Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy

Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy is maintaining the standards identified during its previous inspection, demonstrating effective leadership under headteacher Nicola Parker-Watts. The school prioritizes pupils' safety and well-being, providing a nurturing environment where they can thrive academically and socially. With a focus on character development and opportunities for pupils to engage in extracurricular activities, the school fosters a strong sense of community and belonging. However, there are areas for improvement, particularly in ensuring consistent methods for assessing learning across all subjects and enhancing engagement strategies in lessons.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe and enjoy attending school.
• Strong emphasis on character development and a values-driven approach.
• Well-sequenced curriculum with a focus on essential learning.
• Effective teaching of reading with targeted support.
• Positive behaviour and engagement in learning.
• Commitment to staff well-being and development.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent assessment processes in foundation subjects.
• Need for more effective behaviour strategies in some lessons.
• Some lesson delivery methods are not supporting pupil understanding effectively.

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 Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy attended 95.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.2% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

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, 0.2% of pupils at Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). 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 Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy had 25.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.9% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

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, 16.0% of pupils at Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.0% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

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

In 2024–25 Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy received £6,224 and spent £6,206 for each of its 433 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £475,000 (£1,098 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.

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What is Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy is Good, from an inspection in April 2025.

When was Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy was last inspected in April 2025.

How many pupils does Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy have?

Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy has 462 pupils on roll.

What age range does Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy cover?

Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 72% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy?

Armthorpe Shaw Wood Academy is at Mere Lane, Armthorpe, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, DN3 2DG.