Beechwood School

Beechwood School is a mixed 11–18 secondary school within The Schelwood Trust. Following its April 2025 graded inspection, the quality of education requires improvement, while behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and sixth-form provision are good. The school was previously judged to require improvement. Inspectors found a calm, safe school where pupils are polite, respectful and benefit from warm, trusted relationships with staff, and where leaders have high aspirations for pupils. Leadership has been strengthened and is now more informed and strategic, with staff contributing to positive changes in curriculum and behaviour. The curriculum is well considered and ambitious across subjects, with a clear lesson structure, and pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported precisely, including through 'hubs'. Personal development is strong, including a character curriculum, careers education and pupil leadership roles, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. Sixth-form students generally have a more consistently positive experience, and the school acted quickly to address gaps after a dip in 2024 results. However, pupils do not consistently develop the secure knowledge they need, and key stage 4 outcomes are below average. Teachers' checks on understanding are inconsistent, so misconceptions and gaps are sometimes missed, and tasks are not consistently adapted to challenge all pupils or support those who need more time. Despite recent improvement, too many pupils still miss too much school. The school recognises these issues and is making changes to improve teaching, learning and attendance.

Strengths

• Pupils are polite, respectful and inquisitive, and the school is calm and safe.
• Pupils benefit from warm and trusted relationships with staff who have high aspirations for them.
• Leadership has been strengthened and is informed and strategic at all levels.
• The curriculum is well considered and ambitious in all subjects, with a clear lesson structure.
• Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and receive precise support, including through 'hubs'.
• Personal development is strong, including the character curriculum, careers education and pupil leadership roles.
• Sixth-form students benefit from more rigorous checks on understanding and quick correction of misconceptions.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils do not consistently develop secure knowledge across subjects, contributing to below-average key stage 4 outcomes.
• Teachers' checks on pupils' understanding are inconsistent, so misconceptions and gaps are sometimes missed.
• Tasks are not consistently adapted to challenge all pupils or support those who need more time to understand new knowledge.
• Too many pupils still have poor attendance despite some recent improvement.
• Some subjects are further along than others in ensuring pupils remember and can use what they have learned.

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 Beechwood School attended 87.2% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 35.2% 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, 13.3% of pupils at Beechwood 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 Beechwood School had 16.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.9% 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, 12.9% of pupils at Beechwood School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.5% 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 Beechwood School received £9,451 and spent £9,757 for each of its 830 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £356,000 (£429 per pupil).

Across all 2 schools of The Schelwood Trust, income was £8,261 and spending £8,532 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 Slough · Slough local authority: places and applications

Beechwood School is part of The Schelwood Trust, which runs 2 schools. The nearest others:

• Herschel Grammar School Slough

What is Beechwood School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Beechwood School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in June 2025.

When was Beechwood School last inspected by Ofsted?

Beechwood School was last inspected in June 2025.

How many pupils does Beechwood School have?

Beechwood School has 838 pupils on roll.

What age range does Beechwood School cover?

Beechwood School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Beechwood School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 33.2, and 22% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Beechwood School?

Beechwood School is at Long Readings Lane, Slough, Berkshire, SL2 1QE.