Alec Hunter Academy
Academy sponsor led · 1,058 pupils
80% stayed in education · Attainment 8 45.7
Academy converter
Notley High School and Braintree Sixth Form
- Pupils on roll
- 1,210of 1,500 places
- Free school meals
- 18.0%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 221
- Ofsted
- Report card, 19 May 2026Read the Ofsted report
Curriculum and teaching Expected standardAchievement Expected standardAttendance and behaviour Expected standardPersonal development and wellbeing Expected standardInclusion Strong standardLeadership and governance Strong standardPost-16 provision Expected standardSafeguarding Met
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Notley High School (URN 115227, until 1 August 2011).
What the data says
Of the 242 pupils who finished Year 11 at Notley High School and Braintree Sixth Form in 2023, 36% stayed on in Notley High School and Braintree Sixth Form’s own sixth form (Essex average 37%), 39% went to a further education college and 5% started an apprenticeship.
Among the 113 students who left the sixth form in 2023, 53% went to university (Essex 35%, England 37%), and 16% of level 3 students progressed to one of the most selective universities, against 19% nationally.
Media Studies is unusually popular at GCSE: 22% of the year group took it, against 4% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were in line with the national picture: Attainment 8 of 44.9 against 46.1 across England and 45.1 in Essex, with 38% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Essex and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | This school | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 242 | 15,970 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 93% | 92% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 85% | 86% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 36% | 37% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 10% | 9% | 13% |
| — further education college | 39% | 38% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 5% | 3% | 3% |
| Employment | 3% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 5% | 5% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 2% | 3% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
University (higher education)Further educationOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | This school | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students in the cohort | 113 | 13,240 | 541,441 |
| Any sustained destination | 88% | 81% | 79% |
| University (higher education) | 53% | 35% | 37% |
| — most selective universities (top third), of level 3 students | 16% | 15% | 19% |
| Further education | 1% | 4% | 5% |
| Apprenticeship | 7% | 8% | 7% |
| Employment | 27% | 33% | 28% |
| No sustained destination | 8% | 14% | 16% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | This school | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 44.9 | 45.1 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 38% | 43% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 61% | 64% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 33% | 39% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.85 | 3.97 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 17% | 22% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 32.1 | 31.1 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 47.5 | 48.9 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 6% | 9% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 220 | 100% | 88% | 14% | 22% | 64% |
| English Language | 220 | 100% | 89% | 23% | 20% | 75% |
| English Literature | 219 | 99% | 86% | 17% | 21% | 70% |
| Combined Science | 176 | 80% | 65% | 3% | 9% | 39% |
| History | 120 | 54% | 41% | 33% | 26% | 67% |
| Religious Studies | 90 | 41% | 31% | 29% | 32% | 76% |
| Geography | 83 | 38% | 41% | 11% | 25% | 59% |
| Business Studies | 81 | 37% | 18% | 15% | 20% | 48% |
| Art and Design | 49 | 22% | 7% | 24% | 24% | 78% |
| Media Studies | 48 | 22% | 4% | 19% | 20% | 63% |
| Physical Education | 44 | 20% | 11% | 11% | 24% | 52% |
| Spanish | 42 | 19% | 19% | 31% | 27% | 76% |
| French | 41 | 19% | 18% | 32% | 29% | 88% |
| Physics | 41 | 19% | 23% | 39% | 46% | 95% |
| Chemistry | 41 | 19% | 23% | 32% | 47% | 98% |
| Biology | 41 | 19% | 23% | 34% | 45% | 98% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 30 | 14% | 8% | 7% | 21% | 50% |
| Drama | 22 | 10% | 7% | 5% | 27% | 68% |
| Design and Technology | 19 | 9% | 11% | 16% | 23% | 47% |
| Computer Science | 16 | 7% | 13% | 25% | 30% | 56% |
| Music | 10 | 5% | 5% | 40% | 33% | 80% |
| Polish | 1 | 0% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Childcare Skills | 38 | 40% | — |
| Building / Construction Operations (General / Combined) | 36 | 38% | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
| Measure | This school | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 194 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 96 | 6,944 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | C | C+ | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 29.89 | 34.68 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | C | B- | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 8% | 18% | 18% |
| Average grade, applied general courses | — | — | — |
| Average grade, T levels | — | — | — |
A level subjects
Entries as a share of A level students, compared with the share across England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Studies | 23 | 24% | 13% |
| Psychology | 21 | 22% | 23% |
| Media Studies | 18 | 19% | 4% |
| Mathematics | 18 | 19% | 31% |
| Sociology | 14 | 15% | 13% |
| Economics | 12 | 13% | 13% |
| Religious Studies | 12 | 13% | 4% |
| Biology | 11 | 11% | 20% |
| History | 11 | 11% | 13% |
| Physics | 11 | 11% | 12% |
| Chemistry | 10 | 10% | 17% |
| English Literature | 10 | 10% | 11% |
| Law | 10 | 10% | 4% |
| Politics | 9 | 9% | 6% |
| English Language and Literature | 8 | 8% | 2% |
| Geography | 6 | 6% | 10% |
| Music | — | — | 0% |
| Further Mathematics | — | — | 5% |
| Art and Design | — | — | 1% |
| Product Design | — | — | 2% |
| Computer Science | — | — | 5% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Science | VRQ Level 3 | 31 | 32% | — |
| Sports Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 20 | 21% | — |
| Health Studies | OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Certificate at Level 3 | 7 | 7% | — |
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 6 | 6% | — |
| Art and Design | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Business Studies | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Computer Science | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Economics | GCE AS level (All) | — | — | — |
| Art and Design | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Business Studies | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Computer Science | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
| Economics | GCE AS level (Not continued to A2) | — | — | — |
Where Notley High School and Braintree Sixth Form is
Other secondary schools in Essex are shown for comparison; darker blue means more Year 11 leavers stayed in education. The last distance at which this school offered places is not yet on file — it comes from Essex’s allocation statistics.
Other secondary schools in Essex
Anglo European School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,533 pupils
96% stayed in education · Attainment 8 55.6
Beauchamps High School
Foundation school · sixth form · 1,486 pupils
83% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.1
Becket Keys Church of England Free School
Free schools · sixth form · 1,152 pupils
93% stayed in education · Attainment 8 56.0
Bmat Stem Academy
University technical college · sixth form · 240 pupils
84% stayed in education · Attainment 8 28.1
Brentwood County High School
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,097 pupils
78% stayed in education · Attainment 8 43.2
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.