Chetwynde School

About Chetwynde School

Chetwynde School’s headline Progress 8 score of -0.39 sits noticeably below the Westmorland and Furness local authority average of -0.12 for secondary schools, meaning pupils here make less academic progress between Key Stage 2 and GCSE than their peers across the borough. That gap is significant enough to place the school 15th out of 19 schools in the LA, putting it in the bottom third locally and the bottom quarter nationally. The school’s Attainment 8 score of 44 is also modest, and just 46.6% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in English and maths (the basics 95 measure), compared with a local picture where the average school performs better. On the plus side, the school has a clear upward trajectory in its Ofsted rating: it was graded Requires Improvement in November 2019 but jumped to Good in its most recent inspection in November 2023, with every category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management — now rated Good.

Digging into the Progress 8 breakdown reveals where the drag is coming from. The weakest subject bucket is English, with a Progress 8 score of -0.58, followed by maths at -0.46 and the open element (which includes subjects like arts and vocational qualifications) at -0.61. The EBacc subjects, however, are a relative bright spot: Progress 8 for EBacc is -0.02, essentially in line with the national average. Only 10.3% of pupils entered the EBacc suite, which is low, and the EBacc average point score sits at 3.74. The school’s progress 8 banding is officially classed as “Below average,” and the confidence interval ranges from -0.76 on the low end to -0.01 on the high end, meaning there is a small chance the true figure could be close to average. For context, the top-performing school in the LA, John Ruskin School, posts a Progress 8 of +0.50, so Chetwynde has ground to make up.

Chetwynde is a heavily oversubscribed school: for 25 Year 7 places in 2025/26, it received 167 total applications, a ratio of 6.68 applicants per place, with 36 first-preference applications for those 25 spots. That level of demand suggests strong local reputation despite the academic metrics. The school serves a mixed community, with 18% of pupils eligible for free school meals, slightly above the national average. Facilities are generous for a state secondary: a swimming pool, theatre, music rooms, gymnasium, science labs, and playing fields. Sports provision is broad, including hockey, martial arts, and cross country, and there are clubs for drama, coding, and Young Enterprise. The school also has a nursery provision and covers ages 3 to 16, though it does not have a sixth form. SEND support is well-documented, covering autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language needs, dyslexia, and social, emotional and mental health needs. This is a school that suits families who value breadth of opportunity and a Good Ofsted rating over headline exam performance, and who are prepared for the competitive admissions process.

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