Report by: Francis O’Sullivan, AHT
Figures taken from the Inspection Data Summary Report (IDSR) Feb 2026 where available
Bentley Wood High school is an above average size comprehensive school for girls in Harrow with currently 1394 students between the ages of 11 and 19. The school has a very diverse intake of girls from a large catchment area. The school location deprivation indicator is ‘below average’. The pupil base deprivation, however, is ‘close to average’.
Free school meals
Currently 29.76% of students are known to be eligible for free school meals, which is close to average nationally. The progress and achievement of students on free school meals is typically significantly above the national average. The school has a fund to provide financial support for families for items such as uniform, trips and music lessons.
Pupil Premium
As of 25/26, 25% of students (362) were known to be eligible for Pupil Premium. The progress and attainment and progress of students on pupil premium is historically significantly above the national average. For example, the attainment 8 and progress 8 of our PP students in 24 /25 were 53.4 and 0.59, compared to national averages of 46.2 and 0.01.
EAL
At 61.8% we have “well above average” number of EAL students, with 75.4% in the 6th Form.
Age
Bentley Wood is currently oversubscribed. The school has expanded. In 2026 there is capacity for 240 students in all year groups. In our growing Sixth Form, there are 228 students.
Ethnicity
Bentley Wood welcomes and celebrates having students from all cultures and ethnicities and has a large number of students from minority ethnic groups. Some of our students have refugee status and come from countries such as Kuwait and Afghanistan. Our students speak a variety of other languages at home. We have 17 out of 18 possible ethnic groups.
Sex
Bentley Wood is a single-sex girls’ school. Our Sixth Form students attend classes at other collegiate schools which are mixed. We take male students in the 6th Form from the Harrow Collegiate if they apply and meet the requirements.
SEND / Disability
As of February 2026, there are 7.39% of students with SEND support and 2.22% with an EHC plan, categorised as ‘well below average’ and ‘close to average’ respectively. Disabilities range from Physical Disabilities to Speech, Language and Communication Needs. All staff are responsible for meeting the needs of these students. The SENDCo and Inclusion team provide a comprehensive ‘Inclusion Booklet’ which is shared with every member of staff, and linked in the Staff Bulletin each week as well. Heads of Year keep records of these students and closely monitor progress of students with disabilities together with Heads of Department, Senior Leaders, and Teachers.
There is an accessible disabled toilet available to Students with short or long-term medical needs and there are two lifts to support students who require additional mobility support.
Sexual Orientation
The school does not collect information on the sexual orientation of students. Were it to be communicated to the school regarding a pupil, it would be recorded in the child’s file and confidentially maintained.
Gender Reassignment
No data is collated by the school about gender reassignment. We follow Government guidance, best practice, and a ‘watchful waiting’ approach in the case of children manifesting signs of gender dysphoria, or with concerns about their gender and sex. We work in conjunction with parents, with the child’s best interests at heart. We recognize the that ‘Gender Recognition Certificates’ (GRC), which allow people to legally change the sex recorded on official documents, cannot be applied for until one is eighteen, older than most of our students, and that one must have lived in their acquired gender for at least two years before applying.
Religion
All Year groups show a similar religious profile with all major religions represented. There is a universal Prayer Room made available for students to use during break and lunchtimes, and the school canteen caters for many dietary requirements. Students all study Philosophy & Religious Studies until Year 11 and this covers all major world religions and promotes cohesion between students of different faiths and none. As a non-religious secular school, we encourage children to understand that religions are diverse, both within and between them, and we train the students to become better at, and more sophisticated in, their moral reasoning about them. Assemblies and Wise Thoughts at different times of the year sometimes note religious festivals.
Marriage and civil partnership
No data is collected or held by the school about parents’/carers’ marital status, apart from the titles and names given for home contacts and information about whether letters home and reports are to be sent to two addresses, unless specifically requested by a parent/carer or student.
Attendance
Students’ attendance is above the national average and is monitored on a weekly basis and analysed in order to target individuals who need support in improving their attendance. In 24/25, absence was 6.4% (nat avg 8.1%), and persistent absence was 16.8% (nat avg 21.9%), significantly down from the previous year’s 21.3% (nat avg 25.6%).
Exclusions and incidents
There was no permanent exclusion at Bentley Wood in 2024-2025, 2023-2024, 2022-23, 2021-22 (nat. average = 2), 2020-21, 1 in 2019-2020, and none in the previous three years. The number of girls who are sanctioned with fixed term exclusions / suspension has been kept low as a result of positive behaviour management strategies, strong support from the leadership team, an emphasis on good relationships, and through use of restorative justice approaches, where appropriate.
The school records and acts upon all incidents of discrimination. Where discrimination occurs, we intervene through education, sanctions, parent meetings, and so on as appropriate (see our Equality Information and Objectives statement, and our Anti-Bullying Policy).
Attainment
At Bentley Wood the vast majority of ethnicities perform better than national averages. There were no significantly underachieving ethnic groups in 2025. Students of all ethnicities exceed expectations at KS4.
We have high academic expectations of all students, and deliver a curriculum that is broad, balanced and rich, including very high levels of Ebacc entry. The EBacc entry rate numbers at Bentley Wood are very high – in 24/25 there were 219 (out of 221). Our attainment is much higher than national averages. The SSAT recently awarded us recognition of the fact we are in the top 10% for attainment nationally.
Equality objectives 2025-26 – Students (from our Equality Information and Objectives Policy)
The distribution of ethnicities at Bentley Wood is broadly the same for all groups of staff irrespective of pay. There is a diverse range of ethnicities which is consistent for support staff, teaching staff and teaching assistants.
Disability
In 2025-26 there are five members of staff that are registered as disabled.
At Bentley Wood there is a male to female ratio of 1 to 5.28 (25 males and 132 females). Staff are paid in relation to job specification, number of days’ employment and level of responsibility regardless of sex and ethnicity. Average pay for male employees is higher than average pay for female employees. This is attributed to having a higher support staff male to female ratio (1 to 10.4), compared to the teaching staff male to female ratio (1 to 4).
Our application forms ask for optional information about sexual orientation. If successful applicants have completed this, it is recorded on their employee profile on our personnel/payroll providers portal.
Our application forms ask for optional information about pronouns which can be connected to ‘gender identity’. If successful applicants have completed this, it is recorded on their employee profile on our personnel/payroll providers portal.
The staff includes members of a wide range of religions and beliefs (including no religion or belief). The school’s absence policy allows time-off for major religious observance days for all faiths.
Data is collected about the marital status of members of staff, including the titles and names given on application forms.
Pregnancy, maternity and paternity
The school operates the council’s policies for maternity leave, paternity leave and flexible working (reduced hours). All pregnant staff have a meeting to assess their individual needs and steps are taken to ensure these are met.
5 people started maternity leave during this academic year 2025-26. There were 3 people on maternity leave from 2024 – 2025 that have continued into some part of 2025-26. No one has taken paternity leave so far this year.
Training opportunities
Bentley Wood is a school that is passionate about staff professional development. We believe teachers, as professionals, should continue to learn and improve their practice using evidence and research to support their development. Professional development is offered to all teaching staff equally. Support staff also take part in professional development training, which is occasionally altered and bespoke to their roles and differing needs as necessary. We use state of the art platforms, namely BlueSky and the National College, to support, deliver, and monitor staff professional development.
Equality Objectives 2025-26 – Workforce (from our Equality Information and Objectives Policy)
