Weston Secondary School

Weston Secondary School is an inclusive and improving school where leaders, supported effectively by the Hamwic Education Trust, have raised the quality of teaching and curriculum since the headteacher took up post in April 2024. Most areas of provision are now judged to meet the expected standard, including curriculum and teaching, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing. Pupils are safe, happy and well supported, benefiting from strong pastoral care, effective provision for vulnerable pupils and those with SEND, and a calm, respectful school culture. Safeguarding standards are met.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open and positive culture of safeguarding
• Leaders have an ambitious and inclusive curriculum with key skills embedded across subjects
• Inclusion is a strength, with precise identification of needs and effective support for vulnerable pupils
• The 'Hive' and 'Gateway' provisions are valued and help pupils to thrive
• Pupil premium funding is used well, including a personalised mentoring scheme
• Leadership and governance are effective, with tenacious leaders and robust governance
• Staff feel valued, are proud to work at the school and benefit from tailored professional learning
• The personal development programme prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain
• Pupils behave well, are kind and respectful, and bullying is rare
• Careers education has been significantly improved and starts from Year 7
• Pupils are proud of their multicultural community and engage in democracy
• The school uses a range of effective alternative provision, including its own 'Gateway' centre

Areas for Improvement

• Many pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, do not achieve well enough in national tests and examinations
• Too many pupils have not sustained destinations in education, employment or training after leaving
• Attendance is too low and persistent absence is too high, particularly for the most vulnerable pupils
• Assessment is not consistently precise, so misconceptions and gaps are not always addressed swiftly
• There is variability in how well teachers use planned adaptations for pupils with SEND in the classroom
• Pupils have fewer opportunities across the curriculum to practise writing in detail or at length
• Leaders sometimes miss opportunities to encourage less-confident pupils to develop their talents fully

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 Weston Secondary School attended 87.9% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 33.2% 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, 21.5% of pupils at Weston Secondary School 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 Weston Secondary School had 14.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 30.1% 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, 16.7% of pupils at Weston Secondary School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.4% 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 Weston Secondary School received £9,997 and spent £9,582 for each of its 739 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £551,000 (£745 per pupil).

Across all 36 schools of Hamwic Education Trust, income was £7,058 and spending £7,015 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 Southampton · Southampton local authority: places and applications

Weston Secondary School is part of Hamwic Education Trust, which runs 36 schools. The nearest others:

• Weston Park Primary School Southampton
• Weston Shore Infant School Southampton
• Woolston Infant School Southampton
• Ludlow Infant Academy Southampton
• Sholing Infant School Southampton
• Sholing Junior School Southampton
• Thornhill Primary School Southampton
• Glenfield Infant School Southampton
• Beechwood Junior School Southampton
• Harefield Primary School Southampton

What is Weston Secondary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Weston Secondary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Weston Secondary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Weston Secondary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Weston Secondary School have?

Weston Secondary School has 653 pupils on roll.

What age range does Weston Secondary School cover?

Weston Secondary School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Weston Secondary School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 30.3, and 20% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Weston Secondary School?

Weston Secondary School is at Tickleford Drive, Weston, Southampton, Hampshire, SO19 9QP.