Beechen Cliff School
Kipling Avenue, Bath, BA2 4RE
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Boys
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- MIDSOMER NORTON SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP
- Headteacher
- Mr Tim Markall
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Boarding
- Boarding school
- Sponsor
- Midsomer Norton Schools Partnership
- Constituency
- Bath
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,055
- Pupils on roll
- 1,232
- URN
- 146972
- Local authority
- Bath and North East Somerset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01225480466
About this school
Beechen Cliff School is a boys' secondary academy in Bath. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,232 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
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 179 | 165 | 175 |
| Attainment 8 score | 56.0 | 57.1 | 55.0 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.48 +0.27 to +0.70 | +0.45 +0.22 to +0.68 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 66% | 68.5% | 64.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 85% | 83% | 79.4% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 68% | 73.9% | 67.4% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 5.2 | 5.5 | 5.2 |
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 Beechen Cliff 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 | Bath and North East Somerset average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 56 | 36.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 57.1 | 37.7 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 55 | 34.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,284 |
| 2023/24 | 1,210 |
| 2024/25 | 1,224 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Beechen Cliff School compares
Beechen Cliff School ranked 2nd of 14 secondary schools in Bath and North East Somerset for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 87% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 36% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 55 | 6.1% | 11.5% | 1,232 | — |
| Hayesfield Girls School | 57 | 7.2% | 13% | 1,497 | 0.6 miles |
| Ralph Allen School | 54.6 | 10.2% | 18.2% | 1,398 | 1.5 miles |
| Saint Gregory's Catholic College | 46.6 | 8.6% | 19.3% | 987 | 1.6 miles |
| St Mark's CofE School | 44.9 | 13.4% | 31.2% | 259 | 1.9 miles |
| Oldfield School | 47.3 | 9.9% | 22.3% | 1,287 | 2.4 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)
- 11.5%
- English as an additional language
- 6.5%
- Overall absence
- 6.13%
- Persistent absence
- 15.7%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hayesfield Girls School0.6 miles
Secondary · Bath
-
Ralph Allen School1.5 miles
Secondary · Bath
-
Saint Gregory's Catholic College1.6 miles
Secondary · Bath
-
St Mark's CofE School1.9 miles
Secondary · Bath
-
Oldfield School2.4 miles
Secondary · Bath
Other schools in Bath
Beechen Cliff School ranks 2nd of the 6 ranked secondary schools in Bath.
- Hayesfield Girls School Secondary
- Oldfield School Secondary
- Ralph Allen School Secondary
- Saint Gregory's Catholic College Secondary
- St Mark's CofE School Secondary
- Bathampton Primary School Primary
- Batheaston Church School Primary
- Bathford Church School Primary
- Bathwick St Mary Church School Primary
- Combe Down CofE Primary School Primary
- Farmborough Church Primary School Primary
- Freshford Church School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Beechen Cliff School teach?
- Beechen Cliff School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Bath.
- Who is the headteacher of Beechen Cliff School?
- The headteacher of Beechen Cliff School is Mr Tim Markall, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Beechen Cliff School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Beechen Cliff 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 Beechen Cliff School?
- Beechen Cliff School has 1,232 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Beechen Cliff School full?
- Beechen Cliff School has capacity for 1,055 pupils and 1,232 on roll (117%), 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 Beechen Cliff School a faith school?
- No. Beechen Cliff School has no designated religious character.
- Is Beechen Cliff School a selective school?
- No. Beechen Cliff School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Beechen Cliff School?
- Beechen Cliff School is part of MIDSOMER NORTON SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Beechen Cliff School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 56 in 2022/23 and 55 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Beechen Cliff School rank locally?
- Beechen Cliff School ranked 2nd of 14 secondary schools in Bath and North East Somerset for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 87% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 36% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Beechen Cliff School's absence rate?
- Beechen Cliff School's overall absence rate is 6.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Beechen Cliff School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Beechen Cliff 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 10 July 2026.