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Schools in Southend-on-Sea

56 open schools · Ofsted ratings, catchment areas and admission criteria · best primary schools · best secondary schools

Southend-on-Sea has 51 state schools: 33 primary, 12 secondary. Between them they teach around 30,403 pupils. 39 have enough published data for a score, averaging 5.5 out of 10, and 7 score 8 or above.

13 have a sixth form. 21 take children from age three or under. 7 have a religious character, which usually means the school sets its own admissions criteria rather than the council's. 4 are selective and set an entrance test. How the score works.

Browse by town

Southend-on-Sea covers several towns — jump straight to the schools in yours.

Leigh-on-Sea 16 schools Westcliff-on-Sea 12 schools
Alleyn Court Preparatory School Southend-on-Sea Barons Court Primary School and Nursery Westcliff-on-Sea · Outstanding Beis Chinuch Lebonos Westcliff Southend-on-Sea · Requires improvement Belfairs Academy Leigh-on-Sea · Requires improvement Blenheim Primary School Leigh-on-Sea · Outstanding Bournemouth Park Academy Southend-on-Sea · Not judged Bournes Green Infant School Southend-on-Sea · Good Bournes Green Junior School Southend-on-Sea · Good Cecil Jones Academy Southend-on-Sea · Good Chalkwell Hall Infant School Leigh-on-Sea · Good Chalkwell Hall Junior School Leigh-on-Sea Chase High School Westcliff-on-Sea · Not judged Darlinghurst Academy Leigh-on-Sea · Good Earls Hall Primary School Westcliff-on-Sea · Good Eastwood Primary School & Nursery Leigh-on-Sea · Good Edwards Hall Primary School Leigh-on-Sea · Good Fairways Primary School Leigh-on-Sea · Good Friars Primary School and Nursery Southend-on-Sea · Good Greenways Primary School Southend-on-Sea · Not judged Hamstel Infant School and Nursery Southend-on-Sea · Good Hamstel Junior School Southend-on-Sea · Good Heycroft Primary School LEIGH-on-SEA · Inadequate Hinguar Community Primary School Southend-on-Sea · Good Kingsdown School Southend-on-Sea · Not judged Lancaster School Westcliff-on-Sea · Good Leigh North Street Primary School Leigh-on-Sea · Good Milton Hall Primary School and Nursery Westcliff-on-Sea · Good Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary School Leigh-on-Sea · Good Porters Grange Primary School and Nursery Southend-on-Sea · Good Prince Avenue Academy and Nursery Westcliff-on-Sea · Good Richmond Avenue Primary and Nursery School Southend-on-Sea · Good Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School Southend-on-Sea · Good Saint Pierre School Leigh-on-Sea Shoeburyness High School Southend-on-Sea · Good South Essex College of Further and Higher Education Southend-on-Sea · Good Southchurch High School Southend-On-Sea · Requires improvement Southend High School for Boys Southend-on-Sea · Outstanding · Grammar Southend High School for Girls Southend-on-Sea · Outstanding · Grammar St Bernard's High School Westcliff-on-Sea · Good St George's Catholic Primary School Southend-on-Sea · Good St Helen's Catholic Primary School Westcliff-on-Sea · Good St Mary's, Prittlewell, CofE Primary School Southend-on-Sea · Not judged St Nicholas School Southend-on-Sea · Good St Thomas More High School Westcliff-on-Sea · Good St. Michael's School Sutton House Academy Southend-On-Sea · Good Temple Sutton Primary School Southend-on-Sea · Good The Eastwood Academy Leigh-on-Sea · Outstanding The St Christopher School Leigh-on-Sea · Good The Westborough School Westcliff-on-Sea · Good Thorpe Hall School Thorpedene Primary School & Nursery Southend-on-Sea · Not judged West Leigh Infant School Leigh-on-Sea · Good West Leigh Junior School Leigh-on-Sea · Outstanding Westcliff High School for Boys Academy Westcliff-on-Sea · Outstanding · Grammar Westcliff High School for Girls Westcliff-on-Sea · Outstanding · Grammar

Undersubscribed schools rated Good or Outstanding

These schools didn't fill on first preference in the latest admissions year, despite an Ofsted rating of Good or Outstanding — worth a look if you're chasing the same handful of famous names everyone else applies to.

