SCHOOL PROFILE

Whitelands Academy

Secondary Free schools URN 147872
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 600 Published school capacity
Capacity used 94.2% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 11 – 16 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

10 January 2023
Latest published outcome Good
OEIF
Quality of education Good
Behaviour & attitudes Good
Personal development Outstanding
Leadership & management Good
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Free schools
Phase Secondary
Gender Mixed
Religious character —
Local authority Oxfordshire
Trust THE WHITE HORSE FEDERATION
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 565 565 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 247 43.7% of pupils
Male pupils 318 56.3% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

20.0%
4.8 pts below England
School 20.0%
Cherwell 15.9%
South East 19.0%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

20.0%
0.3 pts below England
School 20.0%
Cherwell 20.0%
South East 15.6%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

1.8%
0.8 pts above England
School 1.8%
Cherwell 0.9%
South East 1.7%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
63.9%
361
Any other White background
8.7%
49
Chinese
5.0%
28
Any other Mixed background
2.8%
16
Any other Asian background
2.7%
15
White and Black Caribbean
2.7%
15
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 25.7% 145 of 565 pupils
4.8 pts above England England: 20.8%
School 25.7%
Cherwell 24.7%
South East 21.1%
England 20.8%
SEN support 20.5% 116 pupils
England 14.8% 5.7 pts above
EHC plans 5.1% 29 pupils
England 6.0% 0.9 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Social, emotional & mental health 42
Moderate learning difficulty 30
Autistic spectrum disorder 29
Specific learning difficulty 27
Speech, language & communication 5
Physical disability 3

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

46.4 7.2 pts above England
School 46.4
Cherwell 37.4
South East 38.5
England 39.2
English & maths grade 5+ 53.5% England 36.0% 17.5 pts above England
English & maths grade 4+ 71.1% England 51.4% 19.7 pts above England
EBacc entry 62.3% England 30.6% 31.7 pts above England
EBacc average point score 4.26 England 3.41
Progress 8 Not available for 2024/25

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

9.88%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

3.66 pts higher than England
School 9.88%
Cherwell 6.02%
South East 6.30%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

24.26%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

8.45 pts higher than England
School 24.26%
Cherwell 14.72%
South East 15.75%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

7.21%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

5.41 pts higher than England
School 7.21%
Cherwell 1.81%
South East 1.93%
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

94.2% 1.8 pts above England
Whitelands Academy
94.2%
Cherwell
87.1%
South East
95.0%
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