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The Bulmershe School

Secondary Ages 11-18 1,530 pupils Reading
Ofsted: Good
All schools in Reading

The Bulmershe School is an academy converter in Reading for pupils aged 11 to 18. It has 1,530 pupils on roll. The latest Ofsted rating for The Bulmershe School is Good, from an inspection in November 2017 of its predecessor, The Bulmershe School. In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 50.6, and 53% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Ofsted inspection: February 2024. GCSE results: 2026. A-level results: 2025.

Type Secondary / Academy converter
Age Range 11-18
Religion Does not apply
Address Woodlands Avenue
Woodley
Reading
Berkshire
RG5 3EU
Phone 01189353353
Reference Number 149611

General Makeup

Number of pupils 1530
Boy/Girl ratio Boys: 49.15%
Girls: 50.85%
Percentage of students eligible for free school meals 16.9%
Percentage of students where English is not their first language 27%

Class Sizes

Average size of one teacher classes 22.1

Year Groups

Year Boys Girls Total
7 138 107 245
8 126 120 246
9 117 124 241
10 118 129 247
11 128 123 251
12 71 97 168
13 54 78 132

Ethnicities

Ethnicity Percentage
White, British 45.6%
Pakistani 10.8%
Indian 8.8%
White, Other 7.2%
African 4%
Chinese 3.1%
White & Asian 3.1%
Unclassified 2.7%
Mixed, Other 2.5%
White & Black (Caribbean) 2.3%
White & Black (African) 1.7%
Asian, Other 1.7%
Caribbean 1%
Irish 0.3%

This school has not been graded since it changed URN, usually on converting to an academy. The rating shown is from its predecessor, The Bulmershe School, inspected in November 2017.

Overall Ofsted Rating Good
Last Report Date This school has not had an inspection yet.
Date Report
06 Feb 2024 Academy conversion letter

Attainment 8 Score

Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:

  • English
  • Maths
  • 3 subjects from qualifications that count towards the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), like sciences, language and history
  • 3 more GCSE qualifications (including EBacc subjects) or technical awards from a list approved by the Department for Education

Each grade a pupil gets is assigned a point score from 9 (the highest) to 1 (the lowest). These scores are added up, with English and maths counted twice.

School Score Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
50.6

GCSE Results

Metric School Score Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
Grade 5 or above in English and maths 53.4%
5 or more GCSEs at grade 9-4 (or A-C) 66.1%

Attainment 8 Score

Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:

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GCSE Results

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Grades

School Local Nationwide
Average Grade B- B- C+
Average Grade (best 3) B B C+
Percentage Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
Students getting AAB or better 26.2%
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Year 7 admissions, 2026 entry

Number of Applications Number of Offers
First Preference
Second Preference 211 28
Third Preference 146 12
From another Local Authority 193 76

Previous years

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Places and pupil numbers

In 2024–25 The Bulmershe School had 1,502 pupils for 1,512 places. 10 places (0.7%) were unfilled.

Pupils and places

Year 7 intake in the “North” planning area

Wokingham counted 1,019 Year 7 pupils in this area in 2024–25 and forecasts 879 in 2031–32, down 14%.

20242025
Places 1,5121,512
Pupils 1,4751,502
Unfilled 2.4%0.7%

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 The Bulmershe School attended 92.9% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 18.3% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

2025
Authorised absence 5.3%
Unauthorised absence 1.8%
Severely absent pupils 2.4%

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 The Bulmershe School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). One pupil was permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

2025
Suspensions per 100 pupils 5.6
Permanent exclusions 1

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 The Bulmershe School had 17.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

20252026
Pupils per adult 12.112.4
Teachers who left state teaching 6.7%–
Teachers who took any sick leave 82.0%–
Sick days per teacher 5.2–

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, 9.7% of pupils at The Bulmershe School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.8% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

SEN support EHC plan
Autistic spectrum disorder 46 32
Social, emotional and mental health 64 10
Moderate learning difficulty 9 9
Specific learning difficulty 10 2
Speech, language and communication needs 9 2
Hearing impairment 4 1
Physical disability 4 1
Other difficulty or disability 2 0
Vision impairment 0 1

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 The Bulmershe School received £7,486 and spent £7,308 for each of its 1,506 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £788,000 (£523 per pupil).

