Herne Bay High School
Bullockstone Road, Herne Bay, CT6 7NS
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- HERNE BAY HIGH SCHOOL
- Principal
- Mr Jon Boyes
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Herne Bay and Sandwich
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,494
- Pupils on roll
- 1,507
- URN
- 136465
- Local authority
- Kent
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01227361221
About this school
Herne Bay High School is a secondary academy in Herne Bay. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,507 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 252 | 243 | 266 |
| Attainment 8 score | 41.0 | 38.1 | 36.8 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.94 -1.11 to -0.76 | -1.02 -1.20 to -0.84 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 31% | 25.5% | 22.2% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 63% | 55.1% | 51.1% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 2% | 3.7% | 8.3% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.9 |
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 Herne Bay High 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 | Kent average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 41 | 37.6 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 38.1 | 37.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 36.8 | 37.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 11.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,586 |
| 2023/24 | 1,580 |
| 2024/25 | 1,545 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Herne Bay High School compares
Herne Bay High School ranked 79th of 100 secondary schools in Kent for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 30% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 9% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 36.8 | 9.7% | 33.3% | 1,507 | — |
| The Whitstable School | 39.3 | 9.1% | 27% | 1,112 | 3.3 miles |
| Orion Spires | 36.1 | 8.7% | 41.2% | 620 | 3.7 miles |
| The Archbishop's School | 35.2 | 15.4% | 55.3% | 770 | 5.0 miles |
| Barton Court Grammar School | 66.4 | 4.6% | 11.4% | 995 | 5.9 miles |
| Barton Manor School | — | 6.9% | 44.3% | 596 | 6.1 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)
- 33.26%
- English as an additional language
- 1.9%
- Overall absence
- 9.7%
- Persistent absence
- 28.75%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Whitstable School3.3 miles
Secondary · Whitstable
-
Orion Spires3.7 miles
Secondary · Canterbury
-
The Archbishop's School5.0 miles
Secondary · Canterbury
-
Barton Court Grammar School5.9 miles
Secondary · Canterbury
-
Barton Manor School6.1 miles
Secondary · Canterbury
Other schools in Herne Bay
- Hampton Primary School Primary
- Herne Bay Infant School Primary
- Herne Bay Junior School Primary
- Herne Church of England Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Herne Church of England Junior School Primary
- Reculver Church of England Primary School Primary
- Thornden Wood Primary School Primary
- SALT COLLEGE Other types
Common questions
- What year groups does Herne Bay High School teach?
- Herne Bay High School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Herne Bay.
- Who is the principal of Herne Bay High School?
- The principal of Herne Bay High School is Mr Jon Boyes, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Herne Bay High School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Herne Bay High 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 big is Herne Bay High School?
- Herne Bay High School has 1,507 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Herne Bay High School full?
- Herne Bay High School has capacity for 1,494 pupils and 1,507 on roll (101%), 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 Herne Bay High School a faith school?
- No. Herne Bay High School has no designated religious character.
- Is Herne Bay High School a selective school?
- No. Herne Bay High School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Herne Bay High School?
- Herne Bay High School is part of HERNE BAY HIGH SCHOOL. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Herne Bay High School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 41 in 2022/23 and 36.8 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Herne Bay High School rank locally?
- Herne Bay High School ranked 79th of 100 secondary schools in Kent for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 30% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 9% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Herne Bay High School's absence rate?
- Herne Bay High School's overall absence rate is 9.7% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Herne Bay High School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Herne Bay High 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 1 July 2026.