Honywood SchoolThurstable School
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in Colchester.
Summary of the comparison
Honywood School and Thurstable School are secondary schools in Colchester.
Honywood School scores 55 out of 100 (grade C, average) and Thurstable School scores 55 out of 100 (grade C, average). Our score is the same for each of them on the data available.
Honywood School was judged Good and Thurstable School was judged the expected standard.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 45.1 for Honywood School and 46.5 for Thurstable School.
GCSE Attainment 8 has fallen at Honywood School (47.4 in 2021-22, 45.1 in 2025-26) and has fallen at Thurstable School (51.3 in 2021-22, 46.5 in 2025-26).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | ColchesterHonywood School | ColchesterThurstable School | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | C55/100 | C55/100 | |
| Local ranking | 42nd of 80 in Essex | 41st of 80 in Essex Stronger figure | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Good | Ofsted: Good | |
| School type | Academy converter | Academy converter | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-16 | 11-16 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 849 | 932 | |
| Capacity | 800 | 1,275 | |
| Location | Colchester, CO6 1PZ | Colchester, CO5 0EW | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 45.1 | 46.5 Stronger figure | 46.2 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 37.4% | 52.0% Stronger figure | 46.3% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 65.8% | 68.3% Stronger figure | 64.8% |
| Cohort | 155 | 202 | |
| A-level results | |||
| A-level entries | Not reported | 51 | |
| A-level average points | Not reported | 26.5 | 34.4 |
| A-level average grade | Not reported | C- | |
| Best 3 A-levels points | Not reported | 27.3 | 35.1 |
| AAB+ incl. facilitating subjects | Not reported | 9.1% | 17.1% |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 821 | 1,031 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 20.5% | 19.0% | |
| English as an additional language | 1.6% | 2.4% | |
| SEN support | 20.2% | 15.5% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 7.7% | 2.6% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 9.2% Stronger figure | 9.2% | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 24.0% Stronger figure | 24.2% | 15.8% |
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.
Honywood School
Thurstable School
Full profiles: Honywood School · Thurstable School