SF School Facts UK

Secondary school in Purfleet, Thurrock

Harris Academy Riverside

London Road, Purfleet, Essex, RM19 1QY

Sixth form Full
School website 01375802060

Ofsted

Inspected under the current framework, which gives no overall grade, on 28 April 2026.

Inspections since September 2024 do not give an overall grade, so there is no one-word judgement to report. The full report sets out what inspectors found.

Read the Ofsted report

GCSE results 2024/25

Attainment 8 score

47.9 England 47

The average grade across eight GCSEs, doubling English and maths. 50 is roughly a grade 5 average.

Grade 5+ in English & maths

45% England 46.2%

Grade 4+ in English & maths

68% England 66.2%

EBacc average point score

4.5 England 4.2

Entered the EBacc

67% England 40.8%

On Attainment 8 this school is in the upper half of state-funded secondaries in England.

Compared with the fifth of schools whose intake is middle, which is where this one sits, it is in the better-performing half.

Progress 8 2023/24

0.23confidence interval 0.02 to 0.45

Taking that range into account, pupils made more progress than similar pupils nationally. DfE bands this as above average.

Progress 8 measures how far pupils moved between the end of primary and their GCSEs, which makes it far fairer than raw attainment. It is shown for 2023/24 because it could not be calculated for 2024/25: that year group would have sat their key stage 2 tests in summer 2020, when the tests were cancelled, so there is no starting point to measure from. Every school in England is affected, not just this one.

A levels 2024/25

Average grade per entry
B-
Average points per entry
36.1

England average 32.3

A level students
59

Pupils

Pupils on roll
1111
Places
1096
How full
Full — 1111 pupils against 1096 places
Girls / boys
492 / 619
Overall absence
6%

secondary schools average 8.6%

Persistently absent
14%

secondary schools average 23.9% — pupils missing 10% or more of sessions

Free school meals, last 6 years
30%

England 25.7%

English as an additional language
31%

England 18.7%

With an EHC plan
3%

England 3.5%

On SEN support
10%

England 15%

What pupils do next

After GCSEs

In education, work or training
94%

England 91.4%

Stayed in education
91%

England 85.4%

Started an apprenticeship
1%

England 3.5%

Stayed at this school's sixth form
39%
No sustained destination
2%

England 5.8%

Pupils in the cohort
130

After sixth form

Went to university
74%

England 50%

In education, work or training
94%

England 84.3%

Started an apprenticeship
3%

England 6.5%

Students in the cohort
66

Going on to university 2021/22 leavers

Went to a top third university

27% England 20.9%

The third of higher education providers whose entrants hold the highest average entry qualifications. It is the closest thing in the public data to "did they get into a competitive university", and it separates schools far more sharply than the headline progression rate does.

Went on to a degree
82%

England 65.3%

Students in the cohort
82

These follow an earlier group of leavers than the figures above, and count anyone reaching higher education within two years rather than the term after leaving, so they are not directly comparable with them.

A destination counts only if it lasted at least six months, which is why these figures lag the exam results by a year, and why the university figures track leavers from 2021/22. Small cohorts move these percentages a long way — check the cohort size before reading much into a gap.

The neighbourhood around the school

Census 2021 figures for Thurrock 022C, the statistical neighbourhood the school sits in — roughly 1,500 residents. It describes the area, not the pupils, who may travel in from further away.

Adults with a degree
47%

England 33.8%

Adults with no qualifications
12%

England 18.3%

Households owning their home
59%

England 62.7%

Households in social housing
7%

England 17%

Households with no car
14%

England 21.9%

Adults economically inactive
18%

England 39.9%

School details

Type
Free schools
Phase
Secondary
Ages
Ages 11–18
Gender
Mixed
Admissions
Non-selective
Religious character
None
Sixth form
Yes
Nursery
No
Boarding
Day school
Trust
HARRIS FEDERATION
Headteacher
Headteacher: Rachel Sofianos
Local authority
Thurrock
Ward
West Thurrock and South Stifford
Constituency
Thurrock
URN
144750

The unique reference number used in all official school data.

Nearest secondary schools

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8Distance
Leigh UTC DartfordUniversity technical college Good 2022 44.4 1.5 mi
Ormiston Park AcademyAcademy sponsor led Requires improvement 2024 37.5 1.9 mi
Stone Lodge SchoolFree schools Good 2023 37.6 2.3 mi
Harris Academy Chafford HundredAcademy converter Outstanding 2024 55.5 2.3 mi
Dartford Grammar SchoolAcademy converter Outstanding 2022 79.9 2.8 mi
Harris Academy OckendonAcademy converter Outstanding 2024 47.3 2.9 mi
Dartford Grammar School for GirlsAcademy converter No grade 75.5 2.9 mi
Harris Academy RainhamAcademy sponsor led No grade 50.4 2.9 mi

Schools with a similar intake

State-funded secondary schools nationally whose share of disadvantaged pupils is closest to this school's. This is the fairest like-for-like comparison the published data supports.

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8
Christ The King Catholic High School and Sixth Form CentreVoluntary aided school Good 2023 41.8
Lostock High SchoolCommunity school No grade 43.7
Maltby AcademyAcademy sponsor led No grade 42
Oxford Spires AcademyAcademy sponsor led Good 2023 46.3
Chestnut Grove AcademyAcademy converter Good 2024 55.1
Highams Park SchoolAcademy converter Good 2024 47.5
The Deepings SchoolAcademy converter No grade 38.6
Sir Harry Smith Community CollegeAcademy converter No grade 40.6

Where these figures come from

  • School details, address and pupil numbers — Get Information About Schools, the DfE register, as at 14 August 2026.
  • Exam results — DfE performance tables, 2024/25, and 2023/24 for Progress 8.
  • Free school meals, EAL and SEN — school census, 2024/25.
  • Ofsted — Ofsted management information, latest inspections as at 30 June 2026.
  • Neighbourhood figures — ONS Census 2021, lower layer super output area.

All published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. If something here looks wrong, the school's own website is the authority on admissions and open days.