What Chessbrook does

Chessbrook Education Support Centre (ESC) is a state-funded alternative provision school located on Tolpits Lane in Watford, Hertfordshire, operating under Hertfordshire County Council and serving approximately 1,400 children, young people and families per year across South West Hertfordshire. Its core function is the re-engagement of disaffected KS3 and KS4 students (ages 11–16) who have experienced exclusion, mental health challenges, or disengagement from mainstream schooling, delivered through a centre-based curriculum of 30–32 lessons per week, a GADE shared-education programme supporting EHCP applications and reintegration, and a Whole School Therapeutic Approach that assigns each student a Personalised Learning Mentor.

The school's technology layer is composed of off-the-shelf educational and operational platforms rather than proprietary systems: Google Classroom for remote learning, TUTE for virtual live lessons, Talaxy as the Alternative Provision Management Information System tracking attendance, behaviour, achievements and timetables for partner schools, and Google Forms for safeguarding referrals. The differentiators are human and methodological — trauma-informed therapeutic frameworks, the PLM family-contact system, and the Reflect & Relaunch multi-family group programme — rather than technology-led.

Chessbrook is not a commercial enterprise: it charges no fees to students or families and derives its income from Hertfordshire County Council commissioning for placed pupils and from government Pupil Premium grants (£2,150 per eligible student in 2025-26, rising to £2,630 for CLA/PCLA). Additional revenue flows through the DSPL9 Tier 3 primary outreach contract, partner-school Extended Roll referrals, and the National Lottery-funded Saracens Foundation Project Breakthrough. Governance rests with a Management Committee chaired by Richard Booth, with Steve McShannon serving as Executive Headteacher. The centre has been judged Outstanding by OFSTED in 2010, 2014, 2018 and February 2024, was cited in the 2022 government SEND green paper, and maintains 100% against the Gatsby Benchmark for careers education.

Name

Chessbrook

Legal name

Chessbrook Education Support Centre

Website

https://chessbrook.herts.sch.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Chessbrook ESC is a state-funded alternative provision school in Watford, Hertfordshire, delivering therapeutic, academic and vocational programmes to disaffected KS3/KS4 students and primary outreach across South West Hertfordshire, funded by Hertfordshire County Council and Pupil Premium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Watford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. State-Funded Education: Chessbrook is a state-funded Education Support Centre receiving funding from Hertfordshire County Council Local Authority for educating students placed by mainstream schools.
2. Pupil Premium Grant: Government Pupil Premium funding allocated per eligible student (£2,150 per student in 2025-26, £2,630 per CLA/PCLA).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Chessbrook is a state-funded Education Support Centre in Watford, South West Hertfordshire, providing alternative provision education and therapeutic support to primary and secondary students who are disaffected from mainstream education or have Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs. Its services include centre-based curriculum delivery, the GADE Programme (Generic Alternative Designated Education), Extended Roll outreach support in partner schools, the Saracens Project Breakthrough, a virtual curriculum via TUTE, and reintegration programmes designed to re-engage vulnerable learners.

Product overview

Chessbrook Education Support Centre (ESC) is an outstanding OFSTED-judged educational institution serving South West Hertfordshire, providing support to approximately 1,400 children, young people, and families annually. Rather than a single product, Chessbrook operates as an integrated portfolio of educational services built around a Whole School Therapeutic Approach. The core offerings include: a Centre-Based Curriculum delivering academic and vocational subjects to KS3 and KS4 students; the GADE Programme for KS3 assessment and reintegration support; Primary and Secondary Extended Roll outreach services that work with mainstream schools to prevent exclusions; Alternative Provision offering accredited courses through both on-site and virtual (TUTE) delivery; and Saracens Project Breakthrough providing sports mentoring in partnership with the Saracens Foundation. These services are unified by a therapeutic framework that assigns each student a Personalised Learning Mentor and provides tiered mental health and wellbeing support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• GADE Programme (Generic Alternative Designated Education)
• Alternative Provision
• Primary Extended Roll (Outreach)
• Secondary Extended Roll (Outreach)
• Saracens Project Breakthrough
• Virtual Curriculum (TUTE)

Quantifiable outcome

• Students achieve up to 16 qualifications (per parent testimonial)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, standard and minor.

• Saracens FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWeekly sports mentoring programme integrated into P.E. curriculum. Project Breakthrough is funded by the National Lottery's community fund. Emily leads small group or 1:1 sports-focused sessions designed to achieve mentoring outcomes including improved self-confidence, attendance, attitude to learning, and relationships.
• Services for Young PeoplecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides dedicated Careers Adviser (Matt Penn) based at Chessbrook one day per week, offering vital careers education and guidance on routes to employability and post-16 opportunities. Also continues support for post-16 students.
• TUTEstandardTechnology or IntegrationOnline virtual curriculum platform providing live lessons taught by a virtual teacher. Students access TUTE lessons remotely as part of alternative provision offerings.
• DSPL9 (Delivering Special Provision Locally)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChessbrook provides primary outreach support (Tier 3) for all primary schools in the DSPL9 area to reduce risk of fixed-term and permanent exclusions, following the DSPL Primary Strategy.
• West Herts CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMonthly planned drop-in sessions held at West Herts College for students to visit Services for Young People for additional advice and guidance on post-16 pathways.
• Watford Football ClubminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenue for annual awards evening celebrating student achievements, attended by families, staff, management committee, and external agencies.
• Stone X StadiumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSports venue hosting Chessbrook's own sports day event as part of the Saracens Foundation Project Breakthrough enrichment programme.
• Alternative Provision PartnerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNetwork of alternative provision partners across South West Hertfordshire providing accredited courses at Key Stage 4. Chessbrook conducts daily visits, provides training, and monitors quality through Talaxy platform.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/chessbrookesc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chessbrook

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Chessbrook