Kennet School
Stoney Lane, Thatcham, RG19 4LL
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- EQUINOX LEARNING TRUST
- Executive Head
- Mr Max Gayler
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Kennet School
- SEN provision
- HI - Hearing Impairment, PD - Physical Disability
- Constituency
- Newbury
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,881
- Pupils on roll
- 1,824
- URN
- 136647
- Local authority
- West Berkshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01635862121
About this school
Kennet School is a secondary academy in Thatcham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,824 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Kennet School, and its latest judgement is set out 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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- 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 | 294 | 327 | 296 |
| Attainment 8 score | 49.9 | 47.5 | 46.5 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.35 +0.18 to +0.52 | +0.15 -0.01 to +0.31 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 48% | 47.4% | 45.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 70% | 68.8% | 65.9% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 40% | 44% | 42.2% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.2 |
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 Kennet 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 | 49.9 | 41 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 47.5 | 40.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 46.5 | 38.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,877 |
| 2023/24 | 1,855 |
| 2024/25 | 1,814 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Kennet School compares
Kennet School ranked 6th of 9 secondary schools in West Berkshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 63% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 11% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 46.5 | 9.2% | 17.1% | 1,824 | — |
| Trinity School | 42.9 | 10.3% | 22.5% | 1,349 | 3.1 miles |
| St Bartholomew's School | 56.2 | 7.6% | 12.3% | 1,905 | 3.6 miles |
| Park House School | 55.9 | 7% | 13.3% | 981 | 4.2 miles |
| The Hurst School | 45.3 | 7.4% | 15.6% | 1,021 | 4.4 miles |
| The Clere School | 41.3 | 10.9% | 25.9% | 382 | 4.8 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.
Inspection history
- 14 May 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report2 November 2022
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 17.12%
- English as an additional language
- 10.4%
- Overall absence
- 9.19%
- Persistent absence
- 22.65%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Trinity School3.1 miles
Secondary · Newbury
-
St Bartholomew's School3.6 miles
Secondary · Newbury
-
Park House School4.2 miles
Secondary · Newbury
-
The Hurst School4.4 miles
Secondary · Tadley
-
The Clere School4.8 miles
Secondary · Newbury
Other schools in Thatcham
- Ashford Hill Primary School Primary
- Cold Ash St Mark's CE Primary School Primary
- Curridge Primary School Primary
- Francis Baily Primary School Primary
- Hampstead Norreys C.E. Primary School Primary
- Hermitage Primary School Primary
- Parsons Down Infant School Primary
- Parsons Down Junior School Primary
- Spurcroft Primary School Primary
- St Finian's Catholic Primary School Primary
- Thatcham Park CofE Primary Primary
- Whitelands Park Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Kennet School teach?
- Kennet School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Thatcham.
- Who is the executive head of Kennet School?
- The executive head of Kennet School is Mr Max Gayler, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Kennet School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Kennet 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 Kennet School?
- Kennet School has 1,824 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Kennet School full?
- Kennet School has capacity for 1,881 pupils and 1,824 on roll (97%), 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 Kennet School a faith school?
- No. Kennet School has no designated religious character.
- Is Kennet School a selective school?
- No. Kennet School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Kennet School part of an academy trust?
- Kennet School is part of EQUINOX LEARNING TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Kennet School have?
- The schools register lists Kennet School's special educational needs provision as: HI - Hearing Impairment; PD - Physical Disability. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Kennet School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 49.9 in 2022/23 and 46.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Kennet School compare with other schools in West Berkshire?
- Kennet School ranked 6th of 9 secondary schools in West Berkshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 63% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 11% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Kennet School's absence rate?
- Kennet School's overall absence rate is 9.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Kennet School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Kennet 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.