Thomas Bennett Community College is a secondary school in Crawley, serving pupils aged 11 to 18. The school is a academy converter and operates as a mixed school. It follows a non-selective admissions policy. It does not have a designated religious character, which may suit families looking for a non-faith school. The school also offers a sixth form, allowing students to continue into post-16 education on site.
Thomas Bennett Community College currently has around 1262 pupils on roll, which is about 87% of its capacity. The gender split is relatively balanced, with approximately 55.7% boys and 44.3% girls. Around 36.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, which gives an indication of the socio-economic mix. Pupil backgrounds are varied across different backgrounds and needs.
Overall absence at the school is 11.5%. Persistent absence is recorded at 34.3%.
The majority of pupils are from a white british background (52.6%).
At its latest Ofsted inspection, the school was rated Good. This suggests the school is performing well overall. Safeguarding was judged to be effective, which is a key consideration for many parents.
Around 89% of pupils move on to sustained destinations after Year 11. Most continue into education (78%) , including 26% who stay in school sixth forms and 35% progressing to further education , while 3% enter apprenticeships .
| Address: | Ashdown Drive, Crawley, RH10 5AD |
| Website: | http://thomasbennett-tkat.org.uk/ |
| Telephone: | 01293526255 |
| School Type: | Academy converter |
| Education phase: | Secondary |
| Local authority: | West Sussex |
| Headteacher / Principal: | Mr Stuart Smith |
| Religious character: | Does not apply |
| Admissions policy: | Non-selective |
| Unique reference: | 138620 |
Ofsted inspection date: 05/10/2022
Safeguarding is effective
| Age Range: | 11 - 18 |
| Gender: | Mixed |
| School Capacity: | 1450 |
| Number of Pupils: | 1262 |
| Number of Boys: | 703 |
| Number of Girls: | 559 |
| School | England state-funded schools: | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall absence: | 11.5% | 4% |
| Persistent absence: | 34.3% | 8.2% |
| White British | 52.60% | 664 |
| Unclassified | 8.60% | 109 |
| Other White | 8.20% | 104 |
| African | 6.00% | 76 |
| Other Asian | 3.60% | 45 |
| Other Mixed | 3.30% | 42 |
| Pakistani | 3.20% | 41 |
| Indian | 3.20% | 40 |
| Other Black | 2.50% | 31 |
| White and Black Caribbean | 2.00% | 25 |
| Other (any other ethnic group) | 2.00% | 25 |
| White and Black African | 1.60% | 20 |
| White and Asian | 1.40% | 18 |
| Caribbean | 0.80% | 10 |
| Bangladeshi | 0.40% | 5 |
| Gypsy/Roma | 0.30% | 4 |
| Irish | 0.20% | 3 |
| Chinese | 0.00% | 0 |
| Irish Traveller (Traveller of Irish heritage) | 0.00% | 0 |
| Ofsted Overall Effectiveness | Distance | Establishment Type | Has Nursery Classes | Gender | More Info | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desmond Anderson Primary Academy Anderson Road , Tilgate RH10 5EA | 3out of 4 | 265 yd | Academy converter | Yes | Mixed | More About School |
| Desmond Anderson Primary School Anderson Road , Tilgate RH10 5EA | - not rated | 265 yd | Community school | Yes | Mixed | More About School |
| Desmond Anderson County First School Canterbury Road , Tilgate RH10 5EZ | - not rated | 346 yd | Community school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Broadfield East Infant School and Nursery Vulcan Close , Broadfield RH11 9PD | - not rated | 494 yd | Community school | Yes | Mixed | More About School |
| Broadfield East Infant School and Nursery Vulcan Close , Broadfield RH11 9PD | - not rated | 494 yd | Academy converter | Yes | Mixed | More About School |
| Ofsted Overall Effectiveness | Distance | Establishment Type | Has Nursery Classes | Gender | More Info | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desmond Anderson Middle School Canterbury Road , Tilgate RH10 5EZ | - not rated | 346 yd | Community school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Southgate Middle School Barrington Road , Southgate RH10 6DG | - not rated | 759 yd | Community school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Southgate West Middle School Ditchling Hill , Southgate West RH11 8QL | - not rated | 790 yd | Community school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Bishop Bell Middle School Loppets Road , Tilgate RH10 5DP | - not rated | 1,181 yd | Community school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Gossops Green Community Middle School Kidborough Road , RH11 8HW | - not rated | 2,223 yd | Community school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Ofsted Overall Effectiveness | Distance | Establishment Type | Has Nursery Classes | Gender | More Info | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Bennett Community College Ashdown Drive , Tilgate RH10 5AD | 3out of 4 | 0 yd | Academy converter | No | Mixed | More About School |
| Thomas Bennett Community College Ashdown Drive , Tilgate RH10 5AD | - not rated | 0 yd | Community school | No | Mixed | More About School |
| Holy Trinity CofE Secondary School, Crawley Buckswood Drive , Gossops Green RH11 8JE | 3out of 4 | 1,643 yd | Voluntary aided school | No | Mixed | More About School |
| St Wilfrid's Catholic Comprehensive School, Crawley St Wilfrid's Way , RH11 8PG | 3out of 4 | 1,680 yd | Voluntary aided school | No | Mixed | More About School |
| Oriel High School Matthews Drive , Maidenbower RH10 7XW | - not rated | 2,598 yd | Community school | No | Mixed | More About School |
| Ofsted Overall Effectiveness | Distance | Establishment Type | Has Nursery Classes | Gender | More Info | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holy Cross RC School Shipley Road , Ifield RH11 0ED | - not rated | 2,859 yd | Voluntary aided school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Ofsted Overall Effectiveness | Distance | Establishment Type | Has Nursery Classes | Gender | More Info | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crawley College College Road , RH10 1NR | - not rated | 2,184 yd | Further education | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Central Sussex College College Road , RH10 1NR | - not rated | 2,184 yd | Further education | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Ofsted Overall Effectiveness | Distance | Establishment Type | Has Nursery Classes | Gender | More Info | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atelier21 Future School Broadfield Park , Brighton Road RH11 9RZ | - not rated | 553 yd | Other independent school | No | Mixed | More About School |
| Hethersett Montessori Primary 62 Brighton Road , Southgate RH10 6SX | - not rated | 1,008 yd | Other independent school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Swedish School Horsham Furnace Drive , Furnace Green RH10 6JB | - not rated | 1,463 yd | Other independent school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Manor Green College Lady Margaret Road , Ifield RH11 0DX | 3out of 4 | 2,194 yd | Community special school | Not Applicable | Mixed | More About School |
| Cottesmore School Buchan Hill , Pease Pottage RH11 9AU | - not rated | 2,395 yd | Other independent school | No | Mixed | More About School |
School statistics for this postcode are based on Ofsted rankings.