The Willink School
School Lane, Burghfield Common, Reading, RG7 3XJ
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Ms N Browning
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Reading West and Mid Berkshire
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 995
- Pupils on roll
- 1,205
- URN
- 110048
- Local authority
- West Berkshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01189832030
About this school
The Willink School is a community secondary school in Reading. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,205 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Willink School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 5 October 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 201 | 194 | 203 |
| Attainment 8 score | 51.3 | 49.1 | 51.9 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.31 +0.11 to +0.50 | +0.04 -0.17 to +0.24 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 59% | 54.1% | 57.1% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 74% | 75.8% | 73.4% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 84% | 87.6% | 91.6% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.9 | 4.7 | 5.0 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How The Willink School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | West Berkshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 51.3 | 41 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 49.1 | 40.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 51.9 | 38.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,250 |
| 2023/24 | 1,255 |
| 2024/25 | 1,233 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Willink School compares
The Willink School ranked 3rd of 9 secondary schools in West Berkshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 81% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 16% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 51.9 | 8.1% | 13.8% | 1,205 | — |
| Theale Green School | 38.5 | 10.4% | 25.6% | 803 | 2.9 miles |
| Little Heath School | 48.2 | 7.2% | 19.3% | 1,682 | 4.1 miles |
| King's Academy Prospect | 36.8 | 9.5% | 39.7% | 1,157 | 4.2 miles |
| Blessed Hugh Faringdon Catholic School | 46 | 7.5% | 21.3% | 1,082 | 4.4 miles |
| Oakbank School | — | — | — | 300 | 4.6 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 13.84%
- English as an additional language
- 5.3%
- Overall absence
- 8.13%
- Persistent absence
- 20.67%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Theale Green School2.9 miles
Secondary · Reading
-
Little Heath School4.1 miles
Secondary · Reading
-
King's Academy Prospect4.2 miles
Secondary · Reading
-
Blessed Hugh Faringdon Catholic School4.4 miles
Secondary · Reading
-
Oakbank School4.6 miles
Secondary · Reading
Other schools in Reading
The Willink School ranks 6th of the 19 ranked secondary schools in Reading.
- Blessed Hugh Faringdon Catholic School Secondary
- Denefield School Secondary
- Hartland High School Secondary
- Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre Secondary
- Kendrick School Secondary
- King's Academy Prospect Secondary
- Langtree School Secondary
- Little Heath School Secondary
- Maiden Erlegh Chiltern Edge Secondary
- Maiden Erlegh School Secondary
- Maiden Erlegh School in Reading Secondary
- Oakbank School Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does The Willink School teach?
- The Willink School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Reading.
- Who is the headteacher of The Willink School?
- The headteacher of The Willink School is Ms N Browning, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Willink School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Willink School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at The Willink School?
- The Willink School has 1,205 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is The Willink School full?
- The Willink School has capacity for 995 pupils and 1,205 on roll (121%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is The Willink School a faith school?
- No. The Willink School has no designated religious character.
- Is The Willink School a selective school?
- No. The Willink School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- How have The Willink School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 51.3 in 2022/23 and 51.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The Willink School compare with other schools in West Berkshire?
- The Willink School ranked 3rd of 9 secondary schools in West Berkshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 81% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 16% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The Willink School's absence rate?
- The Willink School's overall absence rate is 8.1% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Willink School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Willink School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.