Cirencester Kingshill School

Since September 2023, Jo Lindley, who grew up in Derbyshire. French and German degree from Bangor (she still teaches French GCSE), PGCE from Bristol. She started her teaching career at Haygrove School in Bridgwater, Somerset, thence to John Masefield

Academically non-selective, with 196 year 7 places split across seven classes (six when they’re not at capacity). Children come from just under 30 feeder primaries from a large catchment incorporating villages to the north of Cirencester as far up as

At 16+, the highest achievers mostly head off to the local sixth form college, Cirencester College, or to the grammars including Pate’s, Marling, Stroud High, the Crypt and Sir Thomas Rich’s. The rest mainly to the colleges in Swindon and Stroud, as

In 2024, 17 per cent 9-7 at GCSE.

Forget dull, didactic lessons – all the classes we saw were a two-way street including a French quiz for year 7s and a lively game in an RS lesson on multiculturalism. Pupils told us about the head’s introduction of ‘cold calls’ (meaning, you’re more

Twenty-two per cent of pupils are on the SEN register, including those with increasingly complex needs. Fifty-one EHCPs when we visited. Most of the support is around cognition and learning – for pupils who have, eg dyslexia or processing issues.

Top-quality drama that would give many independent schools a run for their money. While sampling a (very tasty) breakfast wrap in the canteen at morning break, we happened upon some local college students doing a musically accompanied performance on

The single best thing about the school, according to pupils (the ‘family feel’ is a close second). School’s legacy as a specialist sports college paved the way, with both GCSE and BTEC sport available – and all year 8s take junior sports leadership

Staff have a good rapport with pupils – it’s obvious they care. ‘I’m a teacher myself and was instantly struck by this when we visited, as was my daughter.’ It’s also a listening school. ‘If ever there’s an issue, you can phone them up and they deal

We’ve rarely heard so many ‘thank you’s from pupils; even the more boisterous ones were polite. They’re less streetwise than their city contemporaries (just how parents like it) and they told us they absolutely would not want there to be a sixth form

A school on a journey and under dynamic new leadership. Long known for its family feel and nurturing ethos, this community school is now improving in just about every other way imaginable – clubs, trips, comms, teaching and learning, to name a few.