Farlingaye High School

Farlingaye High School is a large, community-centred secondary school and sixth form in the East Anglian Schools Trust. Inspectors found a happy, inclusive school where pupils are polite, mature and well behaved. The personal development and wellbeing programme and the sixth form are particular strengths: pupils benefit from an ethos of 'opportunity everywhere', a wide enrichment offer, strong careers guidance, and an inclusive post-16 provision that prepares students well for university, employment or apprenticeships. Safeguarding standards are met. GCSE outcomes are broadly in line with national averages, and pupils, including those with SEND, make progress from their starting points. The curriculum is ambitious and logically sequenced, teaching is generally effective, and leadership and governance are sound, with staff feeling well supported. However, attendance is a clear concern. It has been below the national average over time, persistent absence is above average, and support for pupils showing early signs of persistent absence has not been timely enough. Disadvantaged pupils' outcomes also dipped recently, particularly in English and maths, although leaders have better oversight and strategies in place now. The inspection identifies two main next steps: improving attendance, especially for pupils at risk of persistent absence and those from disadvantaged backgrounds, and ensuring teachers consistently check pupils' understanding so that gaps and misconceptions are addressed. On occasion, teaching does not spot these gaps, which can slow pupils' progress. Behaviour remains a strength, with pupils showing exemplary conduct and bullying being dealt with swiftly and effectively.

Strengths

• Comprehensive personal development and wellbeing programme is central to school life.
• Pupils benefit from an ethos of 'opportunity everywhere' and extensive enrichment, trips and leadership opportunities.
• Personal, social and health education is carefully sequenced and tailored to pupils' emerging needs and local context.
• Pupils' views shape the personal development curriculum, making it relevant and engaging.
• Extra-curricular participation is rigorously tracked so all pupils can access the offer.
• Careers advice is robust, tailored and woven through the subject curriculum.
• The sixth form is inclusive and ambitious, with a wide range of study programmes.
• Sixth form students make rapid progress from their starting points and move on to prestigious universities, employment or apprenticeships.
• The curriculum is ambitious, logically sequenced and supports recall and application of important knowledge.
• Teachers demonstrate secure subject knowledge and adapt teaching to support pupils with SEND.
• The school is inclusive and works with families and external professionals to break down barriers to learning.
• Leaders and governors know the school's context well and use data effectively.
• Staff feel well supported, with workload well managed and wellbeing prioritised.
• Pupils behave with integrity and maturity around the school, and suspension rates have decreased.
• Pupils say bullying is dealt with swiftly and effectively, and leaders oversee this robustly.
• Pupils are happy, polite and proud of their community-centred school.
• Destinations after 16 are above national averages.

Areas for Improvement

• Attendance over time has been below the national average, leaving some pupils with gaps in learning.
• Persistent absence is above the national average.
• Support for pupils showing early signs of persistent absenteeism is not timely enough and is in its early stages.
• Disadvantaged pupils' outcomes dipped recently, especially in English and maths GCSE and Attainment 8.
• The disadvantage gap is wider than national for several measures.
• On occasion, teachers do not identify gaps or misconceptions in pupils' knowledge, so some pupils do not develop as well as they could.
• Leaders' work to improve attendance requires further development, particularly for pupils at risk of persistent absence and disadvantaged pupils.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Farlingaye High School attended 89.8% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 29.0% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

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, 5.0% of pupils at Farlingaye High School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 3 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 Farlingaye High School had 16.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.6% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

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, 11.0% of pupils at Farlingaye High School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.0% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

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 secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Farlingaye High School received £7,809 and spent £7,518 for each of its 1,883 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £2,520,000 (£1,338 per pupil).

Across all 10 schools of East Anglian Schools Trust Ltd, income was £7,560 and spending £7,510 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Woodbridge · Suffolk local authority: places and applications

Farlingaye High School is part of East Anglian Schools Trust Ltd, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• Kyson Primary School Woodbridge
• Kesgrave High School Ipswich
• Wickham Market Primary School Woodbridge
• Easton Primary School Woodbridge
• Holbrook Academy Ipswich
• Saxmundham Primary School Saxmundham
• Aldeburgh Primary School Aldeburgh
• Leiston Primary School Leiston
• Bungay High School Bungay
• Castle EAST School Bungay

What is Farlingaye High School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Farlingaye High School is Needs attention, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Farlingaye High School last inspected by Ofsted?

Farlingaye High School was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Farlingaye High School have?

Farlingaye High School has 1,861 pupils on roll.

What age range does Farlingaye High School cover?

Farlingaye High School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Farlingaye High School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 45.2, and 42% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Farlingaye High School?

Farlingaye High School is at Ransom Road, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 4JX.