The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School

The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School is performing well, with noticeable strengths in achieving strong academic results, particularly for disadvantaged pupils who are outpacing national averages. The school has also seen significant improvements in attendance, owing to effective strategies implemented by leaders. While most pupils are well-prepared for their next educational steps and exhibit positive behavior in a nurturing environment, certain areas require attention, such as the consistency in teaching quality and support for pupils with special educational needs. Overall, the school has established a commendable culture of safeguarding and personal development.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve well in most subjects across the curriculum.
• Disadvantaged pupils are outperforming their peers nationally.
• Attendance has improved significantly and now meets national averages.
• The school has a broad and ambitious curriculum.
• Pupils feel safe and are proud of their school.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistencies exist in the quality of teaching, especially between key stages.
• Gaps in pupils' learning are not always effectively identified or addressed.
• Support for pupils with special educational needs is not consistently implemented.

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 The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School attended 91.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 24.8% 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, 4.0% of pupils at The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 2 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 The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School had 19.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 3.1% 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, 13.3% of pupils at The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.3% 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 The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School received £6,581 and spent £7,208 for each of its 1,090 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £953,000 (£874 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 Hereford · Herefordshire, County of local authority: places and applications

What is The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School is Needs attention, from an inspection in April 2026.

When was The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School was last inspected in April 2026.

How many pupils does The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School have?

The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School has 1,089 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School cover?

The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 46.3, and 45% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School?

The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School is at Hampton Dene Road, Tupsley, Hereford, Herefordshire, HR1 1UU.