SCHOOL PROFILE

The Forest Academy

Primary Academy sponsor led URN 139136
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 253 Published school capacity
Capacity used 136.8% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 3 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

2 February 2023
Latest published outcome Outstanding
OEIF
Quality of education Outstanding
Behaviour & attitudes Outstanding
Personal development Outstanding
Leadership & management Outstanding
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Academy sponsor led
Phase Primary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Does not apply
Local authority Barnsley
Trust WELLSPRING ACADEMY TRUST
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 346 321 full-time · 25 part-time
Female pupils 175 50.6% of pupils
Male pupils 171 49.4% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

39.3%
14.5 pts above England
School 39.3%
Barnsley 29.7%
Yorkshire and The Humber 27.7%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

22.8%
2.5 pts above England
School 22.8%
Barnsley 8.6%
Yorkshire and The Humber 17.9%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.0%
1.0 pts below England
School 0.0%
Barnsley 0.3%
Yorkshire and The Humber 0.4%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
71.7%
248
Any other White background
19.4%
67
African
4.3%
15
White and Black African
1.7%
6
Any other Mixed background
0.9%
3
Any other Asian background
0.6%
2
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 18.5% 64 of 346 pupils
2.3 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 18.5%
Barnsley 20.9%
Yorkshire and The Humber 20.9%
England 20.8%
SEN support 15.3% 53 pupils
England 14.8% 0.5 pts above
EHC plans 3.2% 11 pupils
England 6.0% 2.9 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Speech, language & communication 31
Specific learning difficulty 14
Social, emotional & mental health 12
Moderate learning difficulty 6
Autistic spectrum disorder 1

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 2 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading, writing & maths

70.0% 9.6 pts above England
School 70.0%
Barnsley 64.7%
Yorkshire and The Humber 60.2%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

74.0%

0.2 pts above England

School 74.0%
Barnsley 75.8%
Yorkshire and The Humber 72.8%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

70.0%

0.3 pts below England

School 70.0%
Barnsley 72.1%
Yorkshire and The Humber 70.2%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

74.0%

2.0 pts above England

School 74.0%
Barnsley 76.9%
Yorkshire and The Humber 71.9%
England 72.0%
School results show the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard. Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages and are not pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

6.08%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.14 pts lower than England
School 6.08%
Barnsley 6.02%
Yorkshire and The Humber 6.13%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

17.63%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

1.81 pts higher than England
School 17.63%
Barnsley 14.48%
Yorkshire and The Humber 15.55%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

1.80%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.01 pts lower than England
School 1.80%
Barnsley 1.88%
Yorkshire and The Humber 1.77%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open primary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

136.8% 48.6 pts above England
The Forest Academy
136.8%
Barnsley
97.1%
Yorkshire and The Humber
88.6%
England
88.2%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information