The Gatwick School Review 2026: An All-through Free School Built Around Continuity

An all-through setting can be a decisive advantage for families who value stability, especially through the Year 6 to Year 7 transition. The Gatwick School educates children from Reception to Year 11, with a stated ethos of “Chances. Choices. Culture.” and an emphasis on long-term staff relationships, mentoring, and restorative practice.

Leadership is current and clearly signposted, David Marillat is named as headteacher in trust information, with governance records showing him in post from 01 September 2024. The most recent Ofsted inspection dates are 01 to 02 May 2024, with a Good judgement in each graded area and safeguarding recorded as effective.

The school’s identity is unusually explicit for a state all-through. The motto-style phrasing “Chances. Choices. Culture.” is used as a practical organising idea, framed around giving children more opportunities so they can make stronger decisions later on. That comes through in two visible design choices.

First, the school leans into continuity. The stated model is that students build relationships with staff over a longer period than in a typical primary then secondary route. For some children, that consistency can reduce anxiety around change, particularly at the point where many pupils elsewhere have to reset expectations, routines, and peer groups overnight.

Second, the culture language is built around aspiration with a corrective mechanism. Trust information links high expectations with restorative practice and explicit teaching about choices and consequences. In practical terms, that is the difference between a behaviour culture that relies mainly on sanction and one that aims to teach reflection and repair, provided it is implemented consistently.

Pastoral structures described in official reporting include named spaces, The Nest and The Warren, used to support pupils who need help managing social, emotional, and mental health needs, alongside structured support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. For families new to England or joining mid-year, the “United Nations” tutor group is described as an initial landing point for pupils who speak English as an additional language, with targeted language support identified afterwards.

Because this is an all-through school, the most useful view is to separate primary outcomes from GCSE outcomes, then consider the join between them.

Primary outcomes (Key Stage 2)

In 2024, 64.33% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, compared with an England average of 62%. At the higher standard, 12% achieved greater depth across reading, writing and mathematics, above the England average of 8%. Reading and maths scaled scores were 103 and 100 respectively, with a total reading, GPS and maths score of 305.

Rankings here should be read carefully. Based on FindMySchool rankings derived from official data, the school’s primary performance ranks 13,215th in England and 21st in Crawley, placing it below the England average overall in the primary distribution.

The implication for parents is that attainment at the expected standard level is close to England norms, with a stronger story at greater depth than the headline rank might suggest. This pattern often indicates that the school is securing solid core outcomes while still needing to lift consistency across the full cohort.

GCSE outcomes

At GCSE level, the most recent headline measures indicate an Attainment 8 score of 37.4 and a Progress 8 score of -0.42, which implies pupils made below-average progress from their starting points across the measured period. The average EBacc APS is 3.13, and 6.3% achieved grades 5 or above in the EBacc measure.

Ranked 3,357th in England and 6th in Crawley for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), results sit below the England average overall in the secondary distribution.

This is an important context point. The school’s own communications highlight improvement and “record-breaking” internal results, but parents should anchor expectations to the published progress and attainment indicators above, then use open days, curriculum information, and support structures to judge whether the trajectory matches their child’s needs.

The curriculum intent described in official reporting is built around tighter clarity of what pupils must know at each stage, with frequent revisiting of key concepts and skills to support retention. Regular training for staff is also described, aimed at identifying gaps and closing them through teaching approaches and catch-up support.

Two school-level academic choices stand out from the evidence available.

Reading and literacy are treated as a central thread rather than a primary-only concern. A systematic phonics approach is described when children first join, with additional reading support where needed, plus tutor-time reading and library sessions across phases. For parents, the implication is that weaker readers should not be left behind at the point of secondary transition, because the school describes literacy as a cross-phase priority.

Subject coverage in the most recent inspection activity included deep dives spanning early reading, English, mathematics, modern foreign languages, physical education and history. That breadth matters in an all-through context because it reduces the risk that secondary subject expertise is bolted on later without coherent sequencing from earlier years.

This is a school with an 11 to 16 secondary phase and no sixth form, so “next steps” is mainly about post-16 routes. Careers guidance described in official reporting is framed around college and apprenticeship pathways, and the school is described as ambitious to develop careers provision further.

A distinctive local-context advantage is positioning. Trust communications describe the school as located in Manor Royal, Crawley’s business district, with a focus on employer and partnership connections that support STEM-related aspirations, including manufacturing and engineering visibility. For students who learn best when education feels connected to real workplaces, this kind of partnership narrative can be materially motivating, particularly from Key Stage 4 onwards.

