Forest Academy

Forest Academy is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating across all areas including the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. The school has created a positive and inclusive environment where pupils feel safe and valued, and it emphasizes high expectations for all students, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). With a broad curriculum and effective teaching practices, pupils are generally achieving well, contributing to a culture of respect and support within the school community.

Strengths

• Welcoming atmosphere for pupils of diverse backgrounds
• Ambitious and well-ordered curriculum
• Staff have strong relationships with pupils
• Effective personal, social and health education (PSHE) program
• High expectations for all pupils, including those with SEND
• Strong subject knowledge among teachers
• Emphasis on reading across the curriculum
• High attendance and pupils behave well

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistencies in checking pupils' understanding
• Some subjects' curriculum sequencing not fully embedded

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 Forest Academy attended 94.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 18.2% 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, 6.2% of pupils at Forest Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 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 Forest Academy had 11.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 27.4% 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, 13.9% of pupils at Forest Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.6% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

The school has resourced provision with 18 pupils.

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 Forest Academy received £11,303 and spent £10,368 for each of its 826 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,649,000 (£1,997 per pupil).

Across all 2 schools of Beacon Multi-Academy Trust Limited, income was £8,451 and spending £8,324 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 Redbridge · Redbridge local authority: places and applications

Forest Academy is part of Beacon Multi-Academy Trust Limited, which runs 2 schools. The nearest others:

• Beal High School Ilford

What is Forest Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Forest Academy is Good, from an inspection in March 2023.

When was Forest Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Forest Academy was last inspected in March 2023.

How many pupils does Forest Academy have?

Forest Academy has 749 pupils on roll.

What age range does Forest Academy cover?

Forest Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Forest Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 41.3, and 33% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Forest Academy?

Forest Academy is at Harbourer Road, Hainault, Ilford, Essex, IG6 3TN.