Burnside College

Burnside College has demonstrated significant improvement since its last inspection, raising standards and enhancing the quality of education provided to its students. The school has implemented good staff training that has contributed to a more ambitious and demanding curriculum, with pupils responding well to challenging teaching, particularly in English, history, and geography. While the sixth form is recognized as outstanding, with tailored teaching that facilitates rapid progress, some areas like mathematics and modern foreign languages are still lagging behind and require further focus to optimize the educational outcomes for all pupils.

Strengths

• Improved quality of education due to effective staff training.
• Ambitious and well-structured curriculum in most subjects.
• Outstanding sixth form provision with tailored teaching.
• Effective safeguarding arrangements and support for vulnerable pupils.
• Broad range of extra-curricular activities available.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum in mathematics and MFL needs further improvement.
• Some pupils lack opportunities for discussion and vocabulary development.
• Insufficient cultural visits limiting pupils' cultural awareness.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Burnside College attended 91.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 27.7% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 12.3% of pupils at Burnside College were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 21 pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Burnside College had 15.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 22.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 11.9% of pupils at Burnside College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.8% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

The school has resourced provision with 7 pupils.

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Burnside College received £8,673 and spent £9,050 for each of its 996 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £673,000 (£675 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Wallsend · North Tyneside local authority: places and applications

Burnside College is part of The North Tyneside Learning Trust, which runs 29 schools. The nearest others:

• Richardson Dees Primary School Wallsend
• Western Community Primary School Wallsend
• Beacon Hill School North Tyneside
• Wallsend Jubilee Primary School Wallsend
• Redesdale Primary School Wallsend
• Norham High School North Shields
• Forest Hall Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Ivy Road Primary School Newcastle Upon Tyne
• Balliol Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Benton Dene Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne

What is Burnside College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Burnside College is Good, from an inspection in January 2025.

When was Burnside College last inspected by Ofsted?

Burnside College was last inspected in January 2025.

How many pupils does Burnside College have?

Burnside College has 995 pupils on roll.

What age range does Burnside College cover?

Burnside College for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Burnside College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 42.0, and 25% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Burnside College?

Burnside College is at St Peter's Road, Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, NE28 7LQ.