Ashlyns School
Foundation school · sixth form · 1,561 pupils
94% stayed in education · Attainment 8 57.9
Academy sponsor led
Barclay Academy
- Pupils on roll
- 1,044of 1,181 places
- Free school meals
- 23.9%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 117
- Ofsted
- Good, 18 April 2023Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Barclay School (URN 117515, until 31 August 2019).
What the data says
Of the 125 pupils who finished Year 11 at Barclay Academy in 2023, 48% stayed on in Barclay Academy’s own sixth form (Hertfordshire average 58%), 42% went to a further education college and none started an apprenticeship.
Among the 29 students who left the sixth form in 2023, 31% went to university (Hertfordshire 42%, England 37%), and 8% of level 3 students progressed to one of the most selective universities, against 19% nationally.
Spanish is unusually popular at GCSE: 46% of the year group took it, against 19% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were above the national picture: Attainment 8 of 49.5 against 46.1 across England and 50.6 in Hertfordshire, with 57% 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 Hertfordshire and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Barclay Academy | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 125 | 14,400 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 92% | 95% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 91% | 92% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 48% | 58% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 0% | 2% | 13% |
| — further education college | 42% | 31% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 1% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 2% | 3% |
| Employment | 1% | 2% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 5% | 3% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 3% | 2% | 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 | Barclay Academy | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students in the cohort | 29 | 14,189 | 541,441 |
| Any sustained destination | 83% | 82% | 79% |
| University (higher education) | 31% | 42% | 37% |
| — most selective universities (top third), of level 3 students | 8% | 24% | 19% |
| Further education | 14% | 5% | 5% |
| Apprenticeship | 10% | 6% | 7% |
| Employment | 28% | 28% | 28% |
| No sustained destination | 14% | 13% | 16% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Barclay Academy | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 49.5 | 50.6 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 57% | 53% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 74% | 72% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 66% | 47% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.69 | 4.56 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 24% | 18% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 38.7 | 34.2 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 52.9 | 54.1 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 22% | 16% | 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 | 113 | 97% | 88% | 22% | 22% | 81% |
| English Literature | 113 | 97% | 86% | 24% | 21% | 81% |
| English Language | 113 | 97% | 89% | 27% | 20% | 80% |
| Combined Science | 86 | 74% | 65% | 16% | 9% | 72% |
| Geography | 76 | 65% | 41% | 20% | 25% | 70% |
| Spanish | 54 | 46% | 19% | 22% | 27% | 80% |
| History | 43 | 37% | 41% | 28% | 26% | 77% |
| Business Studies | 42 | 36% | 18% | 14% | 20% | 81% |
| Latin | 31 | 26% | 1% | 45% | 74% | 90% |
| Biology | 27 | 23% | 23% | 26% | 45% | 89% |
| Physics | 26 | 22% | 23% | 27% | 46% | 92% |
| Chemistry | 26 | 22% | 23% | 31% | 47% | 92% |
| Computer Science | 23 | 20% | 13% | 22% | 30% | 91% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 18 | 15% | 8% | 0% | 21% | 33% |
| Drama | 13 | 11% | 7% | 15% | 27% | 54% |
| Religious Studies | 12 | 10% | 31% | 25% | 32% | 75% |
| Fine Art | 11 | 9% | 9% | 45% | 28% | 100% |
| Classical Civilisation | 10 | 9% | 1% | 20% | 40% | 70% |
| Turkish | 2 | 2% | 0% | — | 71% | — |
| Statistics | 1 | 1% | 5% | — | 20% | — |
| Film Studies | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 20% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sports Studies | 27 | 49% | — |
| Music performance: Group | 11 | 20% | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
| Measure | Barclay Academy | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 111 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 55 | 8,082 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | C+ | B- | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 34.30 | 36.82 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | C+ | B- | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 13% | 19% | 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 | 18 | 33% | 13% |
| Sociology | 16 | 29% | 13% |
| Media Studies | 14 | 25% | 4% |
| Psychology | 14 | 25% | 23% |
| Mathematics | 13 | 24% | 31% |
| Geography | 10 | 18% | 10% |
| Biology | 9 | 16% | 20% |
| English Literature | 9 | 16% | 11% |
| Computer Science | 8 | 15% | 5% |
| Chemistry | 8 | 15% | 17% |
| Fine Art | 7 | 13% | 3% |
| Politics | 7 | 13% | 6% |
| Spanish | — | — | 2% |
| Classical Civilisation | — | — | 1% |
| History | — | — | 13% |
| Latin | — | — | 0% |
| Physical Education | — | — | 3% |
| Physics | — | — | 12% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 11 | 20% | — |
| Health Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 7 | 13% | — |
| Speech and Drama | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
| Sports Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Hertfordshire
Barnwell School
Foundation school · sixth form · 1,270 pupils
88% stayed in education · Attainment 8 41.5
Beaumont School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,722 pupils
98% stayed in education · Attainment 8 62.6
Birchwood High School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,417 pupils
85% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.1
Bishop's Hatfield Girls' School
Academy converter · sixth form · 942 pupils
97% stayed in education · Attainment 8 51.9
Bushey Meads School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,200 pupils
95% stayed in education · Attainment 8 43.6
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.