Charles Darwin School
Jail Lane, Biggin Hill, Westerham, TN16 3AU
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- LUMERO EDUCATIONAL TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Aston Smith
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Orpington
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,356
- Pupils on roll
- 1,305
- URN
- 136545
- Local authority
- Bromley
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01959574043
About this school
Charles Darwin School is a secondary academy in Westerham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,305 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. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit 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
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 201 | 211 | 213 |
| Attainment 8 score | 45.5 | 42.6 | 38.9 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.19 -0.39 to +0.01 | -0.34 -0.53 to -0.15 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 43% | 37.9% | 24.4% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 68% | 59.2% | 50.7% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 23% | 14.7% | 18.3% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.9 | 3.6 | 3.3 |
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 Charles Darwin 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 | Bromley average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 45.5 | 39.7 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 42.6 | 39.7 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 38.9 | 38.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 10.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,298 |
| 2023/24 | 1,314 |
| 2024/25 | 1,314 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Charles Darwin School compares
Charles Darwin School ranked 17th of 19 secondary schools in Bromley for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 35% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 6% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38.9 | 10.4% | 24.9% | 1,305 | — |
| Meridian High School | 34.2 | 9.7% | 69.1% | 535 | 2.4 miles |
| Darrick Wood School | 51.5 | 6.6% | 15.1% | 1,698 | 3.5 miles |
| Ravens Wood School | 48.1 | 6.4% | 12.8% | 1,598 | 3.8 miles |
| Newstead Wood School | 82.8 | 3.6% | 6.7% | 1,347 | 3.8 miles |
| Hayes School | 54.8 | 7% | 11% | 1,770 | 4.2 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)
- 24.89%
- English as an additional language
- 2.2%
- Overall absence
- 10.42%
- Persistent absence
- 30.56%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Meridian High School2.4 miles
Secondary · Croydon
-
Darrick Wood School3.5 miles
Secondary · Orpington
-
Ravens Wood School3.8 miles
Secondary · Bromley
-
Newstead Wood School3.8 miles
Secondary · Orpington
-
Hayes School4.2 miles
Secondary · Bromley
Other schools in Westerham
- Biggin Hill Primary School Primary
- Churchill Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Cudham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Oaklands Primary Academy Primary
- Valence School Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Charles Darwin School teach?
- Charles Darwin School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Westerham.
- Who is the headteacher of Charles Darwin School?
- The headteacher of Charles Darwin School is Mr Aston Smith, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Charles Darwin School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Charles Darwin 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 Charles Darwin School?
- Charles Darwin School has 1,305 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Charles Darwin School full?
- Charles Darwin School has capacity for 1,356 pupils and 1,305 on roll (96%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Charles Darwin School a faith school?
- No. Charles Darwin School has no designated religious character.
- Is Charles Darwin School a selective school?
- No. Charles Darwin School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Charles Darwin School?
- Charles Darwin School is part of LUMERO EDUCATIONAL TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Charles Darwin School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 45.5 in 2022/23 and 38.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Charles Darwin School rank locally?
- Charles Darwin School ranked 17th of 19 secondary schools in Bromley for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 35% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 6% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Charles Darwin School's absence rate?
- Charles Darwin School's overall absence rate is 10.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Charles Darwin School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Charles Darwin 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.