Cheney School

About Cheney School

Cheney School’s Progress 8 score of 0.19 places it comfortably above the Oxfordshire local authority average of -0.07, meaning pupils here make stronger academic progress than their peers across the county. That gap is meaningful: a score above zero indicates students are pulling ahead of the national baseline, while the LA average sits below it. In a local authority where only four out of 46 secondary schools hold an Outstanding rating from Ofsted, Cheney has been rated Good in its most recent graded inspection, a rating it has maintained across both its 2015 and 2023 inspections. The school is also the fourth-highest ranked secondary in Oxford city by Progress 8, out of seven schools, and sits in the top 50 nationally for that metric. With 1,704 pupils on roll against a capacity of 1,615, it is oversubscribed: for 2025/26 entry, there were 678 applications for 268 places, with 214 offers going to first-preference families.

Academically, Cheney performs well across the board. Its Attainment 8 score of 46.9 is solid, and 63.7% of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in both English and maths. The school’s EBacc average point score of 4.29 reflects decent breadth, and 41.1% of pupils entered the EBacc suite of subjects. Progress in maths is particularly strong, with a Progress 8 maths score of 0.31, while English progress is close to the national average at 0.02. At sixth form, the school’s value-added score of 0.19 is rated above average, and students achieved an average of 36.79 points per entry, equivalent to a B- grade. The best three A-levels averaged 37.96 points, also a B-. In the local authority ranking, Cheney sits 16th out of 46 schools, placing it in the upper half of Oxfordshire secondaries.

The school offers a wide range of facilities, including a sports hall, theatre, swimming pool, astro turf, and a dedicated sixth form centre. There are clubs covering everything from chess and debating to the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Young Enterprise. Sports include netball, rugby, football, cricket, and dance. Cheney also publishes a school newspaper and runs an eco club. Its SEND provision is extensive, covering ten categories from dyslexia and autism to physical disability and multi-sensory impairment, which will reassure families whose children need additional support. The school is oversubscribed by a ratio of 2.53 to one, so parents should be prepared to apply early and list it as a first preference. It suits families who want a large, mixed comprehensive with strong academic progress, a thriving sixth form, and a broad extracurricular offer, all within Oxford city.

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