The Turing School Review 2026: A community secondary with clear priorities and a rebuilding phase in progress

This is an 11 to 16 secondary in Langney, Eastbourne, part of Swale Academies Trust, and currently in a practical improvement cycle after a recent inspection judgement of Requires Improvement.

Leadership is stable. Ms Sarah Doyle is named as headteacher on the school’s website, with governance records showing her appointment date as 01 September 2021.

For families, the most important headline is that the school is not oversubscribed in the latest demand snapshot for Year 7 entry, which means admission can be more straightforward than at many local secondaries. The trade-off is that outcomes and progress measures, as published in official datasets and reflected in FindMySchool’s ranking model, show that the school has work to do on consistency of learning, reading, and attendance.

The school frames its identity through the values of Belonging, Ambition and Respect, and its public-facing messaging leans heavily into a supportive, inclusive culture.

Pastoral tone is reinforced by formal external evaluation. Pupils are described as feeling safe and secure, with clear routes to speak to an adult, and explicit education around online safety, harassment and consent.

Where the atmosphere can feel more mixed is in the way priorities are currently balanced. Behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management are all judged Good, which usually translates into calmer corridors, clearer routines, and more predictable expectations. Quality of education sits behind those strengths at Requires Improvement, which typically shows up less in day-to-day conduct and more in uneven curriculum impact across subjects and year groups.

FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking places the school at 3,758th in England and 7th in Eastbourne (FindMySchool ranking, based on official data). On the same model, performance sits below England average, in the lower performance band.

The attainment and progress signals align with that ranking. An Attainment 8 score of 30 suggests that, across the eight headline GCSE slots, average points per pupil are currently behind many schools nationally. A Progress 8 score of -0.99 indicates that, on average, pupils make less progress than peers with similar starting points across England.

EBacc-related measures are a particular pressure point. The school’s average EBacc APS of 2.43 and 2.3% achieving grade 5 or above across the EBacc indicate that uptake and performance in the EBacc suite are not yet where they need to be for families prioritising a strongly academic language-inclusive pathway. (These figures do not mean pupils cannot do well individually, but they do suggest that parents should ask detailed questions about subject access, sequencing, and how choices are guided.)

The curriculum conversation here is best understood as a school strengthening its core. Deep dives in English, mathematics, geography, art and modern foreign languages show that the school is being evaluated across both academic and creative disciplines, and that improvement work is not confined to one corner of the timetable.

The most useful “what this means for my child” translation sits in three areas the inspection highlights for further work: reading, modern foreign languages, and attendance. Reading is positioned as a whole-school lever because it affects vocabulary, writing depth, and pupils’ ability to access subject-specific language in every classroom. Modern foreign languages matter because they shape whether the EBacc becomes a realistic default route for more pupils. Attendance matters because even strong teaching cannot compensate for repeated absence from learning.

For families with children who are keen readers, reliable attenders, and generally self-organised, this improvement phase can still be a good fit, particularly if the school’s behaviour culture feels right. For families with a child who needs intensive literacy catch-up or who is prone to absence anxiety, it is worth asking for specifics on reading-gap identification and the attendance strategy, and how progress is monitored over a term, not just over a year.

There is no sixth form on site, and the school serves ages 11 to 16.

That means post-16 planning becomes a significant part of the Year 10 and Year 11 experience. Families should expect guidance around sixth-form and college routes, including technical options and apprenticeships, and should ask how the school supports pupils to choose pathways that match both attainment and interests. The inspection confirms the school meets the Baker Clause requirements, which is a helpful baseline for exposure to technical education and training routes.

Applications for Year 7 entry are handled through East Sussex County Council’s coordinated process, rather than directly through the school. The school’s published admission number for Year 7 is 189.

Key dates for the September 2026 intake are clearly stated: the closing date is 31 October 2025, with decisions communicated on 02 March 2026.

Oversubscription criteria follow the standard hierarchy you would expect, including priority for children with an Education, Health and Care Plan naming the school, looked-after children, exceptional medical or social need, siblings, then community area and distance. Distance measurement is specified as a straight-line Geographic Information System measurement to the relevant school gate used by students.

Demand indicators suggest this is not currently a high-pressure admissions environment. For the latest recorded Year 7 route snapshot, there were 173 applications for 176 offers, which aligns with an undersubscribed picture.

The most credible evidence here is the alignment between strong judgements in behaviour, personal development, and leadership, and the safeguarding and safety narrative.

Practical indicators include training for pupils on harassment and consent, and clear messaging on online and offline safety.

The most important question for parents is how the school uses that stable behavioural and pastoral platform to improve learning outcomes. In many improving schools, wellbeing structures are already working while teaching consistency catches up. Families should therefore ask not only “is it calm and safe”, but also “how is reading improved across subjects”, “how do teachers check understanding”, and “what changes have been made since June 2023”.

Extracurricular life is one of the clearer strengths in the school’s public offer, and it is described with more specificity than many schools provide. Students are explicitly signposted to clubs including Film Club, Duke of Edinburgh, Boxing Club (non-contact), Band Rehearsal, Creative Writing Club, and 3D Printing Club, alongside art and textiles, plus a mix of sports.

This matters because it gives different learner profiles a way to belong. A pupil who is not naturally academically confident can still build identity through music rehearsal, creative writing, or an applied technology club like 3D printing. Conversely, for students who thrive on structure and challenge, the Duke of Edinburgh pathway can add discipline and confidence through sustained goals, service, and expedition preparation.

Trips and cultural experiences are also framed as a deliberate part of the wider programme, including international visits (Paris is given as an example) and collaboration with local universities.

The school publishes term dates and a dedicated page for the school day, but the specific start and finish times are not presented in accessible text on the school day timings page, so families should confirm timings directly when planning transport and after-school commitments.

Open events are flagged on the school website, but for the “Open Evening and Open Mornings 2026” page, the school indicates that more information will be released in August 2026, so families looking at nearer-term entry should rely on the admissions timetable and contact the school for the most current open-event schedule.

• Quality of education is still the central improvement focus. Behaviour, personal development, and leadership are judged Good, but quality of education is judged Requires Improvement. That combination often means a secure pastoral base with uneven academic consistency across subjects.

• Reading development is identified as a whole-school priority. Reading gaps are described as limiting vocabulary breadth and writing depth for some pupils. This is particularly relevant for pupils entering Year 7 with weaker literacy, or those who need structured catch-up support.

• Modern foreign languages and EBacc uptake remain a challenge. If your child is aiming for a strongly academic GCSE profile, ask detailed questions about language uptake, guidance at options, and how the school is strengthening the EBacc pathway.

• Attendance needs to improve for a significant minority. Absence and persistent absence are identified as still too high, which can affect classroom pace and outcomes. Families should ask how attendance is supported and escalated, and what help is available when absence is anxiety-driven rather than purely behavioural.

The Turing School is a mainstream community secondary in Eastbourne with leadership continuity and a clear, structured improvement agenda. The strongest signals sit in behaviour, personal development, and safeguarding culture, while academic outcomes and progress measures show that teaching impact is not yet consistently strong enough.

Who it suits: families seeking a smaller-feeling 11 to 16 school with a stable pastoral platform, broad clubs, and a straightforward admissions picture, particularly where a child will benefit from clear routines and enrichment alongside academic rebuilding.