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About Schools in East Sussex

Find addresses, contact details, links to website, calendars and alerts, links to Ofsted reports for state-funded schools in East Sussex:

You can search by school name or location. You can also look through a list of either primary, secondary, special schools or schools with a sixth form or see a map of them (please note, the map isn’t interactive).

You can find out which community area (sometimes known as a catchment area) you live in on our address checker

You can find information on schools here

Private schools

For more information on private schools, see GOV.UK:


East Sussex has a wide range of schools in addition to government or state-funded (or ‘maintained’) schools. They all offer education to children of all abilities. Some schools set their own admission arrangements. It is important to check this before applying.

East Sussex has no grammar schools.

Academy schools

Academies are all-ability schools set up by sponsors from business, faith or voluntary groups. They are not maintained by the local authority. They are independent schools funded by central government. The Academy Trust set their own admission arrangements and decide how they admit pupils.

Community schools and voluntary controlled schools

The local authority (East Sussex County Council) is responsible for school admissions. It decides how to admit pupils. The headteacher and governors manage community and voluntary controlled schools in partnership with the local authority. Voluntary controlled schools have links to the Church of England.

Free schools

Free schools are non-profit making, independent, state-funded schools for children of all abilities. The governors set their own admission arrangements and decide how they admit pupils and what they teach.

Trust schools

Trust schools are run by their own governing body but have formed a charitable trust with an external partner – for example, a business or educational charity – aiming to raise standards. The governors set their own admission arrangements and decide how pupils are admitted.

Voluntary aided church schools

Voluntary aided church schools set their own admission arrangements and decide how they admit pupils. The governing body contributes to building and maintenance costs.

In many cases the governors ask parents to complete a supplementary information form (SIF) as well as the school application form. This enables schools to rank applications against their admissions criteria.

They normally give priority to parents who can demonstrate a commitment to the religious faith of the school.

Special schools and specialist facilities

We are fully committed to inclusion. Most children with special educational needs, and many children with an Education, Health and Care plan, go to mainstream schools. 

Some children with SEN and complex needs go to specialist facilities in mainstream schools or special schools.

This placement would normally be named in the child’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan.

There are also special schools for children in certain circumstances.


Local and national test results

The government did not publish primary school results in 2022. This was due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. They are due to be published from 2023 onwards.

Secondary school GCSE results were published in 2022 for the first time since 2019. They will continue to be published in 2023 and beyond.

Ofsted reports

The schedule of Ofsted inspections was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Inspections resumed early in 2022. Ofsted published guidance on how they will catch up on scheduled inspections in June 2023.

Find a report

To look up a school’s latest report, see: 

Further Information

Find local schools

To find further information about a school in East Sussex, see

The Education Hub

This is a government site for parents, pupils, education professionals and the media. It captures all you need to know about the education system. You’ll find accessible, straightforward information on popular topics, Q&As, interviews, case studies, and more.

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