Ofsted: Good trending_up Popular emoji_events #21 in West Sussex public Top 17% UK

The Forest School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMr Ian Straw

location_onHorsham, RH13 5NT

language Visit Website phone 1403261086

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2017

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Students

1,023

trending_up

Attainment 8

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GCSE Rank

#20 in West Sussex

#1,595 of 4,663 nationally

summarize

The Forest School is a Community school secondary school in Horsham, serving ages 11-16. Rated Good by Ofsted. Demand is above capacity (1.2×) — apply through your local authority on time.

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School Summary

The Forest School is a community school in Horsham, West Sussex, admitting pupils aged 11-16. The school has approximately 1,095 pupils on roll, of whom 12% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 47, placing the school #20 in West Sussex and #1,595 of 4,663 nationally. 55.90% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 15.2% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2017. The school's current overall rating is Good.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.2× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 20.9:1. There are 3 teaching vacancies. Teacher turnover in the previous year was 8.0%.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were 2 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 5.1 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

analytics

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

55.90%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)15.2%

Entering EBacc10.40%

EBacc APS3.98

2024

Progress 8 Score

-0.28

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

45.9

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc18.80%

EBacc APS4.07

2023

Progress 8 Score

0.09

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

48.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc30%

EBacc APS4.26

2022

Progress 8 Score

-0.1

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

50.7

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc32%

EBacc APS4.45

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc32%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

-0.44

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

45.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc28%

EBacc APS3.95

2018

Progress 8 Score

-0.5

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

45.3

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc0%

EBacc APS3.43

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Student Destinations (After Secondary)

This module shows what students did after finishing Key Stage 4 (GCSEs). It reflects how well the school prepares pupils for the real world.

2025

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)91%

Apprenticeships3%

Employment2%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

94%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)87%

Apprenticeships4%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)5%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

95%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)91%

ApprenticeshipsSP%

Employment4%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

93%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)87%

Apprenticeships3%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)89%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment5%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

Inspection Report

31 August 2025

Inspection Report

25 January 2022

Inspection Report

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07 March 2017

Inspection Report

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06 May 2015

Inspection Report

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14 November 2012

Inspection Report

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21 February 2012

Inspection Report

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09 December 2009

Inspection Report

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12 December 2007

Inspection Report

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30 November 2006

Inspection Report

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18 March 2002

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

2 Evaluations

2017-03-07

Maintained Academy and School Short inspection Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2012-11-14

None Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

5.7%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 7.3% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

2.9%(32 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 1,095 pupils. During this period, there were 62 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 5.7%, which is below the termly national average of 7.3%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg	Perm. Excl.
2024/25 (Spring term)	1,095	62	5.7%	7.3%	0
2024/25 (Autumn term)	1,098	49	4.5%	7.8%	2
2023/24 (Summer term)	1,051	41	3.9%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	1,039	55	5.3%	7.1%	1
2023/24 (Autumn term)	1,050	65	6.2%	8.2%	2
2022/23 (Summer term)	1,034	65	6.3%	6.6%	0
2022/23 (Spring term)	1,023	96	9.4%	6.4%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	1,018	32	3.1%	5.9%	0
2021/22 (Summer term)	1,012	22	2.2%	4.7%	1
2021/22 (Spring term)	1,015	55	5.4%	4.9%	1
2021/22 (Autumn term)	1,015	46	4.5%	4.4%	0
2020/21 (Summer term)	1,047	42	4.0%	3.6%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	1,048	12	1.1%	1.0%	1
2020/21 (Autumn term)	1,044	34	3.3%	3.9%	1
2019/20 (Summer term)	1,072	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	1,072	42	3.9%	3.2%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	1,074	64	6.0%	4.2%	0
2018/19 (Summer term)	1,115	45	4.0%	3.1%	1
2018/19 (Spring term)	1,112	40	3.6%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	1,112	22	2.0%	3.8%	0
2017/18 (Summer term)	1,087	52	4.8%	3.4%	1
2017/18 (Spring term)	1,086	55	5.1%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	1,089	52	4.8%	3.7%	2
2016/17 (Summer term)	1,099	88	8.0%	3.0%	1
2016/17 (Spring term)	1,100	58	5.3%	3.3%	1
2016/17 (Autumn term)	1,108	43	3.9%	3.1%	2

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Specific Learning Difficulty 95 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 37 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 26 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 23 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 5 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 4 pupils

Physical Disability 2 pupils

Severe Learning Difficulty 1 pupils

Profound & Multiple Learning 1 pupils

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The Forest School

School Summary

Academic Performance

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

Student Destinations (After Secondary)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Secondary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Secondary Schools in West Sussex

Downlands Community School

St Paul's Catholic College

St Oscar Romero Catholic School

Shoreham Academy

Tanbridge House School

St Philip Howard Catholic School