Admissions pressure looks different at Reception and Year 7, and it is helpful to be specific.

Reception entry

Demand data indicates 57 applications for 44 offers in the most recent dataset, with the entry route marked oversubscribed and a subscription proportion of 1.3 applications per place. That is competitive but not extreme by West Sussex standards. The last offered distance is not published for the latest year, so families should not assume proximity alone will be decisive without checking the current admissions criteria and tie-breaks.

For September 2026 Reception entry in West Sussex, applications opened at 9am on Monday 06 October 2025, with an on-time deadline of Thursday 15 January 2026. Offer outcomes are issued on 16 April 2026 for applicants using the Parent Portal, with letters sent the same day for those without email access.

Year 7 entry

Competition is materially stronger at secondary transfer. The dataset indicates 253 applications for 76 offers, with a subscription proportion of 3.33 applications per place, again marked oversubscribed. That ratio usually means families should plan for the possibility of a lower preference outcome and consider travel logistics early.

For September 2026 Year 7 entry in West Sussex, the on-time application deadline is 31 October 2025. Applicants who apply by late November (as specified by the local authority) receive the outcome on 02 March 2026.

Practical tip: families shortlisting multiple local options should use FindMySchool’s Local Hub comparison tools to review performance and admissions context side-by-side, then use the Map Search to sanity-check day-to-day travel time assumptions before final preferences are submitted.

Pastoral support is one of the more clearly evidenced parts of the picture. Named internal spaces, The Nest and The Warren, are described as supporting pupils who need help managing emotional needs and building confidence in communication.

The school’s work on children’s rights is also a tangible marker of culture rather than marketing. The school has been reported by its trust as achieving Gold in UNICEF UK’s Rights Respecting Schools programme, which is positioned as embedding the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into policy and daily practice. The practical implication is that relationships, respect, and inclusion are being treated as core operating principles, which can matter for pupils who need predictability in adult responses and clear expectations around peer interaction.

Where the school stands out is not a long published list of clubs (the most detailed activities information is hosted on the school website, which was not accessible for verification in this research pass), but the presence of specific structured roles and programmes evidenced in official reporting and trust communications.

Student leadership is described as extensive, with examples including the Autism Ambassador role and membership of the school council, alongside assemblies that promote inclusion and protected characteristics awareness. These roles are a useful proxy for enrichment because they show responsibility pathways for students who may not be drawn to sport or performance but thrive when given visible contribution roles.

There is also clear evidence of external-facing engagement, including participation in national STEM and manufacturing conversations via trust-level events, which fits the school’s business-district location and stated intent to connect students with real-world pathways.

For parents, the implication is that enrichment here is likely to be strongest where it connects to leadership, inclusion, mentoring, and careers relevance, rather than being defined solely by competitive fixtures or elite performance routes.

This is a state school with no tuition fees.

The school is based in the Gatwick area of Crawley and is described in trust communications as being in Manor Royal, the local business district, which tends to support commuting patterns that mix local residential travel with employer-area transport links.

Published, independently verifiable timings for the core school day and wraparound care were not available from approved sources in this research pass. Families who need breakfast club and after-school coverage should confirm current arrangements directly with the school and, if relevant, check whether provision is in-house or delivered by an external partner.

• Secondary entry is meaningfully competitive. The most recent dataset indicates 253 applications for 76 Year 7 offers (3.33 applications per place). Families should plan preferences with a realistic view of probability and travel logistics.

• GCSE progress indicators are below average. A Progress 8 score of -0.42 suggests pupils made less progress than peers nationally from similar starting points in the measured period. This will matter most for students who need consistently strong academic acceleration.

• All-through continuity is a strength, but it is not automatically the best fit. Some children benefit from a fresh start at Year 7; others thrive when routines and relationships continue. Families should assess where their child sits on that spectrum.

• Extra-curricular detail is harder to validate without the school website. The evidence base strongly supports leadership and inclusion roles, but parents seeking very specific sports, arts, or enrichment pathways should verify the current offer directly.

The Gatwick School’s clearest differentiator is the all-through model paired with a culture narrative built around aspiration, restorative practice, and structured inclusion. It suits families who value continuity from Reception through Year 11, and children who respond well to stable relationships, clear routines, and leadership opportunities that build confidence over time. The main constraint is competitiveness at Year 7 and the need for continued improvement in GCSE progress measures, which makes it especially important to probe subject support, intervention, and teaching consistency during the admissions process.