Chilton Trinity School

Chilton Trinity School is a secondary comprehensive that has improved since its previous inspection, with inspectors finding the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management all good. The school has acted quickly after low published 2023 examination results, and pupils are positive, calm and kind; they recall learning and apply it to new learning. The curriculum is ambitious and carefully sequenced, staff training is well structured, reading support is effective, and pupils benefit from a broad enrichment and personal development offer. Safeguarding is effective. Notable concerns are that pupils with SEND do not always receive timely adaptations in lessons, and some school-improvement work has not been evaluated precisely enough to identify next steps accurately. Some pupils have too many days off school, although leaders check attendance forensically and support has improved attendance for vulnerable pupils. The proportion of pupils taking the English Baccalaureate is low but rising. The school is part of Futura Learning Partnership, which merged with the previous trust in March 2023, and the headteacher joined in October 2023.

Strengths

• Pupils are calm, kind and considerate throughout the school day.
• Leaders have sharpened expectations for learning and behaviour.
• The curriculum is ambitious and carefully sequenced.
• Well-structured training has improved teachers' curriculum delivery.
• Reading and phonics support helps pupils become fluent readers.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of enrichment and specialist clubs.
• Personal development prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain.
• Careers education helps pupils understand post-16 pathways.
• Pastoral support helps pupils manage their mental and physical health.
• The on-site alternative provision supports vulnerable pupils appropriately.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils with SEND do not consistently receive timely adaptations to their learning.
• School improvement evaluation is not always precise enough to identify accurate next steps.
• Some pupils have too many days off school.
• The number of pupils studying the English Baccalaureate suite is low, though it is increasing.

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 Chilton Trinity School attended 90.5% 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, 14.3% of pupils at Chilton Trinity 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 Chilton Trinity School had 18.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.2% 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, 15.9% of pupils at Chilton Trinity School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.6% 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 Chilton Trinity School received £8,490 and spent £8,150 for each of its 975 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £319,000 (£327 per pupil).

Across all 26 schools of Futura Learning Partnership, income was £7,630 and spending £7,598 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 Bridgwater · Somerset local authority: places and applications

Chilton Trinity School is part of Futura Learning Partnership, which runs 26 schools. The nearest others:

• Northgate Primary School Bridgwater
• Westover Green Community School and Autism Centre Bridgwater
• Willowdown Primary School Bridgwater
• Puriton Primary School Bridgwater
• Woolavington Village Primary School Bridgwater
• Chestnut Park Primary Yatton
• Mary Elton Primary School North Somerset
• Yeo Moor Primary School Clevedon
• St Nicholas Chantry Church of England Primary School Clevedon
• All Saints Church of England Primary School Clevedon

What is Chilton Trinity School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Chilton Trinity School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Chilton Trinity School last inspected by Ofsted?

Chilton Trinity School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Chilton Trinity School have?

Chilton Trinity School has 990 pupils on roll.

What age range does Chilton Trinity School cover?

Chilton Trinity School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Chilton Trinity School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 42.3, and 35% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Chilton Trinity School?

Chilton Trinity School is at Chilton Street, Bridgwater, Somerset, TA6 3JA.