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Schools in South East

3,928 schools in South East.

Schools

3,928

Open schools

Pupils

1,469,024

2025–26 census

Good or better

94%

2758 of 2931 graded

Academic Performance

5.2

out of 10 · 3357 schools

Ofsted ratings

Outstanding
349 12%
Good
2,409 82%
Requires improvement
131 4%
Inadequate
42 1%
377 inspected since 2024, no overall grade304 superseded by a report card620 not judged37 in a category of concern29 safeguarding not effective
5.2
Academic Performance

Averaged over 3357 of 3928 schools that can be scored

Pupils

1,469,024

pupils on roll

Boys 51%49% Girls

Roll from 3879 of 3928 schools (1,469,024 pupils). Independent schools report roll and sex only.

Ethnicity

White
73%
Asian
11%
Black
5%
Mixed
8%
Chinese
<1%
Any other group
2%
Unclassified
2%

Ethnicity from 3344 of 3928 schools (1,325,055 pupils). Independent schools report roll and sex only.

Pupil characteristics

Free school meals
21.1%

280,040 of 1,325,055 pupils · 3345 of 3928 schools

First language not English
17.2%

228,524 of 1,325,055 pupils · 3344 of 3928 schools

Young carers
1.8%

24,169 of 1,320,912 pupils · 3302 of 3928 schools

Schools by phase

Primary
2726
Secondary
592
All-through
122
Special
240
Nursery
42
PRU
42
Not recorded
164

Local authorities in South East

19 local authorities, alphabetically. Percentages are of graded schools.

Local authoritySchoolsPupilsGood or betterAcademic Performance
Bracknell Forest4522,062
100%of 33
5.6/10
Brighton and Hove7633,268
93%of 57
5.1/10
Buckinghamshire27097,495
92%of 196
5.7/10
East Sussex21471,009
91%of 156
4.6/10
Hampshire600195,029
94%of 455
5.1/10
Isle of Wight5016,601
83%of 41
3.3/10
Kent694268,026
95%of 530
5.3/10
Medway11152,424
95%of 88
4.9/10
Milton Keynes12152,938
97%of 98
5.4/10
Oxfordshire362117,587
95%of 273
5.2/10
Portsmouth6529,581
96%of 49
3.9/10
Reading7026,379
96%of 51
5.4/10
Slough5934,689
98%of 46
6.5/10
Southampton8335,292
89%of 61
4.6/10
Surrey510198,822
95%of 361
6.1/10
West Berkshire9827,859
95%of 66
4.9/10
West Sussex334128,510
92%of 258
4.4/10
Windsor and Maidenhead8327,804
93%of 59
5.7/10
Wokingham8333,649
96%of 53
7.0/10

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About schools in South East

How many schools are there in South East?
South East has 3,928 open schools — 2,726 primary, 592 secondary, 240 special, 42 nursery, teaching 1,469,024 pupils in total.
How many schools in South East are rated Good or Outstanding?
2,758 of the 2,931 schools holding an Ofsted grade — 94% — are rated Good or Outstanding, including 349 rated Outstanding. That share is measured against graded schools, not all 3,928: a school inspected since September 2024 has no overall grade at all.
What is the average Academic Performance in South East?
5.2 out of 10, averaged across the 3,357 schools here that can be scored, where 5 is the national average. Academic Performance combines the Ofsted judgement with DfE attainment and is ranked against comparable schools, so it is neither figure on its own.
Why do some South East schools have no Ofsted rating?
997 schools in South East currently hold no overall grade. Ofsted stopped awarding single-word judgements in September 2024 and moved to a report card of separately graded areas, so schools inspected since then have no overall rating whatever the inspection found. Their profiles show the report card instead.
Which local authorities are in South East?
South East contains 19 local authorities, including Bracknell Forest, Brighton and Hove, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and 13 more. Most admissions and school-place decisions are made at that level rather than regionally.
How many pupils in South East are eligible for free school meals?
21.1% — 280,040 of 1,325,055 pupils at the 3,345 schools that report it. Independent schools file a return with roll and sex only, so they are outside this figure rather than counted as zero.