Lift Tendring
Rochford Way, Frinton-on-Sea, CO13 0AZ
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- LIFT SCHOOLS
- Principal
- Mr Tom Burt
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Lift Schools
- Constituency
- Clacton
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,980
- Pupils on roll
- 1,464
- URN
- 137188
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01255672116
About this school
Lift Tendring is a secondary academy in Frinton-on-Sea. It teaches children aged 11 to 19 and has 1,464 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Lift Tendring, 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
- 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 | 296 | 303 | 297 |
| Attainment 8 score | 40.8 | 38.9 | 36.9 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.19 -0.36 to -0.03 | -0.36 -0.52 to -0.20 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 36% | 35.3% | 30.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 56% | 56.1% | 53.9% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 30% | 13.2% | 8.4% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.4 | 3.1 | 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 Lift Tendring has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 40.8 | 43.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 38.9 | 41.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 36.9 | 42.2 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 14.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 14.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 14.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,706 |
| 2023/24 | 1,668 |
| 2024/25 | 1,554 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Lift Tendring compares
Lift Tendring ranked 69th of 78 secondary schools in Essex 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 2% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 36.9 | 14.2% | 30.3% | 1,464 | — |
| Clacton County High School | 38.6 | 9.9% | 35.5% | 1,886 | 5.0 miles |
| Lift Clacton | 30 | 18.4% | 57% | 1,466 | 5.6 miles |
| Harwich and Dovercourt High School | 37.6 | 10.9% | 42.5% | 1,075 | 6.0 miles |
| Felixstowe School | 38.5 | 12.1% | 26.9% | 1,169 | 9.6 miles |
| Colne Community School | 43 | 8.5% | 20.9% | 1,289 | 9.9 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
- 21 May 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report27 November 2019
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 30.27%
- English as an additional language
- 3.8%
- Overall absence
- 14.18%
- Persistent absence
- 37.75%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Clacton County High School5.0 miles
Secondary · Clacton-on-Sea
-
Lift Clacton5.6 miles
Secondary · Clacton on Sea
-
Harwich and Dovercourt High School6.0 miles
Secondary · Harwich
-
Felixstowe School9.6 miles
Secondary · Felixstowe
-
Colne Community School9.9 miles
Secondary · Colchester
Other schools in Frinton-on-Sea
- Frinton-on-Sea Primary School Primary
- Kirby Primary Academy Primary
- St Philomena's School Independent schools
Common questions
- What ages does Lift Tendring teach?
- Lift Tendring teaches children aged 11 to 19. It is a secondary school in Frinton-on-Sea.
- Who is the principal of Lift Tendring?
- The principal of Lift Tendring is Mr Tom Burt, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Lift Tendring been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Lift Tendring, 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 Lift Tendring?
- Lift Tendring has 1,464 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 19.
- Is Lift Tendring full?
- Lift Tendring has capacity for 1,980 pupils and 1,464 on roll (74%), so it has space against 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 Lift Tendring a faith school?
- No. Lift Tendring has no designated religious character.
- Is Lift Tendring a selective school?
- No. Lift Tendring is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Lift Tendring part of an academy trust?
- Lift Tendring is part of LIFT SCHOOLS. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Lift Tendring's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 40.8 in 2022/23 and 36.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Lift Tendring compare with other schools in Essex?
- Lift Tendring ranked 69th of 78 secondary schools in Essex 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 2% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Lift Tendring's absence rate?
- Lift Tendring's overall absence rate is 14.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Lift Tendring's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Lift Tendring'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.