Dartford Science & Technology College

Dartford Science & Technology College is a warm and highly inclusive school where pupils behave exceptionally well and feel safe. Leaders are ambitious for all pupils, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and have created a culture in which barriers to learning are identified and reduced quickly. Pupils achieve well from their starting points, with key stage 4 outcomes broadly in line with or above national averages, and attendance has improved, especially for pupils with SEND. Behaviour is exemplary, bullying is rare, and pupils have highly positive attitudes to learning. The school's strengths lie in its inclusion, pastoral care, and personal development. Pupils benefit from a broad curriculum, strong careers education, and a wide range of extra-curricular opportunities. Leadership and governance are effective, staff feel valued, and parents hold the school in high regard. However, some aspects of the personal development programme, particularly citizenship, are less secure, and teaching and assessment are not consistently precise across all subjects. In the sixth form, academic outcomes are below national averages, although vocational results are closer to average and leaders have taken effective action to address this. Overall, the school is performing well, with a strong inclusive ethos, but it needs to ensure that teaching and assessment are consistently highly effective and that pupils' knowledge across the whole personal development programme is fully developed.

Strengths

• Highly inclusive ethos with ambitious leadership for all pupils
• Effective systems to identify and reduce barriers to learning swiftly
• Strong support for pupils with SEND, including a nurture pathway in Year 7
• Precise use of additional funding to support disadvantaged pupils
• Pupils achieve well from their individual starting points across the curriculum
• Pupils can recall important concepts and use complex vocabulary confidently
• Key stage 4 outcomes are in line with or above national averages in many subjects
• Sustained improvement in attendance, especially for pupils with SEND
• Pupils' behaviour is exemplary, respectful, and well-mannered
• Positive attitudes to learning with attentive and keen pupils
• Ambitious and well-organised curriculum with academic and vocational pathways
• Teachers have secure subject knowledge and make effective adaptations
• Strong support for reading, writing, and mathematics catch-up
• Leaders place pupils at the centre of decision-making and have an accurate view of priorities
• Governors are committed, knowledgeable, and provide effective challenge and support
• Staff feel valued and benefit from a well-designed professional learning programme
• Comprehensive personal development programme with a wide range of extra-curricular activities
• Effective pastoral support for mental health and wellbeing of vulnerable pupils
• Strong emphasis on celebrating different faiths, cultures, and religions
• Comprehensive careers programme with meaningful work experience opportunities
• Post-16 vocational outcomes are close to national averages
• Teaching at post-16 is generally effective and prepares students well for next steps
• Students value enrichment sessions and leadership opportunities
• Warm and welcoming school where pupils are known as individuals
• Pupils feel safe and know staff take their worries seriously
• Pupils make a positive contribution to the school and local community

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils are less secure in their knowledge of some aspects of the citizenship curriculum
• Leaders need to ensure pupils develop secure and detailed knowledge across all aspects of the personal development programme
• Teaching, including the precise use of assessment, is not consistently embedded well across the curriculum
• There are minor inconsistencies in the precision and effectiveness of teachers' checks on pupils' learning
• Academic outcomes in the sixth form are below national averages
• A-level average point score and value added are below national averages
• Historically low outcomes in some post-16 subjects required action to address teaching inconsistencies

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 Dartford Science & Technology College attended 91.6% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 24.5% 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, 2.8% of pupils at Dartford Science & Technology College were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). One pupil was 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 Dartford Science & Technology College had 16.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.1% 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, 14.7% of pupils at Dartford Science & Technology College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.0% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

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 Dartford Science & Technology College received £8,136 and spent £8,204 for each of its 858 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £281,000 (£328 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 Dartford · Kent local authority: places and applications

What is Dartford Science & Technology College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Dartford Science & Technology College is Expected standard, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Dartford Science & Technology College last inspected by Ofsted?

Dartford Science & Technology College was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Dartford Science & Technology College have?

Dartford Science & Technology College has 857 pupils on roll.

What age range does Dartford Science & Technology College cover?

Dartford Science & Technology College for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Dartford Science & Technology College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 47.1, and 53% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Dartford Science & Technology College?

Dartford Science & Technology College is at Heath Lane, Dartford, Kent, DA1 2LY.