Saffron Walden County High School
Audley End Road, Saffron Walden, Essex, CB11 4UH ·
At a glance
A state secondary academy for ages 11–18 in Saffron Walden. Rated Outstanding at its last graded Ofsted inspection (March 2024). GCSE results are well above the England average (Attainment 8: 59.7 vs 46.1, 2024/25). Oversubscribed: 344 families put it first for 290 places (September 2026 entry).
- Ages
- 11–18
- Pupils
- 2,157
- Gender
- Mixed
- Sixth form
- Yes
- Admissions
- Non-selective
- Local authority
- Essex
- Academy trust
- SAFFRON ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Ms Polly Lankester
- Opened
- Jun 2011
Inspection
Ofsted (framework in use until November 2025)
- Quality of education
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Sixth form
- Outstanding
Safeguarding effective: Yes
Exam results
Department for Education performance tables
GCSE results, 2024/25 · 303 pupils
Attainment 8 over time
Progress 8 isn't published for 2024/25 because those pupils had no KS2 test results (tests were cancelled in 2020). Exams were not held in 2019/20 or 2020/21.
Admissions
Demand for places and how places are allocated
Year 7 entry, September 2026 (national offer day data)
289 of 344 first-preference applicants were offered a place (84%). 4 offers went to families living in another council area.
Catchment area
We don't have an official catchment boundary for this school. Many schools don't have one, and few councils publish boundaries as open data. We don't estimate catchments. Check the school's admissions policy or the council's admissions booklet.
Last distance offered
Not published nationally. Many councils publish the furthest distance offered for each school in their annual allocation reports. Past distances vary year to year with demand and sibling numbers, so they are not a guarantee.
Pupils
School census 2024/25
- Eligible for free school meals (last 6 years)11.6%
- English as an additional language5.6%
- SEN support15.6%
- Education, Health and Care plan3.7%
- The black tick shows the median for state-funded secondary schools in England.