Iceni Secondary Academy

Iceni Secondary Academy is a safe, calm and orderly school where pupils like attending and behave well. The school has made important progress since its previous inspection, particularly in resetting behaviour and improving personal development, and safeguarding is effective. It is part of the Academy Transformation Trust, has a principal appointed in September 2023, and became an 11–16 school in September 2024 after the primary phase separated. The proportion of pupils with SEND has risen significantly and is well above the national average. The curriculum has been revised and is now broad and ambitious, with some strong practice, for example in mathematics. Teaching is mostly effective and staff receive high-quality training. However, the quality of education still requires improvement. Some pupils carry historical gaps in knowledge from previously weak curriculum delivery and low expectations, and the school does not assess or address these gaps well enough. Pupils with SEND are identified accurately, but support is not always precise enough, so some do not learn as well as they should. Attendance is improving from a low base, though some pupils remain frequently absent. Leaders, trustees and governors have acted with urgency and know what needs to improve further. The main priorities are to provide precise support for pupils with SEND, use assessment more effectively to close gaps in prior learning, and improve communication and engagement with parents so that more families understand the school’s improvement work.

Strengths

• Pupils are safe, calm and orderly, and they like attending the school.
• Pupils benefit from strong, caring relationships with committed staff.
• Behaviour is good: pupils conduct themselves well and bullying is not typical.
• The personal development programme builds positive character traits and values.
• Pupils enjoy a range of opportunities, including sport and drama, and initiate new ones such as the school magazine.
• The curriculum is now broad and ambitious, with strong practice in mathematics.
• Staff receive high-quality training, and teaching often explains and models learning effectively.
• Reading is a high priority, and the weakest readers get help to access the curriculum.
• The school identifies SEND accurately and provides well-considered support, including around attendance.
• Careers advice and preparation for life in a changing world are effective.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• The trust and governors work closely with leaders to support staff well-being.

Areas for Improvement

• The quality of education requires improvement.
• Pupils have historical gaps in knowledge from previous weak curriculum delivery and low expectations.
• Assessment is not used effectively enough to identify and address gaps in pupils’ prior learning.
• Some pupils with SEND do not receive precise enough support and do not learn as well as they should.
• Some pupils have high absence, although attendance is improving from a low base.
• The school does not communicate or engage with parents as well as it could, so some do not see the improvements made.

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 Iceni Secondary Academy attended 88.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 28.3% 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, 20.4% of pupils at Iceni Secondary Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 2 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 Iceni Secondary Academy had 18.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.6% 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, 21.6% of pupils at Iceni Secondary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.8% 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 Iceni Secondary Academy received £9,261 and spent £9,052 for each of its 584 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £104,000 (£178 per pupil).

Across all 21 schools of Academy Transformation Trust, income was £9,055 and spending £8,540 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 King'S Lynn And West Norfolk · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

Iceni Secondary Academy is part of Academy Transformation Trust, which runs 21 schools. The nearest others:

• Iceni Primary Academy Hockwold Cum Wilton
• The Nicholas Hamond Academy Swaffham
• Beck Row Primary Academy Bury St Edmunds
• Great Heath Academy Bury St Edmunds
• Mildenhall College Academy Mildenhall
• Westbourne Academy Ipswich
• Ravens Academy Clacton-On-Sea
• Kingsmoor Academy Harlow
• The Hathaway Academy Grays
• The Dukeries Academy Newark

What is Iceni Secondary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Iceni Secondary Academy is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in January 2025.

When was Iceni Secondary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Iceni Secondary Academy was last inspected in January 2025.

How many pupils does Iceni Secondary Academy have?

Iceni Secondary Academy has 555 pupils on roll.

What age range does Iceni Secondary Academy cover?

Iceni Secondary Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Iceni Secondary Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 37.3, and 26% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Iceni Secondary Academy?

Iceni Secondary Academy is at Stoke Road, Methwold, Thetford, Norfolk, IP26 4PE.