Westcliff High School for Girls
Kenilworth Gardens, Westcliff-on-Sea, SS0 0BS
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Girls
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- SOUTH EAST ESSEX ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Miss Emma Matthews
- Admissions policy
- Selective
- Sponsor
- South East Essex Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Southend West and Leigh
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,224
- Pupils on roll
- 1,354
- URN
- 136490
- Local authority
- Southend-on-Sea
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01702476026
About this school
Westcliff High School for Girls is a girls' secondary academy in Westcliff-on-Sea. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,354 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Westcliff High School for Girls, 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
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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- 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 | 184 | 172 | 184 |
| Attainment 8 score | 78.5 | 76.9 | 75.6 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.89 +0.68 to +1.11 | +0.90 +0.68 to +1.11 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 99% | 97.7% | 97.3% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 98% | 94.8% | 92.4% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 7.6 | 7.5 | 7.3 |
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 Westcliff High School for Girls has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Southend-on-Sea average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 78.5 | 48.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 76.9 | 43.7 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 75.6 | 45.3 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,333 |
| 2023/24 | 1,300 |
| 2024/25 | 1,342 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Westcliff High School for Girls compares
Westcliff High School for Girls ranked 2nd of 12 secondary schools in Southend-on-Sea for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 99% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 69% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 75.6 | 4.7% | 9.5% | 1,354 | — |
| Westcliff High School for Boys Academy | 77.6 | 3.8% | 7.5% | 1,309 | 0.1 miles |
| St Thomas More High School | 52.3 | 4.7% | 15.6% | 1,243 | 0.2 miles |
| The Eastwood Academy | 51.6 | 6.3% | 18.6% | 1,154 | 0.8 miles |
| Chase High School | 39.2 | 10.3% | 41.7% | 1,293 | 0.9 miles |
| Southend High School for Boys | 73.8 | 4.4% | 7.5% | 1,332 | 1.2 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)
- 9.49%
- English as an additional language
- 16.1%
- Overall absence
- 4.66%
- Persistent absence
- 9.95%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Westcliff High School for Boys Academy0.1 miles
Secondary · Westcliff-on-Sea
-
St Thomas More High School0.2 miles
Secondary · Westcliff-on-Sea
-
The Eastwood Academy0.8 miles
Secondary · Leigh-on-Sea
-
Chase High School0.9 miles
Secondary · Westcliff-on-Sea
-
Southend High School for Boys1.2 miles
Secondary · Southend-on-Sea
Other schools in Westcliff-on-Sea
Westcliff High School for Girls ranks 2nd of the 5 ranked secondary schools in Westcliff-on-Sea.
- Chase High School Secondary
- St Bernard's High School Secondary
- St Thomas More High School Secondary
- Westcliff High School for Boys Academy Secondary
- Barons Court Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Earls Hall Primary School Primary
- Milton Hall Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Prince Avenue Academy and Nursery Primary
- St Helen's Catholic Primary School Primary
- The Westborough School Primary
- Compass Community School Boleyn Park Special schools
- Lancaster School Academies
Common questions
- What ages does Westcliff High School for Girls teach?
- Westcliff High School for Girls teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Westcliff-on-Sea.
- Who is the headteacher of Westcliff High School for Girls?
- The headteacher of Westcliff High School for Girls is Miss Emma Matthews, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Westcliff High School for Girls been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Westcliff High School for Girls, 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 Westcliff High School for Girls?
- Westcliff High School for Girls has 1,354 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Westcliff High School for Girls full?
- Westcliff High School for Girls has capacity for 1,224 pupils and 1,354 on roll (111%), 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 Westcliff High School for Girls a faith school?
- No. Westcliff High School for Girls has no designated religious character.
- Is Westcliff High School for Girls a selective school?
- Yes. Westcliff High School for Girls is recorded as Selective in the schools register, so entry involves selection.
- Is Westcliff High School for Girls part of an academy trust?
- Westcliff High School for Girls is part of SOUTH EAST ESSEX ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Westcliff High School for Girls's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 78.5 in 2022/23 and 75.6 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Westcliff High School for Girls compare with other schools in Southend-on-Sea?
- Westcliff High School for Girls ranked 2nd of 12 secondary schools in Southend-on-Sea for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 99% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 69% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Westcliff High School for Girls's absence rate?
- Westcliff High School for Girls's overall absence rate is 4.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Westcliff High School for Girls's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Westcliff High School for Girls'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.