Milton Hall Primary School and Nursery Good · ×0.59 1st prefs/place (2026/27) Richmond Avenue Primary and Nursery School Good · ×0.66 1st prefs/place (2026/27) The Westborough School Good · ×0.71 1st prefs/place (2026/27) Porters Grange Primary School and Nursery Good · ×0.75 1st prefs/place (2026/27) Shoeburyness High School Good · ×0.78 1st prefs/place (2026/27) Blenheim Primary School Outstanding · ×0.79 1st prefs/place (2026/27) St Helen's Catholic Primary School Good · ×0.8 1st prefs/place (2026/27) Cecil Jones Academy Good · ×0.82 1st prefs/place (2026/27) Temple Sutton Primary School Good · ×0.84 1st prefs/place (2026/27) Prince Avenue Academy and Nursery Good · ×0.85 1st prefs/place (2026/27)

How places are allocated in Southend-on-Sea

Primary schools: Explicit: 'Most primary schools in the City have a defined catchment area, except for the faith schools.' (source)

Most schools use the local authority's default scheme rather than a school-specific catchment map — see each school's page for its own designated/catchment area where one is published.

Southend-on-Sea entrance test format

Southend's grammar schools use the CSSE (Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex) shared 11+ exam: 1. English (60 minutes) — comprehension, applied reasoning and a short continuous-writing element, marked out of 60. 2. Mathematics (60 minutes) — Key Stage 2-based problems, marked out of 60. No verbal or non-verbal reasoning — CSSE tests curriculum English and maths only, with written (not purely multiple-choice) answers. One registration (csse.org.uk) and one mid-September sitting covers all CSSE schools across Southend and Essex. Scores are age-standardised, with a combined ~303+ historically the consideration threshold.

Key dates

Entry yearEventDate
Sept 2028 Application deadline 2027-10-31
Sept 2028 Primary application deadline 2028-01-15
Sept 2028 Offer day 2028-03-01
Sept 2028 Primary offer day 2028-04-17
Sept 2027 Registration opens 2026-05-12 (passed)
Sept 2027 Registration closes 2026-06-19 (passed)
Sept 2027 Test date 2026-09-19
Sept 2027 Results released 2026-10-15
Sept 2027 Application deadline 2026-10-31
Sept 2027 Primary application deadline 2027-01-15
Sept 2027 Offer day 2027-03-01
Sept 2027 Primary offer day 2027-04-16
Sept 2026 Registration opens 2025-05-08 (passed)
Sept 2026 Registration closes 2025-06-30 (passed)
Sept 2026 Test date 2025-09-21 (passed)
Sept 2026 Results released 2025-10-11 (passed)
Sept 2026 Application deadline 2025-10-31 (passed)
Sept 2026 Primary application deadline 2026-01-15 (passed)
Sept 2026 Offer day 2026-03-01 (passed)
Sept 2026 Primary offer day 2026-04-16 (passed)

Out-of-area applications

Southend's four grammar schools (Southend High School for Boys, Southend High School for Girls, Westcliff High School for Boys, Westcliff High School for Girls) select through the CSSE (Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex) shared 11+ exam — the same single test used by the Essex grammar schools. One registration (csse.org.uk, historically mid-May to mid-June of Year 5) and one sitting covers every CSSE school in both areas. Children living outside Southend (including London boroughs and Essex) can register and sit the exam. The Southend schools have historically allocated a significant share of places by score rank, but several also use priority areas or residence criteria — check each school's published oversubscription criteria. Apply via your home LA's Common Application Form by 31 October.

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