Birchwood High School
General Info
- Education Phase
- Secondary, 16 plus
- School rating
- Good Jan 21 2025 Ofsted report
- Gender
- Mixed
- Age range
- 11 - 18 y.o.
- Type
- Academies
- Funding
- State-funded secondary
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious Character
- None
- Sixth Form
- Has a sixth form
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Unique reference
- 137637
- Address
- Parsonage Lane, CM23 5BD
Pupils
- Number of Pupils
- 1454 (99% of total capacity)
- Boys
- 54.3%
- Girls
- 45.7%
- First language not English
- 12.6%
- Free school meals (FSM)
- 14.6%
- Persistent absence
- 27.2%
- Special education needs (SEN)
- 9.6%
White British 75.3%
Other White 10.4%
Mixed 6.2%
African 1.9%
Indian 1.4%
Chinese 1.4%
Other Asian 0.9%
Other 0.8%
Unclassified 0.6%
Irish 0.4%
Bangladeshi 0.3%
Gypsy/Roma 0.1%
Pakistani 0.1%
Caribbean 0.1%
Other Black 0.1%
Exam Results
GCSE Results
Entering EBacc
School 36%
Local authority average 47%
England average 41%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
School 42%
Local authority average 53%
England average 45%
Attainment 8 score
School 46.1
Local authority average 50.5
England average 45.9
EBacc average point score
School 4.02
Local authority average 4.55
England average 4.08
Subjects
GCSE Subjects
| Subject | Qualification | Number of entries |
|---|---|---|
| Small Business Management | Technical Award | 90 |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | Technical Award | 23 |
| Additional Mathematics FSMQ | Other General Qualification (Level 3) | 1 |
| Arabic | GCSE | 2 |
| Art & Design (Fine Art) | GCSE | 46 |
| Biology | GCSE | 64 |
| Chemistry | GCSE | 64 |
| Chinese | GCSE | 3 |
| Computer Studies/Computing | GCSE | 35 |
| Design & Technology | GCSE | 74 |
Admissions
Birchwood High School
- Admission Policy
- Non-selective
- Total available places
- 211
- Status
- Not oversubscribed
Applications
- 1st preference
- 123
- 2nd preference
- 176
- 3rd preference
- 188
- From another Local Authority
- 307
Offers
- 1st preference
- 123
- 2nd preference
- 43
- 3rd preference
- 27
- To another Local Authority
- 112
Class sizes
| Class type | Class size |
|---|---|
| Average size of one-teacher classes | 23.5 |
Cohort sizes
| Class type | Total Boys Girls |
|---|---|
| Year 7 | 237 122 115 |
| Year 8 | 230 129 101 |
| Year 9 | 240 118 122 |
| Year 10 | 267 146 121 |
| Year 11 | 243 138 105 |
| Year 12 | 127 69 58 |
| Year 13 | 110 67 43 |
Participation in Education, Training, Employment
| Destinations after GCSEs | School LA England |
|---|---|
| Staying in education | 85.0% 91.3% 85.5% |
Further education | 38.0% 30.4% 36.9% |
School sixth form | 45.0% 58.5% 35.2% |
Sixth form college | 1.0% 1.9% 12.9% |
Other education destinations | 1.0% 0.4% 0.5% |
| Entering employment | 3.0% 1.7% 2.6% |
| Entering apprenticeships | 4.0% 1.7% 3.3% |
| Not in education or employment | 6.0% 3.4% 5.7% |
| Destination unknown | 2.0% 1.9% 3.0% |
Progression to Higher Education or Training
| Destinations after A‑levels | School LA England |
|---|---|
| Degrees | 52.0% 62.8% 60.1% |
Top third higher education institutions | 14.0% 23.6% 18.9% |
| Other study at level 4 or 5 | 2.0% 2.3% 2.5% |
| Higher apprenticeships | 4.0% 3.1% 2.4% |