Across all 7 schools of The Corvus Learning Trust, income was £8,871 and spending £8,736 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

2025
Revenue reserve £788,000
per pupil £523
In-year balance £269,000
per pupil £178

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.

Name Distance
Highwood Primary School
Fairwater Drive, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 3JE
0.21 miles
St Dominic Savio Catholic Primary School
Western Avenue, Woodley, Berkshire, RG5 3BH
0.52 miles
The Ambleside Centre
Ambleside Close, Reading, RG5 4JJ
0.59 miles
Beechwood Primary School
Ambleside Close, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4JJ
0.6 miles
South Lake Primary School
Campbell Road, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 3NA
0.71 miles
Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School
Church Road, Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 1EY
0.86 miles
Alfred Sutton Primary School
148 Wokingham Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 1JR
0.94 miles
Rivermead Primary School
Loddon Bridge Road, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4BS
0.99 miles
Willow Bank Infant School
Duffield Road, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4RW
1.06 miles
Willow Bank Junior School
Duffield Road, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4RW
1.06 miles
Sonning Church of England Primary School
Liguge Way, Sonning, Reading, Berkshire, RG4 6XF
1.11 miles
Aldryngton Primary School
Off Silverdale Road, Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 7HR
1.18 miles
New Town Primary School
School Terrace, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 3LS
1.41 miles
Redlands Primary School
Lydford Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 5QH
1.42 miles
Woodley CofE Primary School
Hurricane Way, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4UX
1.42 miles
Loddon Primary School
Silverdale Road, Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 7LR
1.42 miles
St John's Church of England Primary School
121-147 Orts Road, Reading, 121-147 Orts Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 3JN
1.53 miles
Hawkedon Primary School
Hawkedon Way, Lower Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 3AP
1.71 miles
Caversham Nursery School
114 Amersham Road, Reading, RG4 5NA
1.78 miles
Radstock Primary School
Radstock Lane, Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 5UZ
1.8 miles
Name Distance
Addington School
Woodlands Avenue, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 3EU
0.09 miles
Maiden Erlegh School in Reading
81 Crescent Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 5SL
1.08 miles
UTC Reading
Crescent Road, East Reading, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 5RQ
1.08 miles
Reading Blue Coat School
Holme Park, Berkshire, RG4 6SU
1.15 miles
Maiden Erlegh School
Silverdale Rd, Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 7HS
1.19 miles
Waingels
Waingels Road, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4RF
1.42 miles
Reading School
Erleigh Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 5LW
1.63 miles
Red Balloon Learner Centre Reading
220-222 Kings Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 4JJ
1.72 miles
Hamilton School
135 Bulmershe Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 5SG
1.91 miles
Groveside School
40 Christchurch Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG2 7AY
1.93 miles
The Abbey School Reading
17 Kendrick Road, Reading, RG1 5DZ
1.96 miles
The Deenway Montessori School
3-5 Sidmouth Street, Reading, RG1 4QZ
1.99 miles
Kendrick School
London Road, Reading, Berkshire, RG1 5BN
2.02 miles
Leighton Park School
Shinfield Road, Reading, RG2 7ED
2.07 miles
Reading Girls' School
Northumberland Avenue, Reading, Berkshire, RG2 7PY
2.27 miles
The Forest School
Robin Hood Lane, Winnersh, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 5NE
2.33 miles
Queen Anne's School
6 Henley Road, Reading, RG4 6DX
2.46 miles
OneSchool Global Reading Senior Campus
2.54 miles
Crosfields School
Shinfield Road, Reading, RG2 9BL
2.56 miles
Hartland High School
125 Hartland Road, Reading, RG2 8AF
2.75 miles

All schools in Reading · Wokingham local authority: places and applications

The Bulmershe School is part of The Corvus Learning Trust, which runs 7 schools. The nearest others:

What is The Bulmershe School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Bulmershe School is Good, from an inspection in November 2017 of its predecessor, The Bulmershe School.

When was The Bulmershe School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Bulmershe School was last inspected in February 2024.

How many pupils does The Bulmershe School have?

The Bulmershe School has 1,530 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Bulmershe School cover?

The Bulmershe School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are The Bulmershe School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 50.6, and 53% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Bulmershe School?

The Bulmershe School is at Woodlands Avenue, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 3EU.

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