9 (the median across 614 schools, same distance and years).
Where is The Deanes?
The Deanes is at Daws Heath Road, Thundersley, Benfleet, Essex, SS7 2TD.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)