William Edwards School

William Edwards School, part of the South West Essex Community Education Trust, is a larger-than-average secondary school of around 1,105 pupils. Following a previous inspection that identified areas needing improvement, the school has undergone significant leadership changes, including the appointment of an interim executive headteacher and trust-level intervention. Behaviour and attendance are now strengths: pupils behave calmly and respectfully, attendance is in line with national averages, and persistent absence is falling. Safeguarding is met, and pupils report feeling safe and valued. The school's provision for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils is well designed and monitored, and personal development is a clear strength, with a wide range of enrichment and leadership opportunities preparing pupils well for life in modern Britain.

Strengths

• Calm and orderly school environment where pupils behave well and respect staff guidance
• Pupils feel safe and bullying is rare, with prompt and fair handling when it occurs
• Effective systems for identifying and meeting the needs of pupils with SEND
• Well-focused and monitored support for disadvantaged pupils, including attendance and enrichment
• Strong personal development programme covering health, safety and respect for others
• Wide range of leadership and enrichment opportunities, such as Duke of Edinburgh and sports leadership
• Effective careers advice and guidance leading to high proportions of pupils entering sustained education or employment
• Trust has taken timely action to improve behaviour and support school leadership
• Staff feel supported by leaders and recognise the positive direction of change
• Bespoke reading programmes help pupils who struggle with reading to improve comprehension

Areas for Improvement

• Published outcomes have been low across a range of subjects for several years
• Pupils do not always progress well from their starting points, particularly in English
• Teaching quality is variable, with some teachers not checking understanding frequently enough or adapting lessons
• Curriculum changes in some subjects are new and have not yet had sufficient impact on learning
• Leaders' actions to improve the school have been slower than they should have been
• Pupils sometimes comply with expectations rather than demonstrating a love of learning
• Disadvantaged pupils' attainment, while in line with national disadvantaged peers, remains well below non-disadvantaged peers nationally

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 William Edwards School attended 92.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 24.6% 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, 6.6% of pupils at William Edwards School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). No 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 William Edwards School had 14.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 15.6% 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, 15.8% of pupils at William Edwards School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.6% 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 2024–25 William Edwards School received £8,432 and spent £8,227 for each of its 1,108 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,229,000 (£1,110 per pupil).

Across all 6 schools of South West Essex Community Education Trust Limited, income was £8,131 and spending £7,874 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Grays · Thurrock local authority: places and applications

William Edwards School is part of South West Essex Community Education Trust Limited, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:

• Stifford Clays Primary School Grays
• Deneholm Primary School Grays
• Orsett Heath Academy Grays
• Chadwell St Mary Primary School Grays
• Marshalls Park Academy Romford

What is William Edwards School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for William Edwards School is Needs attention, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was William Edwards School last inspected by Ofsted?

William Edwards School was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does William Edwards School have?

William Edwards School has 984 pupils on roll.

What age range does William Edwards School cover?

William Edwards School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are William Edwards School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 41.8, and 37% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is William Edwards School?

William Edwards School is at Stifford Clays Road, Stifford Clays, Grays, Essex, RM16 3NJ.