Highdown School and Sixth Form CentreGillotts School

Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side.

Summary of the comparison

Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre and Gillotts School are secondary schools.

  • Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre scores 63 out of 100 (grade C, average) and Gillotts School scores 81 out of 100 (grade B, strong). Gillotts School is ahead on our composite score.

  • Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre was judged Good and Gillotts School was judged Outstanding.

  • On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 54.9 for Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre and 60.2 for Gillotts School.

  • GCSE Attainment 8 has risen at Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre (51.9 in 2021-22, 54.9 in 2025-26) and has held broadly level at Gillotts School (59.8 in 2021-22, 60.2 in 2025-26).

Side-by-side comparison

Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre versus Gillotts School compared on inspection, results, pupils and attendance.
Measure ReadingHighdown School and Sixth Form CentreHenley-on-ThamesGillotts SchoolEngland average
Overview
Our scoreC63/100B81/100Stronger figure
Local ranking3rd of 10 in Reading 1st of 41 in Oxfordshire
InspectionOfsted: GoodOfsted: OutstandingStronger figure
School typeAcademy converter Academy converter
PhaseSecondary Secondary
Age range11-18 11-16
GenderMixed Mixed
Pupils on roll1,537 934
Capacity1,440 900
LocationReading, RG4 8LR Henley-on-Thames, RG9 1PS
GCSE results
Attainment 854.9 60.2 Stronger figure46.2
Grade 5+ in English & maths64.4% 74.1% Stronger figure46.3%
Grade 4+ in English & maths79.6% 88.8% Stronger figure64.8%
Cohort250 197
A-level results
A-level entries141 Not reported
A-level average points34.4 Not reported35.0
A-level average gradeC+ Not reported
Best 3 A-levels points34.7 Not reported35.8
AAB+ incl. facilitating subjects16.8% Not reported17.5%
Pupils
Pupils in the census1,545 918
Free school meals (ever 6)11.1% 12.1%
English as an additional language16.1% 7.1%
SEN support11.6% 24.0%
SEN with an EHC plan1.7% 3.8%
Attendance
Overall absence8.3% 5.6% Stronger figure6.2%
Persistent absence21.0% 10.9% Stronger figure15.8%

marks the stronger figure on measures with a clear direction. Rows describing a school's intake, such as free school meals, English as an additional language and SEN, carry no marker: they describe who a school serves, not how well it serves them.

Historical trends

Each solid line is one school; the dashed line is the national average.

GCSE Attainment 8

GCSE Progress 8

Overall absence

Free school meal eligibility (ever 6)

Pupils on roll

Ethnicity over time

One panel per school: the largest groups across this comparison, one colour per group, on a shared scale.

Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre

Gillotts School

Full profiles: Highdown School and Sixth Form Centre · Gillotts School