Ofsted: Requires improvement trending_up Places Available emoji_events #9 in Norfolk public Top 14% UK

Thorpe St Andrew School and Sixth Form

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

personMrs Penny Bignell

corporate_fareBROAD HORIZONS EDUCATION TRUST

location_onNorwich, NR7 0XS

language Visit Website phone 1603497711

verified

Ofsted

Requires improvement

Inspected 2025

groups

Students

1,839

trending_up

Attainment 8

49.2

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GCSE Rank

#12 in Norfolk

#1,040 of 3,216 nationally

summarize

Thorpe St Andrew School and Sixth Form is a Academy converter secondary school in Norwich, serving ages 11-18. Currently Requires Improvement according to Ofsted — the school is working to raise standards.

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School Summary

Thorpe St Andrew School and Sixth Form is an academy converter in Norwich, Norfolk, admitting pupils aged 11-18. It has a sixth form offering post-16 education. It is part of BROAD HORIZONS EDUCATION TRUST. The school has approximately 1,834 pupils on roll, of whom 16% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 49.2, placing the school #12 in Norfolk and #1,040 of 3,216 nationally. 50.20% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 19.5% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

The sixth form offers 24 A-level subjects. 48.6% of A-level entries were graded A*–B, with 20.9% at A*–A. A-level value added: +0.17 — students made above-average progress at sixth form.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2025. The school's current overall rating is Requires improvement. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 1.0× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 18.8:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there was 1 permanent exclusion. The average suspension rate was 2.1 per 1,000 pupils per term.

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

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

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Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

49.2

Grade 5+ E&M

50.20%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)19.5%

Entering EBacc48.10%

EBacc APS4.51

2024

Progress 8 Score

0.14

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

49.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc40.80%

EBacc APS4.46

2023

Progress 8 Score

0.26

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

52.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc34%

EBacc APS4.66

2022

Progress 8 Score

0.03

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

51.1

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc25%

EBacc APS4.45

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc25%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

0.23

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

51.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc24%

EBacc APS4.37

2018

Progress 8 Score

0.05

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

50.2

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc29%

EBacc APS4.36

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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

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)94%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)2%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

95%

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

Apprenticeships1%

Employment2%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)5%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)92%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)92%

Apprenticeships3%

EmploymentSP%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)95%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)2%

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Sixth Form (A-Level) Performance

A-level results for students who stayed in sixth form at this school. Value added measures how much progress students made relative to their GCSE starting point.

2025

A-Level Value Added

+0.17

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make above-average progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Grade Breakdown

Achieving A*4.7%

Achieving A*–A20.9%

Achieving A*–B48.6%

VA Banding Above average

Retention rate76.1%

A-level subjects offered24

2024

A-Level Value Added

+0.19

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make above-average progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

C+

Students

109

Retention rate89.90%

2023

Avg Grade

B-

Students

129

Retention rate89.10%

2022

Avg Grade

Students

154

Retention rate99.4%

Source: DfE A Level and Other 16-18 Results

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

29 April 2025

Inspection Report

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05 July 2022

Inspection Report

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06 September 2016

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

4 Evaluations

2025-04-29

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 1 EIF

Not Judged

info

Why no overall grade?

From autumn 2024, Ofsted stopped issuing a single headline grade (Outstanding / Good / RI / Inadequate). Instead, each inspection area is graded individually. This follows a major review after the death of headteacher Ruth Perry in 2023. The overall effectiveness field is left as "Not judged" in the published data.

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2022-07-05

S5 Inspection EIF

Requires improvement

Education

Good

Behaviour

Requires improvement

Development

Requires improvement

Leadership

Requires improvement

2014-03-27

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

2008-09-17

None EIF

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

2.0%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

1.6%(30 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 1,834 pupils. During this period, there were 37 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 2.0%, 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)	1,834	37	2.0%	7.3%	0
2024/25 (Autumn term)	1,841	41	2.2%	7.8%	1
2023/24 (Summer term)	1,791	17	0.9%	7.4%	1
2023/24 (Spring term)	1,804	23	1.3%	7.1%	0
2023/24 (Autumn term)	1,813	29	1.6%	8.2%	0
2022/23 (Summer term)	1,825	42	2.3%	6.6%	1
2022/23 (Spring term)	1,839	32	1.7%	6.4%	1
2022/23 (Autumn term)	1,851	26	1.4%	5.9%	1
2021/22 (Summer term)	1,897	29	1.5%	4.7%	2
2021/22 (Spring term)	1,909	20	1.0%	4.9%	2
2021/22 (Autumn term)	1,920	16	0.8%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	1,930	27	1.4%	3.6%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	1,932	6	0.3%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	1,937	16	0.8%	3.9%	1
2019/20 (Summer term)	1,877	1	0.1%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	1,877	19	1.0%	3.2%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	1,877	13	0.7%	4.2%	1
2018/19 (Summer term)	1,823	9	0.5%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	1,829	5	0.3%	3.8%	1
2018/19 (Autumn term)	1,825	11	0.6%	3.8%	2
2017/18 (Summer term)	1,780	9	0.5%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	1,781	4	0.2%	3.0%	1
2017/18 (Autumn term)	1,799	10	0.6%	3.7%	2
2016/17 (Summer term)	1,843	18	1.0%	3.0%	2
2016/17 (Spring term)	1,847	20	1.1%	3.3%	1
2016/17 (Autumn term)	1,864	10	0.5%	3.1%	0

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.

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 77 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 50 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 46 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 35 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 13 pupils

Physical Disability 5 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 4 pupils

Hearing Impairment 3 pupils

Visual Impairment 2 pupils

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Thorpe St Andrew School and Sixth Form

School Summary

Academic Performance

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

Student Destinations (After Secondary)

Sixth Form (A-Level) Performance

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 Norfolk

Notre Dame High School, Norwich

Hethersett Academy

Wymondham College

Jane Austen College

Wymondham High Academy

Wayland Academy