SCHOOL PROFILE

Fakenham Academy

Secondary Academy sponsor led URN 139572
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 750 Published school capacity
Capacity used 96.4% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 11 – 18 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest ungraded inspection

9 October 2024
Latest published outcome Standards maintained
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Academy sponsor led
Phase Secondary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Does not apply
Local authority Norfolk
Trust SAPIENTIA EDUCATION TRUST
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 723 723 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 392 54.2% of pupils
Male pupils 331 45.8% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

23.1%
1.7 pts below England
School 23.1%
North Norfolk 22.8%
East of England 19.7%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

5.4%
14.9 pts below England
School 5.4%
North Norfolk 4.3%
East of England 16.4%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.3%
0.7 pts below England
School 0.3%
North Norfolk 1.8%
East of England 1.7%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
91.8%
664
Any other White background
3.2%
23
White and Asian
1.4%
10
Indian
1.1%
8
African
0.6%
4
Unclassified
0.6%
4
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 21.3% 154 of 723 pupils
0.5 pts above England England: 20.8%
School 21.3%
North Norfolk 28.5%
East of England 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 17.2% 124 pupils
England 14.8% 2.4 pts above
EHC plans 4.2% 30 pupils
England 6.0% 1.9 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Social, emotional & mental health 52
Specific learning difficulty 44
Speech, language & communication 27
Autistic spectrum disorder 14
Moderate learning difficulty 7
Physical disability 4

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 4 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
ATTAINMENT 8

Average attainment score

40.9 1.7 pts above England
School 40.9
North Norfolk 35.3
East of England 40.4
England 39.2
English & maths grade 5+ 35.2% England 36.0% 0.8 pts below England
English & maths grade 4+ 55.5% England 51.4% 4.1 pts above England
EBacc entry 61.7% England 30.6% 31.1 pts above England
EBacc average point score 3.63 England 3.41
Progress 8 Not available for 2024/25

Latest published: -0.12 · 2023/24

Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority 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

8.54%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

2.32 pts higher than England
School 8.54%
North Norfolk 6.63%
East of England 6.17%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

25.23%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

9.41 pts higher than England
School 25.23%
North Norfolk 17.51%
East of England 15.39%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

4.98%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

3.18 pts higher than England
School 4.98%
North Norfolk 1.80%
East of England 1.83%
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 secondary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

96.4% 4.1 pts above England
Fakenham Academy
96.4%
North Norfolk
90.8%
East of England
92.9%
England
92.3%
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