Crowdys Hill School

Crowdys Hill School is a special school for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and it continues to be judged good across all inspected areas: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and sixth-form provision. Inspectors found a nurturing, safe environment where pupils are happy, behave well and benefit from high expectations. The curriculum is ambitious and well designed around pupils’ needs, with a strong emphasis on communication, early reading and preparation for adulthood. Pupils also benefit from a wide range of enrichment, including the school farm and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award activities, and safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe, supported and happy in a nurturing environment.
• All pupils have SEND, and the school maintains high ambitions for their achievement.
• The curriculum is coherent and well designed to build life skills for adulthood.
• Communication and early reading are taught well and progress seamlessly across phases.
• Personal development is well thought through, with relevant PSHE and wide enrichment opportunities.
• Strong staff-pupil relationships promote good behaviour and motivation.
• Sixth-form students develop confidence, teamwork and work readiness, with most progressing to further training or employment.
• Governance has improved significantly and now supports and challenges leaders effectively.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Some staff do not have sufficient depth of subject knowledge to adapt learning precisely to pupils’ needs.
• Assessment information from regular checks is not used effectively enough to inform curriculum development.
• Some pupils, particularly in the sixth form, still do not attend well.

In 2024–25 pupils at Crowdys Hill School attended 91.3% of sessions (the national figure for special schools was 87.2%). 24.3% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 35.3%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.9% of pupils at Crowdys Hill School were suspended at least once (nationally 5.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Crowdys Hill School had 7.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for special schools was 6.6). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.5%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26 Crowdys Hill School had 348 pupils, 100.0% of them with an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 99.5%).

It says it provides for: specific learning difficulty; moderate learning difficulty; social, emotional and mental health; speech, language and communication needs; hearing impairment; physical disability; autistic spectrum disorder; other difficulty or disability.

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded special school schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Crowdys Hill School received £26,374 and spent £27,312 for each of its 348 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £294,000 (£846 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Swindon · Swindon local authority: places and applications

What is Crowdys Hill School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Crowdys Hill School is Good, from an inspection in September 2025.

When was Crowdys Hill School last inspected by Ofsted?

Crowdys Hill School was last inspected in September 2025.

How many pupils does Crowdys Hill School have?

Crowdys Hill School has 348 pupils on roll.

What age range does Crowdys Hill School cover?

Crowdys Hill School for pupils aged 4 to 19.

What are Crowdys Hill School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 0% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Crowdys Hill School?

Crowdys Hill School is at Jefferies Avenue, Swindon, Wiltshire, SN2 7HJ.