Astor Secondary School
Academy converter · sixth form · 732 pupils
72% stayed in education · Attainment 8 27.9
Academy sponsor led
The Charles Dickens School
- Pupils on roll
- 1,117of 1,104 places
- Free school meals
- 42.5%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 199
- Ofsted
- Good, 28 March 2023Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: The Charles Dickens School (URN 118910, until 10 January 2017).
What the data says
Of the 205 pupils who finished Year 11 at The Charles Dickens School in 2023, 23% stayed on in The Charles Dickens School’s own sixth form (Kent average 56%), 61% went to a further education college and 2% started an apprenticeship.
11% of leavers were not in sustained education, employment or training six months on, compared with 6% nationally.
GCSE results in 2025 were below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 42.5 against 46.1 across England and 46.7 in Kent, with 29% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Languages are a small part of the curriculum here: entries in Spanish and French add up to 18% of the year group, and 18% of pupils entered the full EBacc set of subjects (England 41%).
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 Kent and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | The Charles Dickens School | Kent | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 205 | 17,954 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 89% | 93% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 85% | 88% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 23% | 56% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 0% | — | 13% |
| — further education college | 61% | 28% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 4% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 2% | 3% | 3% |
| Employment | 1% | 2% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 11% | 5% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | — | 3% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
No published destinations for sixth-form leavers yet.
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | The Charles Dickens School | Kent | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 42.5 | 46.7 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 29% | 47% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 56% | 65% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 18% | 47% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.42 | 4.18 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 42% | 25% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 35.7 | 32.2 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 47.4 | 51.5 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 7% | 12% | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Literature | 195 | 98% | 86% | 14% | 21% | 65% |
| Mathematics | 195 | 98% | 88% | 4% | 22% | 67% |
| English Language | 195 | 98% | 89% | 10% | 20% | 66% |
| Combined Science | 190 | 95% | 65% | 6% | 9% | 53% |
| History | 105 | 53% | 41% | 23% | 26% | 62% |
| Geography | 91 | 46% | 41% | 3% | 25% | 25% |
| Art and Design | 34 | 17% | 7% | 15% | 24% | 71% |
| Sociology | 30 | 15% | 4% | 17% | 21% | 80% |
| Spanish | 22 | 11% | 19% | 5% | 27% | 32% |
| Religious Studies | 19 | 10% | 31% | 21% | 32% | 68% |
| Photography | 18 | 9% | 6% | 17% | 19% | 94% |
| Textiles | 15 | 8% | 2% | 7% | 27% | 73% |
| French | 13 | 7% | 18% | 0% | 29% | 46% |
| Biology | 4 | 2% | 23% | — | 45% | — |
| Turkish | 2 | 1% | 0% | — | 71% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small Business Management | 75 | — | — |
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 61 | — | — |
| Sports Studies | 52 | — | — |
| Health Studies | 50 | — | — |
| Engineering Studies | 46 | — | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 40 | — | — |
| Speech and Drama | 27 | — | — |
| Childcare Skills | 22 | — | — |
| Tourism | 22 | — | — |
| Music performance: Group | 18 | — | — |
| Dance: General | 10 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Kent
Aylesford School
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 916 pupils
73% stayed in education · Attainment 8 37.6
Barton Court Grammar School
Academy converter · sixth form · 995 pupils
97% stayed in education · Attainment 8 66.4
Bennett Memorial Diocesan School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,913 pupils
95% stayed in education · Attainment 8 54.0
Borden Grammar School
Academy converter · sixth form · 938 pupils
94% stayed in education · Attainment 8 63.2
Brockhill Park Performing Arts College
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,314 pupils
86% stayed in education · Attainment 8 37.4
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.